ENG-1994 — Page 78

THE LEGAL SYSTEM

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Hong Kong and also, the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London. Such aid is available to any person in Hong Kong, resident or non-resident, who is able to satisfy the Director of Legal Aid on financial eligibility (the means test) and the justification for legal action (the merits test).

Under the means test, a person whose disposable financial resources, including both income and capital, do not exceed $120,000 is eligible for legal aid. In calculating an applicant's disposable financial resources, the value of his owner-occupied home, tax payments and contributions to retirement schemes, in addition to various allowances for the support of himself and his dependants, are deducted. In criminal cases, the Director of Legal Aid has a discretion to grant legal aid to an applicant who fails the means test, if it is in the interests of justice to do so. Legal aid is provided either free of charge or on payment of a graduated contribution, depending on the disposable financial resources of the aided person.

The Director of Legal Aid will assign the case either to a private lawyer or to one of the department's own lawyers in its Litigation Division.

Legal Aid in Civil Cases

In civil cases, apart from financial eligibility, an applicant must satisfy the Director of Legal Aid that he has reasonable grounds for pursuing or defending a legal action.

Legal aid is available for a wide range of civil proceedings, including traffic accident claims, landlord and tenant disputes, claims in respect of industrial accidents, employees' compensation, immigration matters, breach of contract, professional negligence and every branch of family law. Admiralty, bankruptcy and companies winding-up proceedings are also undertaken by the Legal Aid Department, the majority of which deal with employees' wages and severance pay.

An applicant who is refused legal aid may appeal against such refusal to the Registrar of the Supreme Court, or in Privy Council cases, to a committee of review.

The department's total expenditure for 1994 was $106 million in civil cases. During the year, 20 328 applications were received, out of which 7 066 were granted legal aid. Altogether, $433 million was recovered for the aided persons.

The Director of Legal Aid also operates the Supplementary Legal Aid Scheme, which provides legal assistance to persons whose resources exceed the financial limits under the ordinary legal aid scheme but are not sufficient to meet the high costs of conducting litigation on a private basis. The scheme is self-financing, funded by contributions from damages or compensation recovered. The scheme is available for civil claims in the High Court, the Court of Appeal and certain claims in the District Court for damages and compensation for death or personal injuries. An applicant with financial resources exceeding $120,000, but not exceeding $280,000, is eligible to apply. A successful litigant under the scheme pays 10 to 12.5 per cent of the damages or compensation recovered. The total expenditure of the scheme in 1994 was $5 million. A total of 100 applications were received, out of which 57 were granted legal aid.

Legal Aid in Criminal Cases

In criminal cases, legal aid is available for representation in proceedings in the High Court and District Court, in the Magistrates' Courts (where the prosecution is seeking committal