Media

 

The Faculty of Law is honoured to receive and display the court dresses donated by the Hon Andrew Li, Chief Justice of the Court of Final Appeal (1997-2010) and stage the permanent exhibition “De Lege Lata” on Hong Kong Legal System and the Legal Profession.

The Hon Andrew Li, the first Chief Justice of the Court of Final Appeal (HKSAR Information Services Department photo)

During the unveiling, Mr Li thanks the Faculty for providing a “permanent home” for the judicial and professional uniform which he has worn “day in and day out for 37 years: 13 years on the bench and 24 years at the Bar”. Also the uniform “reminds the judge and the advocate of their important professional duties”.  The Former Chief Justice stresses that “the rule of law with an independent Judiciary is of pivotal importance to Hong Kong under one country two systems” and “vigilance must be exercised at all times by all of us to ensure that any attempt to undermine our freedoms, freedoms include of course the freedom of speech and the freedom of the press, is overcome and that our freedoms are fully protected.”

Professor Johannes Chan, SC (Hon), Dean of the Faculty of Law, thanks Mr Li for his generosity and thoughtfulness. The Dean, who himself is a Senior Counsel, believes that the display, coupled with the exhibition De Lege Lata (The law as it is) introducing the tradition of the legal system and legal profession, would encourage public understanding in the rule of Law and our legal system. “We have a legal system that we can be proud of, a legal system that has a rich culture and history, and a legal system that vigilantly upholds noble and important values.” The display of the court dresses would also “serve as a constant reminder to each generation of law students their important and yet honoured responsibility to uphold the rule of law and to safeguard vigilantly our freedoms and liberty”.

The occasion also marks the publication of Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal: The Development of the Law in China’s Hong Kong, so far the most comprehensive review of the Court of Final Appeal, and how it, under Mr Li’s able leadership, discharged its responsibility of preserving the rule of law, especially in the critical period after the transfer of sovereignty of Hong Kong, edited by Professor Simon Young and Professor Yash Ghai.

The speech of the Hon Andrew Li: http://www.cpao.hku.hk/media/140313Speech_e.doc

About the Exhibition De Lege Lata:
Exhibition - Open to the public throughout the year
Display of court dress – Reservation required
(details will be available on www.hku.hk/law)
Venue:   7/F Cheng Yu Tung Tower, Centennial Campus, the University of Hong Kong

For media enquiries, please contact: Ms Rachel Li (Faculty Development Officer) tel: 3917 2919; email: lirachel@hku.hk.

Judicial Robe (Court of Final Appeal) donated by the Hon Andrew Li

(Left) The Hon Andrew Li's Barrister Attire (Senior Counsel); (Right) Barrister's gown