New Book by Wilson Lui and Anselmo Reyes: Hong Kong Private International Law

Hong Kong Private International Law
Wilson Lui (Pre-Doctoral Fellow 2022–23), Anselmo Reyes
Hart Publishing
Published in March 2025
488 pp.

Description: This book is a one-stop reference to Hong Kong private international law.

It provides clear expositions on questions of jurisdiction, choice of law, recognition and enforcement, transnational arbitration, and inter-regional and international harmonisation of Hong Kong conflict of laws. It covers a range of areas, including the law of obligations at common law and in equity, the law of real and personal property, intellectual property law, family law, company law, insolvency and bankruptcy law, competition law, and admiralty law. It includes discussions of cross-border dispute resolution, jurisdiction and choice of law clauses.

The book focuses on the practical issues, emphasising the rapidly developing local jurisprudence of recent years. It also offers theoretical insights and suggestions for law reform when appropriate. Moreover, it systematically analyses conflict of laws issues arising out of inter-regional cases between Hong Kong on the one hand and Mainland China, Taiwan, and Macao on the other.

The book will be indispensable to judges, practitioners, scholars, and students in Hong Kong, Greater China, Asia, and worldwide.

A book launch will be held by the Asian Institute of International Financial Law (AIIFL) at HKU Law on Tuesday 29 April 2025. Details and registration are available here.

HKU Law Champion in HSF Competition Law Moot 2024

The oral rounds of the 2024 Herbert Smith Freehills Competition Law Moot were held at King’s College London on 14-15 June 2024. The HKU Team consisted of Chan King Hei (BBA (Law) & LLB 3), Connor Gregory (LLM (CFL)), Lee Zee Faith (LLB 4), and Wong Ching Ho (PCLL). Based on EU competition law, the moot problem raised several issues concerning potentially abusive practices under Article 102 of the TFEU, the scope of the single economic entity doctrine under Article 101 TFEU, and the applicable standard of proof in EU competition law proceedings.

After surviving the preliminary rounds and two elimination rounds, the HKU Team advanced to the final round against Utrecht University from the Netherlands. There, the Team defended its case against a series of challenging questions from the judging panel, chaired by The Right Hon Lady Rose of Colmworth, Justice of the UK Supreme Court. The HKU Team ultimately emerged as the Champion, marking the fourth time HKU has won the competition since its inauguration in 2015. 

The HKU Team with the judges of the final round.
(Left to right): Ronan Flanagan (judge), Connor Gregory, Chan King Hei, Lee Zee Faith, Wong Ching Ho, The Right Hon Lady Rose of Colmworth (judge), Professor Alison Jones (judge),  William Kovacic (judge), Stephen Wisking (judge) 

In addition, the Team took home 3 individual awards in recognition of their advocacy skills, including Best Advocate for Connor Gregory and honourable mentions for Lee Zee Faith and Wong Ching Ho. The team’s written pleadings were also ranked 2nd out of 49 participating teams.

The Team would like to express their sincerest gratitude to Professor Thomas Cheng, Professor Kelvin Kwok, and Ms Allison Wong for their support and guidance. The Team would also like to thank the practice moot judges, Mr Byron Chiu, Mr Peter Dong, Mr Alex Yeung, Ms Clara Wong, Mr Martin Lau, and Mr Zixin Jiang, for their kind assistance and constructive feedback.

(Left to right): Professor Thomas Cheng, Chan King Hei, Connor Gregory, Lee Zee Faith, Wong Ching Ho, Ms Allison Wong

Professor Marco Wan elected as Fellow of the Hong Kong Academy of the Humanities

Congratulations to Professor Marco Wan, who has been elected as a Fellow of the Hong Kong Academy of the Humanities. The Academy honors the most distinguished scholars and practitioners of the humanities in Hong Kong, nurtures promising early-to-mid-career academics, and plays a major role in advancing the humanities. Professor Wan is the first legal scholar to be elected to the Academy.

Professor Wan’s research focuses on the intersections between law and the humanities — especially literature, film, and the visual arts — as well as constitutional law and legal theory. He is the author of Film and Constitutional Controversy (Cambridge University Press, 2021) and Masculinity and the Trials of Modern Fiction (Routledge, 2017; winner of the biennial Penny Pether Prize from the Law, Literature, and Humanities Association of Australasia). His recent work explores how the arts engage with ideas about rights and justice in a global context; a special issue on world literature and law, which he is co-editing with Professor Peter Goodrich, is forthcoming in Law & Literature later this year.

The list of Fellows of the Hong Kong Academy of the Humanities is available here.

Puspa Pokharel on Interface between the Judiciary and National Human Rights Institutions (Brill book chapter)

"Interface between the Judiciary and National Human Rights Institutions: A Means to Ensure Effective Remedies for Business-Related Human Rights Abuses?"
Puspa Pokharel (PhD Candidate)
in Andreas R. Ziegler (ed), Damiano Canapa (ed), and Maria Izabel Cardozo (ed), Business and Human Rights (Brill, March 2025),Chapter 14, pp. 387-406

Introduction: This chapter deals with the means of interface between the judiciary and National Human Rights Institutions (“nhris”) to ensure effective remedies to the victims of business-related human rights abuses. While nhris are considered as one of the state-based non-judicial grievance mechanisms for redressing the human rights abuses by business enterprises, lack of enforcement of their recommendations questions the overall effectiveness of the mechanism. This chapter thus looks into the fundamental relationship, including the interconnection and interaction, between the judiciary and nhris to ensure the enforceability of the nhris’ recommendations to have an actual outcome for the victims.

In the first section, the chapter provides the general background as to how nhris have been incorporated within the business and human rights regime and what are their expected roles within the regime. For the matter, the United Nations Guiding Principles, 2011 (“ungps”) is the primary instrument considered for the study. The second section deals with the concept and ways of interface between the judiciary and nhris. It explores the possible avenues to ensure the enforceability of the nhris’ recommendations. The third section considers the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand (“nhrct”) and National Human Rights Commission of Nepal (“nhrcn”) as case studies. The associated laws that provide grounds for the interface between these two state institutions are identified and analyzed. The chapter also explores the possibilities of interface for cases that have extra-territorial implications. While doing so, the possible challenges associated with them and recommendations are also discussed.

New Issue of Hong Kong Law Journal (Vol. 54, Part 3 of 2024)

HONG KONG LAW JOURNAL
Vol. 54, Part 3 of 2024

Editor-in-Chief: Prof. Eric C Ip

Publisher: Sweet & Maxwell

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Articles

Law and Justice
Kemal Bokhary...581

Legal Bilingualism in Medieval Europe and Hong Kong
Carlye Chu...589

Administrative Detention and Unreasonable Applicants: What Can Hong Kong Administrative Law Offer
Edward Lui...601

“Culture Matters”: Expedited Arbitration and Arb-Med in Macau
Hugo Luz dos Santos and Leong Cheng Hang...615

Judicial Copying in Hong Kong
Anfield Tam...639

Illegality Allegations in International Investment Arbitration
Xu Qian and Shiyang Li...657

Crimes in Virtual Spaces? A Case Study of the Metaverse Sexual Assault Incident
Zhicheng Wang and Xiaoyu Yang...681

Book Reviews

Hualing Fu and Michael Hor (eds), The National Security Law of Hong Kong: Restoration and Transformation
Stuart Hargreaves...699

Anne Carter, Proportionality and Facts in Constitutional Adjudication
Cora Chan...711

Kemal Bokhary on Law and Justice (HKLJ)

"Law and Justice"
Kemal Bokhary
Hong Kong Law Journal, Vol. 54, Part 3 of 2024, pp.579 - 585

Abstract: Law and justice, to a lawyer who has spent a working lifetime in court, dwell in the judicial administration of justice according to law, which is a joint effort of bench, profession and academy. Justice is to be delivered with ease, certainty and dispatch. Litigation is apt to cause litigants anxiety, distress and annoyance, making demands on their time, effort and finances. We must try to ease that. Compromise can restore harmony. Fighting to the bitter end perpetuates enmity. As for certainty, unclear laws are useless. Dispatch avoids denying justice by delaying it. As to the order of priority between them, finality is good but justice is better. The earliest forms of procedure ousted anarchy, but the procedure even of the fairly recent past had many defects. Those defects sometimes caused injustice. Nowadays, rules of procedure are understood to serve, not clog, justice. Looking at old decisions, we sometimes see situations in which modem procedure would produce fairer results. The letter of the law is the law’s body while its sense ad reason is its soul. Constitutional cases are to be decided with fidelity to the constitution’s letter and spirit, and to accord with the highest ideals of the people at their best. For every wrong there is a legal remedy. But it need not be a common law remedy. Fundamental principles must be certain in essence, but flexibly applied as circumstances require. Access to the courts is an arterial right, being the avenue for seeking judicial justice. Public interest litigation should be funded so that people are not prevented from bringing public interest cases for lack of funds, or deterred from bringing them by fear of being ruined by an adverse order as to costs. People will exercise their right of access to the courts if they are aware of that right, and have faith in the law and the courts. Let us be proactive in pursuing justice, and scholarly in discourse. Much remains to be done.

Edward Lui on Administrative Detention and Unreasonable Applicants: What Can Hong Kong Administrative Law Offer (HKLJ)

"Administrative Detention and Unreasonable Applicants: What Can Hong Kong Administrative Law Offer"
Edward Lui
Hong Kong Law Journal, Vol. 54, Part 3 of 2024, pp.599 - 612

Abstract: The Hardial Singh principles (derived from R v Governor of Durham Prison, ex parte Hardial Singh [1984] 1 WLR 704) are a well-established feature of Hong Kong administrative law, in the context of administrative detention. In Johnson Benjamin v Director of Immigration [2024] 1 HKLRD 582, the Court of Appeal discussed how these principles were to be applied — when the applicant had conducted himself unreasonably, and had thereby contributed to his own prolonged detention. This investigation of the Hardial Singh principles will be divided into two parts. First, concerning Benjamin itself: it will be suggested that the Court of Appeal’s analysis deserves significant attention for considering how the Hardial Singh principles will be applied in future cases, and may contain some interpretive ambiguities in this regard. Second, this article will then extend beyond Benjamin — and reflect more generally on the broader merits of the Hardial Singh principles. It will be contended that it may be opportune for the place of the Hardial Singh principles within Hong Kong administrative law to be reconsidered - and some arguments on either side of this possibility will be examined.

Anfield Tam on Judicial Copying in Hong Kong (HKLJ)

"Judicial Copying in Hong Kong"
Anfield Tam (PCLL student)
Hong Kong Law Journal, Vol. 54, Part 3 of 2024, pp.637 - 654

Abstract: Judicial copying is the practice where a judge directly imports text from counsel’s submissions or other sources as part of his judgment. It is said to have a detrimental impact on the administration of justice as it creates an impression of bias, especially when the judge incorporates extensive excerpts from one party’s submissions without original, independent analysis. This piece critically reviews the recent Court of Appeal (CA) decision in Wong To Yick Wood Lock Ointment Ltd v Singapore Medicine Co [2023] 3 HKLRD 311 to analyse its contributions with reference to comparative experiences, as well as raising a couple of problems that were left unanswered.

Book review of Anne Carter's Proportionality and Facts in Constitutional Adjudication by Cora Chan

"Anne Carter, Proportionality and Facts in Constitutional Adjudication"
Cora Chan
Hong Kong Law Journal, Vol. 54, Part 3 of 2024, pp.709 - 715

Introduction: In Proportionality and Facts in Constitutional Adjudication, Anne Carter examines how and why facts matter in the globally embraced multi-stage proportionality analysis that assesses whether a rights limitation pursues a legitimate aim and is rationally connected to the aim (“the suitability stage”), whether it is no more than necessary for achieving the aim (“the necessity stage”), and whether the harm to the right and benefit achieved by the limitation are fairly balanced (“the balancing stage”). Chapter 2, the first substantive chapter of the book, explains what questions of fact each stage of the proportionality test hinges on and how they relate to one another. Chapter 3 then goes on to categorise questions of fact, distinguishing the different kinds of factual issues that arise at the various stages. Next, Chapter 4 examines how the courts in Canada, Germany and South Africa treat questions of fact in constitutional adjudication, including whether they recognise such questions and how they find facts. Chapters 5 and 6 focus on Australian law. Chapter 5 examines the place of proportionality in Australian constitutional law, while Chapter 6 looks at how the Australian courts have treated questions of fact in proportionality analysis. The final substantive chapter, Chapter 7, fleshes out the procedural implications of taking facts seriously in proportionality analysis, highlighting unresolved questions in Australian law pertaining to the standard and burden of proof, the taking of judicial notice, and judicial deference. As well as suggesting directions for development, the chapter also examines the implications of facts changing over time for the issue of precedent.

Scott Veitch on The Art of Complicity (Law and Literature)

"The Art of Complicity"
Scott Veitch
Law & Literature
Published online: March 2025

Abstract: This article considers the relation between art and complicity in wrongdoing. To do so, it offers a series of reflections on the theme of ‘Apollo and Daphne’, a story told in Ovid’s Metamorphoses and given sculptural form in the seventeenth century by Gianlorenzo Bernini. By understanding Bernini’s creation within the political, legal, and religious conflicts of its time, it analyses how artworks resonate in their ambient culture and beyond. Finally, it addresses the relationships amongst art, artist, and audiences and the risk of complicity in wrongdoing they share.

Suhong Yang on Legitimacy of International and Hybrid Criminal Tribunals: Political, Normative, Economic, and Sociological Perspectives (Denver Journal of International Law & Policy)

"Legitimacy of International and Hybrid Criminal Tribunals: Political, Normative, Economic, and Sociological Perspectives"
Suhong Yang (Global Academic Fellow)
Denver Journal of International Law & Policy, Issue 53:1, pp. 1 - 50
Published in March 2025

Abstract: This article examines the legitimacy of international and hybrid criminal tribunals that try atrocities crimes in post-conflict situations. It addresses legitimacy from political, normative, economic, and sociological perspectives. Political legitimacy focuses on the creation of authority. Normative legitimacy emphasizes the criteria for justifications, considering justice, independence, fairness, legality, and effectiveness as metrics. Economic legitimacy explores the cost, i.e., time and money, to address cases, as delayed or expensive justice suffers. Sociological legitimacy reflects the acceptance of the institution by the public, focusing on audiences’ perceptions of legitimacy. Multi-layered audiences make determinations about an institution’s legitimacy based on their cognitions, which may relate to their culture, identity, and knowledge. Eventually, the least legitimacy requirement asks for (1) a proper authority of creation, (2) well-defined justice the court pursues,  (3) process with fairness, (4) independent, unbiased, and competent adjudicators, and (5) a certain degree of public trust especially among the affected populations.

Kai Tik Au Yeung on The Preference Accorded to General Principles Under Article 7(2) CISG (AsianJIL)

"The Preference Accorded to General Principles Under Article 7(2) CISG"
Kai Tik Au Yeung (LLB Graduate 2022 and PCLL Graduate 2023)
Asian Journal of International Law
Published online: March 2025

Abstract: Hong Kong has recently ratified the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (“CISG”). While Article 7(2) of the CISG acknowledges the potential incompleteness of the convention in addressing all issues it aims to govern and emphasizes the preference for seeking general principles within the CISG before resorting to domestic private international law, the extent of this preference remains unclear. This article highlights that while some scholars argue for private international law as a last resort, it is erroneous to suggest that the general principles embodied in the convention also include those exclusively stem from other international conventions. Such an approach would disregard the inherent international nature and proportionality envisioned by Article 7(1) of the CISG.

Shilun Zhou on Analysis of whether restorative justice and criminal justice are incompatible justice paradigms (CJR)

"Analysis of whether restorative justice and criminal justice are incompatible justice paradigms"
Shilun Zhou (PhD Candidate)
Contemporary Justice Review
Published online: February 2025

Abstract: This essay contends that restorative justice and criminal justice are not entirely incompatible, and that their compatibility at various stages of criminal justice in the Anglo-American legal system hinges upon the extent to which either the rights of the accused or the public interest are compromised at each stage. We argue that these paradigms are incompatible at the trial stage, compatible in the post-trial phase, and conditionally compatible in the pre-trial stage. This essay is divided into three sections. First, we describe the divergence between restorative and criminal justice, highlighting the incompatibility of restorative justice during the trial stage, as it contravenes the principle of defendant protection. Second, we analyse the pre-trial stage, arguing that restorative justice measures should be applied conditionally to balance the rights of the accused with those of the victim. Finally, we posit that restorative justice can be compatible with criminal justice, but cannot wholly replace criminal justice sanctions in the post-trial phase, in order to safeguard the public interest.

Yang Lin on Self-Regulatory ODR in China’s e-Commerce Market (Amicus Curiae)

"Self-Regulatory ODR in China’s e-Commerce Market : An Examination of Alibaba’s Taobao Platform and Crowdsourced ODR"
Yang Lin (PhD 2022)
Amicus Curiae
Published Online: February 2025

Abstract: This article explores the evolution and application of online dispute resolution (ODR) within China’s e-commerce landscape, focusing on the self-regulatory mechanisms employed by Alibaba’s Taobao platform. It provides an overview of China’s ODR development, analyses Taobao’s crowdsourced jury system as a case study, and examines the platform’s rulemaking and dispute resolution procedures. The analysis highlights Taobao’s ability to resolve disputes efficiently while addressing important challenges, such as transparency, data privacy and legal accountability. The study emphasizes Taobao’s role in shaping China’s e-commerce governance, underlining the need for balance between innovation and consumer trust in a rapidly expanding digital marketplace.

HKU Jessup Team crowned 2025 Hong Kong Overall Champion

(Left to right): Mr Thomas Lam (coach), Mr Fergus Tam (coach), Ally Chan, Veronica Yu, Chunghin Yue, Leo Pang

The HKU Jessup Team was declared the Hong Kong Overall Champion in the 2025 Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition on 2 March 2025. The Jessup Moot is also known as one of the most prestigious international mooting competitions in the world. This year’s Jessup problem concerned the issues of jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice, immunities of state officials, law of the sea and recognition of governments.

The Team consists of Ally Chan (PCLL), Leo Pang (PCLL), Chung Hin Yue (PCLL), and Veronica Yu (PCLL). In addition to the Champion title, the Team was awarded the Best Respondent Memorial Award and all Best Oralist awards, with Leo Pang, Chung Hin Yue, and Veronica Yu winning the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Best Oralist awards respectively.

The Team would like to express their sincerest gratitude to the coaches, Mr Fergus Tam and Mr Thomas Lam, for their valuable feedback and guidance. The Team would also like to thank the guest judges, Ms Lisa Henderson KC, Ms Natalie So, Mr Ryan Cheung, Mr Raphael Leung, Mr Jason Louie, Mr Abdullah Bin Azhar, Mr Alex Chan, Mr Ambrose Yu, Ms Tiffany Ng, Ms Faith Lee, and Ms Holly Leung, for their kind assistance, helpful advice and rigorous advocacy training. The team now advances to the Global Rounds in Washington DC, in which they will represent Hong Kong.

Zealot Kenneth Tsui and Wang Tat Max Lam on Knowing receipt, characterisation, and proper law: a persistent duty and the cloak of invisibility (Trusts & Trustees)

"Knowing receipt, characterisation, and proper law: a persistent duty and the cloak of invisibility"
Zealot Kenneth Tsui (PCLL student), Wang Tat Max Lam (PCLL Graduate 2023)
Trusts & Trustees
Published online: February 2025

Abstract: The categorisation of knowing receipt remains uncertain in both domestic and private international law contexts, despite efforts by judges and scholars to clarify it. This article argues that knowing receipt is viewed as a breach of a continuing restorative and custodial duty owed to the beneficiary. It explains how these duties arise and outlines their content. Under this view, the traditional proprietary and fault-based perspectives on knowing receipt can be reconciled while establishing an equitable nexus for the claim. Additionally, this article suggests that this perspective aligns with the sui generis characterisation in private international law, preventing circumvention of liability.

Ilda Cristina Ferreira on The Legal Status of the Financial Action Task Force in the International Legal System (Brill)

The Legal Status of the Financial Action Task Force in the International Legal System
Ilda Cristina Ferreira (PhD 2023)
Brill
Published in January 2025
356 pp.

Description: The FATF challenges traditional axioms and patently illustrates the dynamics of the international legal system. This book fills a significant gap in academic literature by studying FATF’s legal nature and its responsibilities in the international legal system as an organisation with public authority. It makes a bold argument that the FATF has gradually evolved into an international organisation, addressing international law and international organisation law discourse, combining theory and practice.

This book’s analytical framework can be applied to any organisation whose legal nature remains undefined, attempting to provide clarity and legal certainty in the international legal system’s architecture of the 21st century.

Emily Lee on Advancing Digital Economy and Financial Inclusion through Central Bank Digital Currencies (African Journal of International and Comparative Law)

"Advancing Digital Economy and Financial Inclusion through Central Bank Digital Currencies: A Comprehensive Analysis of Policies and Legal Implications through e-CNY and eNaira"
Emily Lee
African Journal of International and Comparative Law, Volume 33, Issue 1, February, 2025, pp. 1–28
Published online: February 2025

Abstract: This article explores the implementation of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) as a proactive measure by central banks to achieve policy objectives such as financial inclusion, data and privacy governance and economic growth in the digital economy. The design concepts of e-CNY and eNaira, the two primary retail CBDC prototypes discussed herein, are shaped by these objectives.

The analysis focuses on regulatory policies, risks and legal implications associated with the shift from conventional digital payments to CBDC payments, using e-CNY and eNaira as case studies. It discusses CBDC’s competitiveness and interoperability within the current payment landscape and other regulatory concerns, such as data and personal privacy, CBDC interface providers’ performance and scalability, cybersecurity, compliance for anti-money laundering regulations and the operational robustness and resilience of payment systems.

By examining these issues and challenges, the article aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the potential benefits and challenges associated with CBDC implementation. The insights drawn from the e-CNY and eNaira implementations can provide food for thought for governments that wish to work towards implementing secure and user-friendly CBDCs that coexist with traditional financial intermediaries while offering enhanced payment capabilities.

New Issue of Asia-Pacific Journal on Human Rights and the Law (Volume 26, Issue 1, Feb 2025)

ASIA-PACIFIC JOURNAL ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE LAW

Editor-in-Chief: Simon NM Young

Publisher: Brill, Leiden

2025, Volume 26, Issue 1

Table of Contents

Articles:

The Exercise of Discretion in the Criminal Justice System

Author:  Ian McWalters

Pages: 1–22

Online Publication Date: 21 Feb 2025

Resurgence of Diplomatic Asylum in International Law: Human Rights the Missing Piece of Puzzle

Author: Atul Alexander

Pages: 23–46

Online Publication Date: 21 Feb 2025

Diplomatic Asylum in US-China Relations

Author: Stacy Lau

Pages: 47–79

Online Publication Date: 21 Feb 2025

Daniel Bell's SCMP interview on China’s melding of Confucius and Marx

"Political theorist Daniel A. Bell reflects on China’s melding of Confucius and Marx"
Yuanyue Dang
South China Morning Post
24 February 2025

Daniel A. Bell, a Canadian political theorist specialising in Confucianism and China’s political meritocracy, is chair of political theory at the University of Hong Kong’s law faculty. He was the first foreigner to be appointed as dean of Shandong University’s school of political science and public administration, and also taught at Beijing’s Tsinghua University.

In this interview, Bell shares his views on the links between the ruling Communist Party’s guiding philosophy and Confucianism, as well as the fight against corruption and his outlook for the future of Chinese politics...

Click here to read the full interview on SCMP.

To understand more about Prof. Daniel Bell's work, please click here to read the article written by Peter Baehr on Springer Nature.