THE UNIVERSITY OF LONDON Law and Opinion in Hong Kong in 1988 by Berry Fong-Chung HSU A thesis submitted to Faculty of Law at the School o f Oriental and African Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Law July, 1989 ProQuest Number: 11010490 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a com plete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest ProQuest 11010490 Published by ProQuest LLC(2018). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States C ode Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 Table of Contents Chapter Page Abstract .........................................................................................................................................i Acknowledgments ...................................................................................................................... iii I. The Introduction of the Common Law to Hong Kong ................................................ 1 A. A Brief History of Hong Kong ...............................................................................1 B. The Arrival of Common Law in Hong K ong ..........................................................2 C. A Dual Legal System in Hong Kong .......................................................................6 Introduction ..................................................................................................... 6 Legal Pluralism in Hong Kong .........................................................................6 Historical Background .....................................................................................8 A Fused Common Law System ................................................................... 12 D. Chinese Law and Custom in Hong Kong .............................................................15 The Authority in Applying Chinese Law and Custom ................................15 The Application o f Chinese Law and Custom in Hong Kong ...................16 The Diminishing Role of Chinese Law and Custom in Hong Kong ..........20 E. Conclusion ..............................................................................................................22 II. The Reception o f the Common Law in Hong K ong .................................................. 25 A. Introduction .....................................................................,....................................25 B. Traditional Attitudes towards the Judicial System ........................................... 25 Introduction ................................................................................................... 25 Social Structure ............................................................................................25 Patriarchal System ....................................................................................... 27 Barriers to Obtaining Justice in Hong Kong ..............................................28 The Case of Corruption in Hong Kong ...................................................... 29 "Face" in Hong Kong .....................................................................................31 Conclusion .................................................................................................... 33 C. Evidence o f Confidence in the Common Law Judicial System .......................34 D. The Impact o f Colonisation on the Chinese Population of Hong Kong ..........35 Introduction ...................................................................................................35 The Industrialization of Hong Kong .......................................................... 35 The Diminishing Family and Patriarchal Authority ...................................... 36 The Westernization of the ChinesePopulation ........................................ 38 Religious Factor ............................................................................................39 Conclusion ....................................................................................................40 III. The Contrast between Chinese Culture and a Standard Model Common Law Judicial System ............................................................................................................ 41 A. Introduction ........................................................................................................... 41 Standard Model Common Law Judicial System ........................................42 Judicial System in Traditional China ........................................................... 42 B. Judicial Machinery ................................................................................................ 43 Introduction ...................................................................................................43 Separation of Powers .................................................................................44 Examination System and Judicial Appointments .......................................46 Censorate and Remonstrator Systems ...................................................... 48 The Superior Court System ........................................................................ 49 The System of Courts ................................................................................. 51 The Automatic Review and Appeal Systems .............................................53 Judicial Accountability ................................................................................. 55 Conclusion .................................................................................................... 57 C. Procedures .............................................................................................................58 Introduction ................................................................................................... 58 Proceedings ..................................................................................................59 Checks and Balances ................................................................................... 61 Conclusion .................................................................................................... 63 D. Adversary System and Independent Legal P rofession......................................64 Introduction ...................................................................................................64 Adversary System ........................................................................................ 64 Background of the Legal Profession in England ........................................ 65 Legal Services in Traditional China ............................................................ 66 The Need fo r Legal Services ...................................................................... 67 Legal Training ............................................................................................... 69 Conclusion .................................................................................................... 71 E. The Jury System ...................................................................................................71 Introduction ................................................................................................... 71 Common Law Conception ........................................................................... 71 Absence o f a Jury System in Traditional China ..........................................73 Conclusion .................................................................................................... 73 F. The Right o f Silence and Presumption o f Innocence ........................................ 74 Introduction ................................................................................................... 74 Scientific Methods ....................................................................................... 75 Conclusion .................................................................................................... 76 G. General Conclusion .............................................................................................. 77 IV. Research in Jurisprudence ........................................................................................79 A. Introduction ........................................................................................................... 79 B. The Scope of this Research ................................................................................80 Law and Social Change in Hong Kong ..........................................................80 Law and Social Reality in Hong Kong ...........................................................81 C. Evaluating the Application o f Common Law in Hong Kong ............................... 83 Introduction ................................................................................................... 83 The Case for Survey Data in Jurisprudential Research ............................ 83 Historical, Anthropological and Sociological Jurisprudence in Hong K ong ............................................................................................................... 85 vii Early Studies on the Reception