Style The Honourable | Reports to Legislative Council | |
 | ||
Member of Government Secretariat
Executive Council Residence 19 Severn Road, The Peak Appointer Central People's Government
nomination by Chief Executive Term length No longer than the Chief Executive's remaining term | ||
The Secretary for Justice (Chinese: 律政司司長) is the head of the Hong Kong Department of Justice, the chief legal advisor to the Chief Executive of Hong Kong, and the chief law enforcement officer of the Government of Hong Kong. Before the end of British rule in 1997, the position was known as the Attorney-General of Hong Kong.
Contents
- Role
- Ranking in the Hong Kong Government
- Residence
- Pre 1997 position
- Secretaries for Justice 1997present
- References
The Secretary for Justice, after the Chief Secretary and the Financial Secretary, is one of the three highest Principal Officials of the Government. The Secretary for Justice belongs to the Policy Committee, chaired by the Chief Secretary, and is normally a member of the Executive Council.
The Secretary for Justice is nominated by the Chief Executive and takes office after appointment by the Government of the People's Republic of China, which is responsible for Hong Kong's foreign affairs and defence. The office of the Secretary for Justice was established by the Hong Kong Basic Law, which guarantees the power of the Department of Justice to control criminal prosecutions free from any interference.
The current Secretary for Justice is Rimsky Yuen, SC.
Role
In the course of discharging his or her duties as the chief legal advisor to the Chief Executive of Hong Kong, the Secretary for Justice is assisted by 5 law officers, namely:
Ranking in the Hong Kong Government
The Secretary for Justice is the third in line, after the Chief Secretary and the Financial Secretary, to act for the Chief Executive when he or she is on leave, outside Hong Kong, or when the position is otherwise temporarily vacant.
The Secretary for Justice ranks fifth in the Hong Kong order of precedence.
Residence
The Secretary of Justice has an official residence at 19 Severn Road, The Peak.
Pre-1997 position
Before the 1997 handover to China, the position was known as the Attorney General (Chinese: 律政司), and the department was known as the Legal Department (Chinese: 律政署) and was also known as the Attorney General's Chambers (Chinese: 律政司署). The office of the Attorney General was never localized during British rule and no Hong Kong Chinese ever held this key post.
Secretaries for Justice, 1997–present
Politiical party: Nonpartisan Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong (DAB)