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Secretary for Justice (Hong Kong)

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Style
  
The Honourable

Reports to
  
Legislative Council

Secretary for Justice (Hong Kong)

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

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:

  • the Solicitor General who heads the Legal Policy Division,
  • the Director of Public Prosecutions who head the Prosecutions Division,
  • the Law Officer (Civil Law) who heads the Civil Law Division,
  • the Law Officer (International Law) who heads the International Law Division, and
  • the Law Draftsman who heads the Law Drafting Division

    • 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)

    References

    Secretary for Justice (Hong Kong) Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA


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