For discussion FCR(95-96)83
on 1 December 1995

Item for Finance Committee

HEAD 80 - JUDICIARY
Subhead 111 Hire of services and professional fees

Members are invited to -

1. approve increases in the daily honoraria for Deputy High Court Judges, Deputy District Judges, Temporary Magistrates and Temporary Special Magistrates from $4,600 by $3,450 to $8,050, from $3,750 by $2,810 to $6,560, from $2,500 by $1,870 to $4,370 and from $1,200 by $1,320 to $2,520 respectively with effect from 2 January 1996; and
2. delegate to the Secretary for the Treasury the authority to approve future annual adjustments to the honoraria for Deputy High Court Judges, Deputy District Judges, Temporary Magistrates and Temporary Special Magistrates in accordance with the movement in the Composite Consumer Price Index.

---

PROBLEM
PROPOSAL
JUSTIFICATION
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
BACKGROUND INFORMATION

---

PROBLEM

The rates of honoraria for Deputy High Court Judges, Deputy District Judges, Temporary Magistrates and Temporary Special Magistrates engaged from outside the public service have not been adjusted for between six and eight years. The diminishing value of the honoraria in real terms has become a disincentive to prospective candidates for these temporary judicial appointments.

PROPOSAL

2. The Judiciary Administrator (JA) proposes to increase, with effect from 2 January 1996, the daily honoraria for Deputy High Court Judges, Deputy District Judges, Temporary Magistrates and Temporary Special Magistrates by a percentage equivalent to the cumulative change in price level since the existing rates of honoraria were approved, as follows -

JA also proposes that the Secretary for the Treasury be delegated the authority to adjust annually the rates of honoraria for deputy judges and temporary magistrates in line with the movement in the Composite Consumer Price Index in order to preserve their real value.

JUSTIFICATION

3. The price level as measured by the Composite Consumer Price Indices has increased by 75% since the existing rates of honoraria for Deputy High Court Judges, Deputy District Judges and Temporary Magistrates were approved in June 1989 and by 110% since the existing rate for Temporary Special Magistrates was approved in July 1987. The real value of the honoraria has therefore been much eroded by inflation. Legal practitioners have to bear their own chamber expenses while sitting as deputy judges or temporary magistrates. The low rates of honoraria have become a disincentive as appointees may find themselves out of pocket while sitting as appointees to the various temporary judicial appointments. In recent months, there are occasions where practitioners have cited inadequate honorarium as the reason for refusing temporary judicial appointment.

4. The effect of the increases proposed by JA in paragraph 2 is just to catch up with inflation. To preserve the value of the honoraria in real terms, it is necessary to provide an efficient and regular means to adjust the rates for inflation. JA proposes that the annual adjustment should be based on the movement in the Composite Consumer Price Index. If Members agree to this, future adjustments will be routine. In line with usual practice, JA also proposes that Members delegate to the Secretary for the Treasury the authority to approve such future rate adjustmentsmagistrates in accordance with the movement in the Composite Consumer Price Index.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

5. The precise resource requirements would depend on the actual amount of service procured. Based on experience in the past two years, JA estimates that the additional expenditure is likely to be in the region of $4 million per annum at 1995 price level. There is sufficient provision under the Judiciary head of expenditure to meet the funds required for the proposed increases in honoraria in the rest of this financial year, if Members approve the proposal.1995-96 Estimates. If Members approve the proposal, Sufficient provision will be included in the 1996-97 draft Estimates for the purpose.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

6. The Supreme Court Ordinance (Cap. 4), the District Court Ordinance (Cap. 336) and the Magistrates Ordinance (Cap. 227) respectively empower the Chief Justice to appoint deputy judges and temporary magistrates to fill any equivalent vacant judicial posts for the efficient administration of justice. These are temporary appointments for specific periods of time or cases as may be necessitated by the court diary. Sometimes temporary appointments are made to give individual legal practitioners an opportunity to gain a first hand experience of judicial work and for the Judiciary to assess a potential candidate’s suitability for permanent appointment.

7. The qualifications for deputy judges and temporary magistrates are specified in the relevant Ordinances. In brief, a candidate for temporary judicial appointment must hold the same qualifications as required for a permanent appointment. Deputy Judges are appointed from the profession or the lower tiers of the court. Temporary Magistrates are invariably legal practitioners, while Temporary Special Magistrates are mostly drawn from retired civil servants such as former Senior Judicial Clerks and Senior Court Interpreters who are not legally qualified but have extensive experience of the law and of the magistrates’ courts in particular.

Judiciary
November 1995

---