Registrars are judicial officers appointed by the Chief Executive of Hong Kong to assist in the work of Hong Kong's various courts, including the Court of Final Appeal, the High Court, and the District Court. Registrars may also hold a concurrent judicial role, such as being a judge, in a lower court.
The title of Registrar-General was also previously in use in the executive branch until 1993, as the name of the government official in charge of the registries for lands, companies, marriages, bankruptcies, and more. Before the creation of the post in 1949, some of these duties were carried out by the registrar of the Supreme Court. The head of each registry is today known as a registrar.
Registrar of the Court of Final Appeal
Duties The Registrar will consider each leave application (applying to appear in front of the Court of Final Appeal) has any reasonable grounds for arguing an appeal. If an appeal is considered arguable, it will appear before an Appeal Committee, who will then make a final decision. If the Registrar determines there is no grounds for an appeal, a "Rule 7 Summons" will be issued, in which the applicant is invited to show on paper why the Appeals Committee should hear their appeal.
The Registrar also helps with listing cases and liaising with the non-permanent judges from both Hong Kong and other common law jurisdictions on sitting in appeal cases.
List of Registrars of the Court of Final Appeal No.NameTerm of officeConcurrent judicial roleReason for tenure endAppointed by1Mr. Edward Timothy Starbuck Woolley19971999None / full-time registrarRetiredTung Chee-hwa—Mr. Christopher Chan Cheuk, BBS (acting)19992000District JudgeAppointed Registrar of the High CourtTung Chee-hwa—Ms. Betty Kwan Ka-ching, BBS (acting)20002002Deputy Registrar of the High CourtRetiredTung Chee-hwa—The Hon Madam Justice Queeny Au-yeung Kwai-yue (acting)20022007Registrar of the District Court (2002–03) District Judge (2003–07)Appointed Registrar of the High CourtTung Chee-hwa—Mr. Simon Kwang Cheok-weung (acting)20072014District Judge Temporary Deputy Registrar of the High CourtAppointed full-time Registrar of the Court of Final AppealDonald Tsang2Mr. Simon Kwang Cheok-weung20142018Senior Deputy Registrar of the High CourtAppointed Registrar of the High CourtLeung Chun-ying—His Honour Judge Wong King-wah (acting)20182023District Judge Appointed full-time Registrar of the Court of Final AppealCarrie Lam3His Honour Judge Wong King-wah2023Senior Deputy Registrar of the High CourtJohn Lee Ka-chiu
Registrar of the High Court
The registrar of the High Court is the head of the High Court Registry and is supported by three senior deputy registrars and five deputy registrars. Known as the registrar of the Supreme Court before 1 July 1997, the registrar was head of the judiciary's administration until the creation of the position of Judiciary Administrator in 1994.
History In the late 19th century and early 20th century, the Registrar of the Supreme Court also carried out the duties of the Lands Officer and Companies Registrar, among others.
The registrar of the Supreme Court was known as the 經歷司 in Chinese until the 1980s.
List of Registrars of the Supreme Court and High Court +No.NameTerm startTerm endRemarks1Robert Dundas Cay8 May 184429 April 18562Williams Hastings Alexander29 April 18563Charles Bushe Plunket12 May 18764Henry Frederick Gibbons14 April 18805Edward James Ackroyd27 February 18826Alfred Gascoyne Wise24 March 18937James William Norton-Kyshe28 September 18958Arathoon Seth19 May 19049Joseph Horsford Kemp30 October 190910Hugh Adair Nisbet15 August 191111Charles Alexander Dick Melbourne20 October 192812Thomas Maynard Hazelrigg1 October 192913Ernest Philip Henry Lang12 October 193514Lancelot Ruggles Andrewes21 April 194015Henrique Alberto de Barros Botelho1 May 194616Christopher Paul d'Almada e Castro1 January 1949John R. Oliver1976Simon Herbert Mayo19761980Solicitor; became VP of the Court of AppealCarlye Chu Fun-ling7 June 19993 October 2000Became VP of the Court of AppealChristopher Chan Cheuk3 October 200021 July 2007SolicitorQueeny Au-yeung Kwai-yue1 August 200715 August 2012 -Lung Kim-wan (acting)20122014Lung Kim-wan 11 March 201410 September 2018SolicitorSimon Kwang Cheok-weung10 September 2018IncumbentSolicitor; previously district judge
References