The Department of Justice comprises six divisions and five of which are professional divisions
headed by
a Law Officer to whom the Secretary for Justice delegates certain powers
and responsibilities. The remaining division deals with administrative,
training and personnel matters and the development needs of the department.
Providing direct support to the Secretary for Justice is the Secretary
for Justice's Office. A principal function of this Office is to assist
the Secretary in relation to matters arising from the Executive and Legislative
Councils concerning the promotion of legislation or providing answers
to legislative councilors' questions.
Prosecutions Division
The Prosecutions Division is headed
by the Director of Public Prosecutions. Lawyers from the division conduct
the prosecution in the majority of Court of First Instance and District
Court trials and often appear before magistrates in important cases
or when difficult points of law arise. However, the majority of cases
before Magistrates are prosecuted by Court Prosecutors.
In addition to court appearances,
Government Counsel in the Prosecutions Division advise the law enforcement
agencies and other Government departments responsible for the prosecution
of offences (e.g. the Hong Kong Police).
Civil Division
The Civil Division, headed by the
Law Officer (Civil Law), provides legal advice on civil law to all
Government bureaux and departments. It also represents the Government
both as solicitors and as barristers in all civil litigations, including
arbitrations. Specialist units advise on building and planning law,
on the drafting of Government contracts and on the role of the Government
as an employer. The division advises on the adequacy of existing legislation
in relation to civil law and on the preparation of drafting instructions
in respect of new legislation or amendments to existing legislation.
Law Drafting Division
The Law Drafting Division, headed
by the Law Draftsman, is responsible for drafting all Government legislation
of the HKSAR. Counsel in the division also advise the Government on
legal issues identified in the course of developing the draft legislation.
When the final draft of a piece of legislation is submitted to the
Executive Council for consideration and to the Legislative Council
to go through the legislative process, the draftsman has to attend
meetings of each Council together with representatives from the relevant
Government bureau in order to answer questions relating to drafting
the legislation and general legal issues. Reflecting the Draftsman's
role as keeper of the statute book, the division also vets all proposed
legislation
that is initiated by persons or bodies other than the Government. This
function is performed to ensure that all legislation conforms to the
requirements as to the form of bills and to the general form of Hong
Kong legislation.
To establish standardized Chinese
equivalents for English legal expressions, the division has compiled
an English-Chinese Glossary of Legal Terms and a Chinese-English Glossary of Legal Terms.
These glossaries refer to
the bilingual legal
expressions
used in our legislation.
The Bilingual Laws Information System (BLIS) is a database of the Laws of Hong Kong which is developed and maintained
by the division. It is a free service to the public and is available
on the Internet. The division also maintains the Loose-Leaf Edition
of the Laws of Hong Kong.
Legal Policy Division
The Legal Policy Division serves the
needs of the Solicitor General and gives legal policy advice in respect
of matters currently being considered by the Government. The division
also advises on issues affecting the administration of justice, human
rights, the legal system, the Basic Law, constitutional law and the
law in Mainland China. The division plays an active role in promoting
the understanding of Hong Kong's rule of law and the Basic Law locally,
overseas and on the Mainland. The counsel who work in the Law Reform
Commission Secretariat are also part of this division.
International Law Division
The International Law Division is
headed by the Law Officer (International Law) and provides advice on
public international law to the Government. It also negotiates or provides
legal advisers on negotiations for bilateral agreements with foreign
countries. Counsel from the division also participate, as members
of the Chinese delegation, in the negotiation of multilateral treaties
on public and private international law. The Mutual Legal Assistance
Unit under this Division handles and co-ordinates requests to and
from the HKSAR concerning the surrender of fugitive offenders, mutual
legal assistance and the transfer of sentenced persons to / from overseas.
Administration and Development Division
The Administration and Development
Division is headed by the Director of Administration and Development.
As controlling officer, the Director is responsible for reporting to
the Legislative Council on the finances of the Department of Justice.
The division deals with the many and varied matters involved in running
a major government department including administrative, financial,
accounting and management services, office automation, training, library,
general translation services, recruitment, personnel, and office accommodation. |