appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

liveArticle

appConfig

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

sponsorType

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sectionsV2

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

json

SCMP Reporter

MORE than a century of male monopoly in the High Court ended yesterday with the appointment of Doreen Le Pichon as its first female judge.

  A spokesman for the Judiciary said: 'We weren't specifically looking for a woman.

  'It's just that she was suitable.'   Mrs Le Pichon, 49, is deputy chief counsel at the Securities and Futures Commission, but has tried cases at both the High Court and District Court as a deputy judge.

  Her maiden name was Kwok. She was born in China.

  She refused to comment on her appointment and declined requests to have her photograph taken, saying a passport-type photo provided by her employer should be sufficient.

  A judiciary statement said she had studied law at Oxford University, and then went to New York to practise.

   She was admitted to the Bar in Hong Kong in 1972.

  Although Mrs Le Pichon, who has two children, is the first female High Court judge, about a quarter of the judges in the District Court are women.

  Mrs Le Pichon was recommended by the Judicial Services Commission, which is chaired by Chief Justice Sir Ti Liang Yang.

  Newly elected Legislative Council member for the legal profession, Margaret Ng Ngoi-yee, who shares chambers with Mrs Le Pichon, said: 'I'm very glad to hear it.'   The appointment will take effect on October 3.

  The Judiciary also announced yesterday the first three appointments under the Recordership Scheme, under which lawyers in private practice are appointed to sit as part-time judges.

  Two are former chairmen of the Bar Association, Robert Tang Ching QC, and Ronny Wong Fook-hum QC.

  The third is leading barrister Edward Chan King-sang QC, the only one of yesterday's High Court appointees to receive his initial legal training in the territory.

  The three will sit for a period of three years, starting on Monday.

  All have already sat as deputy judges in the High Court.

    Six District Court judges were also appointed yesterday, four of whom are sitting as magistrates: Richard Wozencroft Davies, Donald Arthur Christie, Li Zong-er and Carlye Chu Fun-ling.

  The others are solicitor Bruno Chan Chung-key and barrister Wong Hing-chun.



Female judge appointed to High Court