At the beginning of the legal year, acting Chief Justice Noel Power promised that a more open system of justice would be introduced into Hong Kong's legal system if a working party recommended changes.
Yesterday, two Open Justice Reports on civil and criminal proceedings were published, paving the way for reforms, and underlining the need for judges to scrupulously observe practices which in the recent past have not been followed to the letter. The reforms proposed will give greater public access to the courts, without sacrificing the convenience, speed and economy which is often gained when cases are heard in chambers.
This signals a major advance in procedure, introducing greater openness and less red tape. The measures will be widely welcomed, particularly in the light of mounting public concern after a number of practices which lacked transparency became the cause of comment, including the practice of blocking public access to criminal charge sheets.
During a single week in October, the Supreme and District courts heard 234 cases in secret. That discovery was one reason why this newspaper launched a campaign for Open Justice and why it welcomes yesterday's positive moves.
In many instances, secrecy resulted not so much from moves to withhold information, but for the sake of informality and convenience. The practice of conducting hearings in chambers is a case in point: for instance, it may have been to spare younger witnesses the intimidating atmosphere of a courtroom.
Whatever the reasons, the practice will become perfectly acceptable when the public are admitted. Even where proceedings take place in private, the judgment will be published, except in cases which involve the Bill of Rights or sensitive information involving juveniles or matrimonial disputes.
