Former solicitor-general Daniel Fung Wah-kin has become embroiled in a controversy surrounding an incorrect claim by a company he is associated with, saying he was the youngest member of the Hong Kong Bar appointed a Queen's Counsel.
The 1999 and 2000 annual reports of Guangdong Investment Limited claimed Mr Fung, a non-executive director, was appointed as a QC in 1990, 'being the youngest member of the Hong Kong Bar ever to be appointed'. Mr Fung, who was born in 1953, confirmed that he was 36 at the time of appointment.
The Sunday Morning Post, however, found that at least three queen's counsels were younger when they were appointed. They are Mr Justice Arjan Sakhrani, judge of the Court of First Instance; Mr Justice Henry Litton, former permanent judge of the Court of Final Appeal; and Mr Justice Kemal Bokhary, permanent judge of the Court of Final Appeal. Mr Justice Litton, Mr Justice Sakhrani and Mr Justice Bokhary were appointed as QCs in 1970, 1982 and 1983 respectively. All were 35 years old when they were appointed.
Mr Fung said the statement in the annual reports was not drafted by him and that he had only provided the company with a copy of his CV. He said he did not have time to verify the judiciary information. He said the descriptions were based on press reports.
'Frankly speaking, I haven't conducted any research [on it]. I believed the reports were true . . . Otherwise I would not have hesitated to take the necessary remedial action. I don't regard this as a major issue,' he said.
He said he had notified the board of Guangdong Investment for it to make the necessary corrections to the reports.
Mr Fung quit the Government in 1998 to return to private practice after serving as solicitor-general since 1994. He had been tipped as a potential candidate for the post of secretary for justice.