Before you physically punish a child, consider the legal advice of solicitor Andrew Lam Ping-cheung, chairman of the Law Society's criminal law and procedure committee:
1. hitting child's hand with a ruler, feather duster or any other object:
The person can be charged with common assault. If the punishment causes bleeding, the offender may be charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm. Depending on the seriousness of the case, the offender may be fined or imprisoned. But the Department of Justice has the discretion not to charge.
2. Pinching and twisting child's ear:
As before, but the punishment in this case will likely be higher than hitting a child's hand because the ear is a more delicate part of the body.
3. Hitting other body parts: