Judge says he will decide by tomorrow if the case can proceed
The High Court has agreed to hold an early hearing today on whether Leung Kwok-hung has a case in amending the oath at the swearing in of legislators tomorrow.
Mr Justice Michael Hartmann said yesterday the case involved public interest and he would shorten the lunch break to make room for the hearing.
He said the court would decide by tomorrow morning whether the case should proceed. But even if 'Long Hair' was granted leave to continue the case, a full hearing could not be arranged for seven to 10 days.
That means a binding court ruling will not be ready when lawmakers take their oath.
Mr Leung, speaking after the brief hearing, would not say if he would still insist on using his own version of the oath. He said he would consider his next step in light of the court decision. 'I'm already a legislator officially. It's not a problem even if I were to defer the oath until all legal proceedings have finished,' he said.
Mr Leung wants to add his own words to the official oath, offering allegiance to the people of Hong Kong and the mainland and swearing to fight for democracy and justice and to defend human rights and freedom. The Legco secretariat has told him this does not comply with the law.