HONG Kong's international standing and the administration of justice will be hurt by court delays, the chairman of the Bar Association has warned.
Jacqueline Leong, QC, called for more recorders to take on the work of High Court judges. Recorders are barristers who spend four to six weeks a year over a period of three years acting as High Court judges.
''This was agreed a year ago but we have yet to see it put into action,'' she said.
Another demand Miss Leong made was for more cash from the Finance Committee to pay for more efficient transcribing during court cases and the staff needed to carry it out.
She said more attention could be paid to the allocation of cases so judges specialising in certain areas could practise that specialisation.
''People are waiting eight to 10 months, which is an extremely long time. In some of the criminal cases, people are in custody for that period,'' she said.