Proposal by Law Reform Commission a step towards class-action cases

In the United States, class-action lawsuits are the stuff of Hollywood movies. Films like Erin Brockovich, which was inspired by actual events, tell the stories of ordinary folk banding together to fight the giants of industry and correct injustices.

In Hong Kong, class actions are still strictly fiction. Plaintiffs are forced to act in an individual capacity when bringing a civil case. Back in 2004, this was criticised by the chief justice at the time, Andrew Li Kwok-nang, who said the rules on multiparty lawsuits were inadequate and restrictive.

Hopes that class-action lawsuits may yet come about were raised by a proposal published in May by the Law Reform Commission, the statutory body responsible for suggesting ways to improve the city's legislation.

The proposals were drawn up following earlier rounds of public consultation. Government departments were given a six month period - which ends in November - to respond to the findings of those consultations.

The class-action regime proposed by the commission has been hailed by some as a "major step forward" towards more accessible justice. But critics say that the many hurdles in its path mean it is no more than a single step towards a distant goal.

Class-actions lawsuits are most common in the United States, where a string of multibillion-dollar claims against the tobacco industry has made headlines in the past few decades.

The commission said that its proposal would widen access to justice, but recommended a "cautious" approach, phasing in the use of class-action lawsuits to avoid a flood of unnecessary litigation. The system should start with consumer cases, which it says would bring within the net potentially the largest segment of cases suited to class actions.