Hong Kong protests: second mega court for clearing backlog of cases to accommodate 250 people

New courtroom at existing facility in Wan Chai to open in mid-2023, with 1,173 people charged over the 2019 unrest still to face trial

Carrie Lam announced the plans in her policy address for the huge courtroom, which is designed to handle 50 defendants, 100 legal representatives and 100 spectators at a time

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The new mega court will open at the District Court building in Wan Chai Tower. Photo: Warton Li

Published: 9:37pm, 13 Oct 2021Updated: 11:14pm, 13 Oct 2021

A second mega court aimed at clearing a backlog of cases arising from the anti-government protests in Hong Kong two years ago will accommodate up to 250 people and be available for use in mid-2023.

The judiciary on Wednesday said the new space at the District Court building in Wan Chai Tower would help judges process 249 pending criminal trials, many of which were connected with the social unrest and involved a large number of defendants and lawyers.

The mega court, announced by city leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor in her policy address last week, can accommodate up to 50 defendants, 100 legal representatives and another 100 spectators, including family members of the accused, reporters and the public. Construction is expected to start next May.

It is expected to complement a similar space at West Kowloon Court, the only one presently in operation. That mega court can accommodate a maximum of 50 defendants, 100 legal representatives, and 50 family members and spectators.

Lam also noted in her policy blueprint that the Wan Chai mega court would be built before the new District Court building on Caroline Hill Road, Causeway Bay, began operations in 2027.

Police have charged 2,684 people over their roles in the months of protests between mid-2019 and early last year, with 1,173 of them still awaiting trial as of July 31, according to the Security Bureau.

The delay was partly due to the Covid-19 pandemic, which caused the judiciary to suspend operations twice last year.

While the city’s seven magistrates’ courts are expected to complete most protest-related trials by the end of this year, the District Court is congested with cases stemming from large-scale demonstrations during the unrest.