Hong Kong Case Law: Decisions & Judgments

Topic

Unrepresented accused

Legal area

Court

11 Apr 2014

香港特別行政區訴曹建成

Citation

香港特別行政區訴曹建成
Court

Court of Appeal
Case number

CACC284/2013

The court refused the certificate because the matter was decided on the special facts of the case: an unrepresented accused who consented to agreed facts without being advised of his rights and the consequences cannot be treated as having 'called witnesses' or other evidence so as to permit the prosecution to make a closing speech; the issue was not shown to be of general or great importance or to give rise to conflicting authority.
19 Sept 1996

THE QUEEN v. WONG LAI LANG

Citation

THE QUEEN v. WONG LAI LANG
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCMA991/1996

The application for leave to appeal out of time was dismissed because the appellant failed to provide sufficient reasons for the delay; the magistrate's sentence of 12 months' imprisonment could not be faulted and the appeal had little prospect of success.
17 Jan 1996

R. v. NG TSUI SANG

Citation

R. v. NG TSUI SANG
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCMA1192/1995

Appeal allowed and retrial ordered because the unrepresented appellant may have misunderstood the question about giving evidence; that potential misunderstanding created reasonable doubt about the safety of a conviction based solely on police testimony.
18 Sept 1985

THE QUEEN v. CHEUNG YIU MAN

Citation

THE QUEEN v. CHEUNG YIU MAN
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCMA575/1985

Because the magistrate did not record advising an unrepresented appellant of his right to call witnesses and expressly relied on the appellant s failure to call available defence witnesses when rejecting his evidence, and because those witnesses might have produced material evidence creating doubt, the conviction was unsafe and must be quashed with a retrial ordered.
29 May 1981

CHOI TIN-MING v. THE QUEEN

Citation

CHOI TIN-MING v. THE QUEEN
Court

Court of Appeal
Case number

CACC196/1981

Because the appellant was unrepresented and a material obscurity (the presence of another arrested man and the provenance of the seized items) was not explored by the magistrate, the recorded evidence was insufficient to support a safe conviction and the appeal must be allowed.
21 Nov 1980

LUI YIU-SHING v. THE QUEEN

Citation

LUI YIU-SHING v. THE QUEEN
Court

Court of Appeal
Case number

CACC888/1980

Given the appellant's youth, lack of representation, and material inconsistencies between the Brief Facts and facts recited at the plea, there was a real possibility of injustice; therefore an extension of time to appeal was granted, the conviction and sentence were quashed and a retrial ordered.
23 Mar 1979

WONG HING v. THE QUEEN

Citation

WONG HING v. THE QUEEN
Court

Court of Appeal
Case number

CACC193/1979

Failure of the magistrate to alert and explain to the unrepresented appellant at an appropriate time the presumption arising from possession of more than 0.5 gramme rendered the trafficking conviction unsafe; on appellate review the conviction was substituted with one for simple possession because the appellant might reasonably have pleaded or adduced evidence to rebut the presumption had he been properly informed.
10 Feb 1978

SZETO MING v. THE QUEEN

Citation

SZETO MING v. THE QUEEN
Court

Court of Appeal
Case number

CACC97/1978

Where an accused is unrepresented the magistrate has a duty to assist by advising how to put and, if necessary, prove prior inconsistent evidence; failure to do so and the existence of a material undisclosed inconsistent police statement made the convictions unsafe and required quashing and a retrial.
15 Oct 1976

LEUNG SUN-WAH v. THE QUEEN

Citation

LEUNG SUN-WAH v. THE QUEEN
Court

Court of Appeal
Case number

CACC923/1976

Appellate court held the magistrate was entitled to find the appellant in possession but erred in not explaining the statutory presumption to the unrepresented appellant; because the magistrate accepted that had the appellant admitted personal use he would have believed him and the small total quantity made personal use plausible, the conviction for trafficking was substituted with a conviction for simple unlawful possession and the sentence reduced from 21 to 5 months' imprisonment.
20 Jul 1970

NG CHUN-TING v. THE QUEEN

Citation

NG CHUN-TING v. THE QUEEN
Court

Court of Appeal
Case number

CACC340/1970

Despite procedural shortcomings (failure to record that a witness was available for cross-examination and not calling the alleged victims), the totality of the evidence including the appellant's own evidence made the convictions safe; the appeal is dismissed.