Hong Kong Case Law: Decisions & Judgments | LexChat

Topic

Accessorial liability (aiding and abetting)

Legal area

Court

13 Dec 2023

HKSAR v. ARIF AQIB AND ANOTHER

Citation

[2023] HKCA 1320
Court

Court of Appeal
Case number

CACC223/2020

The judge erred in answering the jury's question by conflating joint enterprise principles with traditional accessorial liability language of 'intention to encourage' and 'assistance', thereby shifting focus from the prosecution's pleaded case of joint enterprise based on specific roles; the misdirection risked causing the jury to convict on an inappropriate basis, rendering the convictions unsafe; appeals allowed, convictions quashed and retrial ordered.
29 Jul 2022

HKSAR v. ARIF AQIB AND ANOTHER

Citation

[2022] HKCA 1030
Court

Court of Appeal
Case number

CACC223/2020

Leave to appeal was granted only on the narrow issue of whether the judge's additional direction on 'encouragement' (as a form of participation) given in response to a jury question was legally correct and sufficiently linked to the prosecution's joint enterprise case; all other grounds were refused because the summing‑up made clear the prosecution relied on inference from the evidence (vehicles, proximity, weapons display, VRIs), the jury were repeatedly and properly directed on use of co‑defendant statements and identification, and the evidence provided a sufficient basis for the jury to in…