Hong Kong Case Law: Decisions & Judgments

Topic

Honest belief defence

Legal area

Court

9 Sept 2024

香港特別行政區訴巴廷明

Citation

[2024] HKCFI 2267
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCMA163/2022

The Court upheld the trial judge's findings as rational and supported by the totality of evidence: the covert video recordings corroborated key features of the complainant's account, the settlement and pattern of repeated isolated incidents while alone with the employer supported guilt, the alleged alibi did not exclude opportunity, inconsistencies were peripheral, and no reasonable tribunal would accept the defence of honest belief in consent; therefore convictions must stand.
2 Aug 2024

香港特別行政區訴何慶平

Citation

[2024] HKCFI 1851
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCMA23/2023

Conviction upheld because the licence did not lawfully authorise the appellant's activities (licence had lapsed and its scope was limited to 'unimproved grazing and grass cutting'), objective evidence showed disturbance beyond grass cutting, and the appellant failed to establish an honest and reasonable belief in lawful authority; on sentence the Court substituted the immediate custodial term with the statutory maximum fine in light of mitigation (acting on instructions) and proportionality concerns.
27 Jul 2020

香港特別行政區訴陳金泉

Citation

[2020] HKCFI 1699
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCMA19/2020

The court concluded the civil judgments, executed sale order and land registry records established the appellant was no longer the owner; his deliberate refusal to accept sale documents and factual findings made any honest belief in ownership implausible, so no lawful excuse existed and the conviction for criminal damage was properly entered.
13 Apr 2018

香港特別行政區訴蔡德祥

Citation

[2018] HKCFI 740
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCMA232/2017

The court dismissed the appeal: the trial judge properly assessed credibility and reliability, the acquittal on the sexual offence (count 3) was for specific evidential doubt, and convictions for common assault on counts 1, 2 and 4 are safe and are affirmed.
17 Jul 2015

HKSAR v. BAIG MIRZA FAISAL

Citation

HKSAR v. BAIG MIRZA FAISAL
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCMA185/2015

The conviction and sentence were upheld because the magistrate properly found on the evidence that the appellant did not honestly believe the identity card was genuine (rejected as implausible given surrounding circumstances and inconsistencies), the chain of evidence and the Government Chemist's s65B statement supported the finding that the card was forged and was the exhibit, refusal to grant further adjournment or admit the proffered documents was justified, and there were no exceptional mitigating factors to reduce the sentence of 21 months which followed the applicable sentencing precede…
10 Aug 2004

HKSAR v. SWEETMART GARMENT WORKS LTD

Citation

HKSAR v. SWEETMART GARMENT WORKS LTD
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCMA462/2004

The offence is regulatory in nature under the Import and Export Ordinance; accordingly the defence requires an honest and reasonable belief that the statutory provisions had been complied with and the accused must prove that belief on the balance of probabilities. The court is bound by Hong Kong authorities (Fong Chin-Yue and Uniglobe) adopting that approach, and therefore the conviction was properly upheld.
3 Jul 1998

HKSAR v. TAM KON-CHUNG AND ANOTHER

Citation

HKSAR v. TAM KON-CHUNG AND ANOTHER
Court

Court of Appeal
Case number

CACC203/1997

The Court held that the trial judge correctly rejected no-case submissions and applied appropriate standards, and that the honest belief direction error was immaterial because the defence did not arise on the evidence; however D2's conviction was quashed because the indictment/count was duplicitous as two separate alleged rapes were not particularised and the jury were not required to be unanimous as to which act founded guilt, whereas D3's conviction stood because the jury were clearly directed to and convicted on a single act and any misdirection was not such as to render the verdict unsafe…

Hong Kong Case Law

香港特別行政區 訴 巴廷明

香港特別行政區 訴 何慶平

香港特別行政區 訴 陳金泉

香港特別行政區 訴 蔡德祥

HKSAR v. BAIG MIRZA FAISAL

HKSAR v. SWEETMART GARMENT WORKS LTD

HKSAR v. TAM KON-CHUNG AND ANOTHER

香港特別行政區訴巴廷明

香港特別行政區訴何慶平

香港特別行政區訴陳金泉

香港特別行政區訴蔡德祥