Hong Kong Case Law: Decisions & Judgments | LexChat

Hong Kong Case Law

Road traffic offence

  • 13 Sept 2019

    HKSAR v. YIP WAI-MING

    Citation
    [2019] HKCFI 2280
    Court
    Court of First Instance
    Case number
    HCMA382/2018

    Section 52(3) of Cap 374 requires proof of the defendant driver's subjective purpose to drive 'for the carriage of passengers for hire or reward' (a predominantly commercial purpose); an inter se agreement between driver and passenger is evidential but not an essential legal element; the provision as properly construed is not overbroad or unconstitutional and applies to platform-mediated services like Uber; on the facts the appellants had the requisite purpose and convictions and fines were upheld.

  • 13 Sept 2019

    HKSAR v. CHUNG TZE-CHUN IVAN

    Citation
    [2019] HKCFI 2280
    Court
    Court of First Instance
    Case number
    HCMA397/2018

    On rehearing the court held s52(3) RTO requires proof of the driver's subjective purpose (mens rea) that the driving was for the carriage of passengers 'for hire or reward'; no legal requirement of a direct contract with the passenger is to be read into the provision (such agreements are evidential but not essential); the magistrate's remedial reading and distance‑dependent reward requirement was rejected; the statute, properly construed, covers Uber arrangements where the driver's purpose is predominantly commercial and reward is derived from the carriage; on the facts before the court the a…