Originally published 5 July 2006

On 6 April 2006, the Court of Final Appeal (CFA) ruled that a party subject to disciplinary proceedings in Hong Kong does not necessarily have a right to have its lawyers examine witnesses at disciplinary hearings.

The decision overturned an earlier decision of the Court of Appeal and has important implications, not only for the conduct of disciplinary proceedings in Hong Kong, but also for the right to legal representation enshrined in the basic law and the role of judicial review proceedings.

The decision came some three-and-a-half years after the Listing Division of HKEx first brought disciplinary proceedings, against New World and its executive directors (Applicants). These proceedings were held in abeyance pending the outcome of New World's application for judicial review on which the CFA ruled.

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