Page:Hong Kong Letters Patent 1917 to 1995.pdf/101



ARTICLE XVIA – Tenure of office of Supreme Court or district judge
(1) Subject to the provisions of this Article, a judge of the Supreme Court or a Judge of the District Court shall vacate his office when he attains the retiring age: Provided that, notwithstanding that he has attained the retiring age, a person holding such an office may continue in office for so long after attaining that age as may be necessary to enable him to deliver judgment or to do any other thing in relation to proceedings that were commenced before him before he attained that age.

(2) (a) For the purposes of the preceding paragraph "retiring age" means-

(i)   in relation to the Chief Justice and any other judge of the Supreme Court, the age of sixty-five years; and

(ii)  in relation to a judge of the District Court who was appointed to be such judge before 1st January 1987, the age of sixty years; and (Replaced on 9 April 1988)

(iii) in relation to a judge of the District Court who was appointed to be such judge on or after 1st January 1987, the age of              sixty-five years. (Added on 9 April 1988)

(b) Notwithstanding the preceding subparagraph-

(i)   a person may be appointed to be a judge of the Supreme Court

(whatever his age and whether or not he has previously held office as such) for a specified period or periods not exceeding five years in the aggregate;

(ii)  the term of office of a judge of the Supreme Court (other than               a person appointed to be a judge of the Supreme Court under               this sub-paragraph) or a judge of the District Court referred to in sub-paragraph (a)(ii) may be extended for a specified period or periods not exceeding five years in the aggregate, (Replaced on 9 April 1988) and in any such case the judge shall accordingly be regarded for the purposes of the preceding paragraph as having attained the retiring age at the expiration of the specified period or periods. (*Note: For the avoidance              of doubt, see p. BE (L.N. 152 of 1982) in Appendix I of the               Revised Edition.) (Replaced on 30 April 1982)

(3) A judge of the Supreme Court or the District Court may at any time resign his office by writing under his hand addressed to the Governor.

(4) A judge of the Supreme Court or the District Court may be removed from office only for inability to discharge the functions of his office (whether arising from infirmity of body or mind or from any other cause) or for misbehaviour, and shall not be so removed except in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (5) of this Article.