Magistrates' courts
Kwun Tong Magistrates' Court
Location	Hong Kong
Authorised by	Hong Kong Basic Law, Magistrates Ordinance (Cap. 227)
Appeals to	Court of First Instance of the High Court; further appeal to theCourt of Final Appeal in limited circumstances[1]
Website	Official website
Chief Magistrate
Currently	Mr Victor SO Wai-tak

This article is part of the series:Courts of Hong Kong
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Administration Chief Justice of the Court of Final Appeal Judiciary of Hong Kong Judiciary Administrators
Civil courts Court of Final Appeal High Court Court of Appeal Court of First Instance District Court Special Courts and Tribunals The Competition Tribunal The Coroner’s Court The Lands Tribunal The Labour Tribunal The Small Claims Tribunal The Obscene Articles Tribunal
Criminal courts Court of Final Appeal High Court Court of Appeal Court of First Instance District Court Magistrates' courts
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Magistrates' courts form the lowest tier of criminal courts inHong Kong. They have criminal jurisdiction over a wide range of offences, and in general these offences must only constitute two years' imprisonment or a fine of HK$100,000; in certain circumstances, sentences of three years may be imposed. Their jurisdiction and sentencing powers are set out in the Magistrates Ordinance (Cap. 227).

All criminal proceedings must begin in the magistrates' courts; theSecretary for Justice may transfer cases to either theDistrict Court or theCourt of First Instance depending on the seriousness of the crime.^[2]Summary offences can only be tried in a magistrates' court,^[3] whileindictable-only andeither-way offences are commonly transferred to the District Court or Court of First Instance for trial. The magistrates' courts are the busiest in Hong Kong, with a caseload of 379,547 in 2024.^[4]

Cases are always heard before a single magistrate, who must have qualified as a barrister or solicitor either in Hong Kong or in anothercommon law jurisdiction and have had substantial professional experience. Defendants may be represented by a solicitor or barrister, and may seek advice from duty lawyers stationed in the courts.

Legal aid is not available for proceedings in the magistrates' courts; instead, the publicly-funded Duty Lawyer Service provides legal representation by qualified lawyers in private practice for eligible defendants.^[5]

Barristers and solicitors have equal rights of audience before the magistrates' courts. As such, solicitors can be commonly found performing advocacy duties where a barrister would otherwise be instructed.

Lawyers appearing in the magistrates' courts do not have to wear court dress, and typically appear in business attire.

Cases in the magistrates' courts are prosecuted by government counsel, barristers or solicitors in private practice prosecuting on fiat, or lay "court prosecutors", who are not required to be legally qualified.

The magistrates' courts are the only courts in Hong Kong that involve the participation of lay prosecutors, known as court prosecutors, who prosecute the majority of cases in these courts.^[6] Court prosecutors were introduced in 1976 to take over the role of police inspectors in prosecuting cases before the magistrates. While court prosecutors are not required to have legal qualifications, a small number do, and all court prosecutors are required to undergo a 9-month training programme on advocacy skills, the rules of evidence, substantive law, and prosecutorial ethics.^[7] As of 2015, there were 80 court prosecutors, 31 of which had obtained aPCLL orLLB equivalent, and 6 of which were fully qualified solicitors or barristers.^[8]

Magistrates are judicial officers appointed by the Chief Executive on the recommendation of theJudicial Officers Recommendation Commission. Since 2019, the retirement age for magistrates is 65.^[9]

Magistrates are not judges; only those sitting in the District Court or above are known as judges. Magistrates may be addressed asyour Worship, and typically wear a closed black gown, awing collar, and bands while sitting in court. Magistrates do not wear wigs in court.

The Chief Magistrate is the court leader and is responsible for the overall administration of the magistrates' courts.

A principal magistrate is in charge of one of the seven magistrates' courts.

A permanent magistrate is a full-time magistrate, and is assigned to sit in one of the seven magistrates' courts.

TheChief Justice appoints on a temporary basis a number of principal and permanent magistrates to sit as a Master in theHigh Court^[10] or to sit as a Deputy District Judge or Master in theDistrict Court,Family Court orLands Tribunal.^[11][12][13] TheChief Justice also appoints a number of permanent magistrates to sit as Presiding Officers in the Labour Tribunal and Adjudicators in theSmall Claims Tribunal.^[14][15]

A special magistrate is also a full-time magistrate, but is assigned to deal with various kinds of departmental summons including minor offenses such as traffic contraventions. Their sentencing power is limited to a maximum fine of HK$50,000 or as specified in their warrants of appointment.

A deputy magistrate or deputy special magistrate is assigned by theChief Justice for such period and on such terms as the chief justice thinks fit. This makes additional manpower available to the magistrates' courts while also giving eligible persons experience on the bench, before the magistrate commits to a full-time posting or returns to private practice.

• Mr SO Wai-tak, Victor

The current permanent magistrates (as at 1 January 2023) are (ranked according to seniority):

• Existing magistrates' courts
• 
  Eastern
• 
  Fanling
• 
  Kowloon City
• 
  Kwun Tong
• 
  Sha Tin
• 
  Tuen Mun
• 
  West Kowloon

• Former magistrates' courts
• 
  Western Magistracy
• 
  North Kowloon Magistracy
• 
  Central Magistracy
• 
  South Kowloon District Court
• 
  Fanling Magistracy
• 
  Tsuen Wan Magistrates' Court

• Judiciary of Hong Kong

• Judiciary of Hong Kong

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