SARKER MD MAMUN v. TORTURE CLAIMS APPEAL BOARD

HCAL 344/2019

[2022] HKCFI 2375

IN THE HIGH COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE

CONSTITUTIONAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE LAW LIST

NO 344 OF 2019

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BETWEEN

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D E C I S I O N

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1.  On 8 April 2022 I granted leave to the Applicant to apply for judicial review of the decision of the Torture Claims Appeal Board (“Board”) in refusing to allow the late filing of his Notice of Appeal against the decision of the Director of Immigration (“Director”) regarding his non-refoulement claim on the basis that the Board had failed to take account of all the relevant facts within its knowledge as required under Section 37ZT(2)(b) of the Immigration Ordinance, Cap 115, and directed that the Applicant shall accordingly file and issue an originating summons within 14 days of the decision, and to serve a copy thereof on the Board as respondent and the Director as interested party.

2.  The Applicant now by a summons issued on 10 May 2022 seeks extension of time “to appeal”, and in his supporting affirmation he stated that he “did not get the High Court Judgment timely”, of which he however failed to attend the hearing of his summons so as to clarify or explain exactly the purpose of his application given that his leave application was successful that there was no reason to appeal.

3.  The court record shows that the decision was sent on the same day to the Applicant’s last reported address without being returned through undelivered post, and having been granted leave by this Court to apply for judicial review of the Board’s decision, I can only assume that he is in fact seeking further time to file his originating summons as the 14-day period for him to do so under the order already expired on 22 April 2022, and hence he was more than 2 weeks late with the filing of the originating summons.

4.  Given the fact that the Applicant was then unrepresented and with language problem, and would obviously require legal assistance for his originating summons, and that the Department of Justice has just confirmed to act for the Director and applied for leave to search the court file, I am prepared to give the Applicant a further 14 days from the date of this decision to file and issue his originating summons accordingly for judicial review of the Board’s decision, and that he be advised to apply for Legal Aid as soon as possible if he has not already done so.