High Court Ordinance

(1)
This section relates to the Court of Appeal in the exercise of its
                civil jurisdiction; and in this section
Court
(
法庭
) means the Court of Appeal exercising
                such jurisdiction.
(2)
The Court shall be duly constituted for the purpose of exercising any of its
                jurisdiction if it consists of an uneven number of Justices of Appeal not less than
                3.
(3)
Where—
(a)
part of any proceedings before the Court has been heard by an uneven number
                    of Justices of Appeal greater than 3; and
(b)
one or more members of the Court is or are unable to continue,
the Court shall remain duly constituted for the purpose of those proceedings
                so long as the number of members (whether even or uneven) is not reduced to less
                than 3.
(4)
The Court shall, if it consists of 2 Justices of Appeal, be duly constituted for
                the purpose
of—
(a)
hearing or determining any appeal against an interlocutory order or
                    interlocutory judgment;
(aa)
hearing or determining any application for leave to appeal (except an
                    application for leave to appeal to the Court of Final
                    Appeal
                    against a decision made by the Court consisting of 3 or more Justices of
                        Appeal);
(Added
3 of 2008 s. 26
. Amended
21 of 2020 s. 6
)
(ab)
hearing or determining any interlocutory application in relation to a cause
                    or matter pending before it;
(Added
3 of 2008 s. 30
)
(ac)
hearing or determining any appeal made under Order 53,
rule 3(4)
of the Rules of the High Court
                        (
Cap. 4 sub. leg. A
) (
O.53 r.3(4)
                    appeal
);
(Added
21 of 2020 s. 6
)
(b)
hearing or determining any appeal against a decision of
                    a
                    single Justice of Appeal acting by virtue of
section
                        35(1)
;
(c)
hearing or determining any appeal where all the parties have before the
                    hearing filed a consent to the appeal being heard and determined by 2 Justices
                    of Appeal;
(d)
hearing the remainder of, and determining, any appeal where part of it has
                    been heard by 3 or more Justices of Appeal of whom one or more are unable to
                    continue and all the parties have consented to the remainder of the appeal being
                    heard, and the appeal being determined, by 2 remaining Justices of Appeal;
                    or
(e)
hearing or determining an appeal of any such description or in any such
                    circumstances not covered by paragraphs (a) to (d) as may be prescribed for the
                    purposes of this subsection by an order made by the Chief Justice.
(Amended
3 of 2008 s. 26
)
(4A)
Despite
subsection (4
)(
aa)
, if an application for leave to appeal to
                the Court of Final Appeal against a decision made by the Court consisting of less
                than 3 Justices of Appeal was duly filed before the commencement date, the Court
                consisting of 2 Justices of Appeal is not duly constituted for the purpose of
                hearing or determining the application.
(Added
21 of 2020 s. 6
)
(4B)
Despite
subsection (4
)(
ac)
, if an O.53 r.3(4) appeal (except one
                falling within
subsection (4
)(
c)
) was duly filed before the commencement
                date, the Court consisting of 2 Justices of Appeal is not duly constituted for the
                purpose of hearing or determining the appeal.
(Added
21 of 2020 s. 6
)
(4C)
In subsections (4A) and (4B
)—
*
commencement
                    date
(
生效日期
) means the date on which
Part 2
of the Statute Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Ordinance 2020
                    (
21 of 2020
) comes into operation.
(Added
21 of 2020 s. 6
)
(5)
Where—
(a)
the
                    Court as duly constituted under subsection (3) or (4) hears an appeal or
                    application; and
(Replaced
21 of 2020 s. 6
)
(b)
the members of the Court are equally divided,
the case shall, on the application of any
                party
                or by order of the Court made of its motion, be
re-
argued before and determined by
                an uneven number of Justices of Appeal not less than 3, before any appeal to the
                Court of Final Appeal under this Ordinance or any other enactment.
(Amended
79 of 1995 s. 50
;
21 of 2020 s. 6
)
(6)
In any cause or matter pending before the Court a single Justice of Appeal may
                at any time during any vacation make an interim order to prevent prejudice to the
                claims of any parties pending an appeal.
(7)
Section 53
shall apply in relation to causes and matters before the
                Court as it applies in relation to causes and matters before the Court of First
                Instance.