The following cases were recently reported by the Hon Mr Justice Bokhary. See below for His Lordship’s remarks and observations by way of Editor’s Notes.

LKW v THY (Child: Change of Name) [2023] 2 HKLRD 517 

“When a minor expresses a wish to have her surname changed to that of her stepfather, and minimal weight is attached to that wish because the minor is so young, there remains the question of what might happen in any future application for such a change if the minor still wishes it when significantly older.”

SPM Ltd v Appeal Tribunal (Buildings Ordinance) [2023] 2 HKLRD 531 

“Part of the value of this authority lies in the caution (in para.14) against excessive reliance on authorities, each case depending on the language of the documents in the case.”

HKSAR v Leung Wai Kit (梁偉傑) [2023] 2 HKLRD 799 

“This judgment builds on the decision in HKSAR v Chan Hing Kai [2020] 1 HKLRD 1082 referred to in the second holding above.”

Secretary for Justice v Law Siu Kin [2023] 2 HKLRD 814 

“As appears at para.26 of the judgment, the Court of Appeal left open the question of whether a strict application of the guidelines in R v Cooksley [2003] 2 Cr App R 18 was appropriate in Hong Kong.”