Article 158(3) of the Hong Kong Basic Law and the Preliminary Reference Procedure of the European Union

Headnote

Abstract

This Article analyses the preliminary reference procedure under Article 158(3) of the Hong Kong Basic Law and its transplantation from Article 267 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. Preliminary reference procedures require courts of final appeal to refer certain questions of law to a higher legal authority for determination before they can give judgement. This Article argues that this area of Hong Kong constitutional law is underdeveloped, due in large part to the unwillingness of the Hong Kong judiciary to respect the interests of the national legislature. An examination of the preliminary reference procedure, as practiced in the E.U., makes clear that the constitutional order in Hong Kong must do more to balance regional and national interests. To that end, this Article recommends several reforms: 1) to eliminate the existing jurisprudence regarding Article 158(3) of the Basic Law; 2) to adopt E.U.-style doctrines of judicial economy, including irrelevant question, acte éclairé, and acte clair; 3) to adopt a doctrine of sincere cooperation, so as to increase the quality and quantity of judicial references; and 4) to modernize the concept of Hong Kong law to a hybrid system of common law and Chinese law.

Table of Contents

I. Introduction............3

II. Origins and Development of Article 158(3) of the Basic Law........4

A. Case Law.............6

1. Classification....................7

2. Predominant Provision.................8

3. Necessity......................9

4. Arguability.................10

B. Confusion and Controversy...................10

1. Order of Operations.....................10

2. Predominant Provision..........................11

III. A Comparative Approach............13

A. Similarities between Article 158(3) of the Basic Law and Article 267 of the TFEU....................13

B. Preliminary Reference Procedure of the E.U...............17

1. Irrelevant Question............. 17

2. Acte Éclairé..........18

3. Acte Clair...................18

IV. Lessons for Hong Kong from the E.U.................19

A. No Order of Operations..............19

B. Judicial Economy................20

1. Distinguish Legal Acts from Political Acts.................22

2. Expand the Concept of Hong Kong Law..............23

V. Doctrine of Sincere Cooperation.........................25

VI. Responsibilities of the Court of Final Appeal...............28

VII. Conclusion....................28

I. Introduction

The year 2015 marked the twenty-fifth anniversary of the promulgation of the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (Basic Law), while 2017 marked twenty years since the return of Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China (PRC or China). These are major milestones...