Authorities agree to mutually recognize cross-boundary family dispute judgments
Hong Kong and mainland authorities on Tuesday inked an agreement to ensure legal judgments on family cases by courts on both sides will be recognized and enforced in each other’s jurisdiction.
This is expected to end the lack of institutional arrangements in settling disputes on matters between the two jurisdictions.
The Arrangement on Reciprocal Recognition and Enforcement of Civil Judgments in Matrimonial and Family Cases by the Courts of the Mainland and Hong Kong was signed after meetings between the country’s Supreme People’s Court and Hong Kong’s Department of Justice (DoJ) on mutual legal assistance in civil and com- mercial matters, Secretary for Justice Rimsky Yuen Kwokkeung explained.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Yuen said the negotiation and signing of the arrangement again demonstrated that the differences between the two places’ legal systems were no obstacle to cooperation.
Such differences could be addressed if both sides fostered mutual understanding and respect in accordance with the “One Country, Two Systems” policy, Yuen said.
“Not only is the signing of the arrangement today an important milestone in the context of mutual legal assistance between the two places, it is also the most recent example of the successful implementation of the Basic Law,” he added.
In recent years, the rising number of cross-boundary marriages and the increasing trend of families having assets on both sides have prompted the need to realize reciprocal recognition and enforcement of civil judgments in matrimonial and family cases, Yuen said.
“It will provide clearer legal protection for relevant family members, especially underage children,” he said, when problems arise from such marriages, and the parties’ legal rights will not be prejudiced by cross-boundary factors.
In previous cases many judgments could not be enforced across the boundary because of a lack of institutional guarantees.
According to the latest statistics by Hong Kong’s Census and Statistics Department, 17,953 mainland-Hong Kong marriages were registered in the city in 2015, accounting for 35 percent of the total.
Also signing the agreement was Grand Justice of the Supreme People’s Court Shen Deyong. He said the arrangement would reduce repetitive law suits and benefit people from both sides. It would also boost cooperation on legal matters between the mainland and Hong Kong, Shen said.
After the signing, local legislative procedure will commence on both sides before the agreement can become law.
This is not the first time such an agreement was signed. Last December, authorities from both sides signed the Arrangement on Mutual Taking of Evidence in Civil and Commercial Matters. This became effective on March 1.