The Legal Department, headed by the

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

, was the department responsible for the laws of Hong Kong until 1997, when Hong Kong ceased to be a British

crown colony A Crown colony or royal colony was a colony governed by Kingdom of England, England, and then Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain or the United Kingdom within the English overseas possessions, English and later British Empire. There was usua ...

. The department was responsible for dealing with criminal cases and cases on behalf of the Government of Hong Kong. The name of the department was changed to the

Department of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

upon the transfer of sovereignty in 1997 and the head of the department was renamed the

Secretary for Justice The secretary for justice () is the head of the Hong Kong Department of Justice, the chief legal advisor to the chief executive of Hong Kong and the government, and the chief law enforcement officer of the Government of Hong Kong. Before th ...

Organisation

The Attorney General's Office consisted of: * Prosecutions Division (Hong Kong) – the prosecution in the majority of Court of Appeals Instance and District Court * Civil Division – headed by the Law Officer (Civil Law), provided legal advice on civil law to all Government bureaux and departments and represented the Government both as solicitors and as barristers in all civil litigation, including arbitrations * Legal Policy Division – was responsible for drafting all Government legislation * Law Drafting Division – serviced the needs of the Solicitor General, and gave legal policy advice in respect of matters currently being considered by the Government * International Law Division – was headed by the Law Officer (International Law) and provided advice on public international law to the Government and negotiates, or provided legal advisers on negotiations, for bilateral agreements * Administration and Development Division – was headed by the Director of Administration and Development

External links

Hong Kong government departments and agencies

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

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