Our focus on matters concerning important administrative law matters, particularly those concerning human rights, mean that many of of cases have far reaching implications. We will strive to provide important news concerning our work on this page.

October 2014 'Refugee and Non-Refoulement Law in Hong Kong: The Introduction of the Unified Screening Mechanism'

Mark Daly's article, 'Refugee and Non-Refoulement Law in Hong Kong: The Introduction of the Unified Screening Mechanism', appeared in the October 2014 edition of 'Hong Kong Lawyer'.  In this article, Daly contends that whilst the Unified Screening Mechanism was a welcome development that marks the beginning of a new area of law in Hong Kong, it is not without issue.  The main issue being that the system was cobbled together as a piecemeal reaction to litigation and now places an undue burden on the courts to provide guidance and overturn flawed decisions.

9/9/2013 - 'Hong Kong's New Asylum System Harder to Exploit' SCMP

The Immigration Department has claimed the new Unified Screening Mechanism set to take place at the end of 2013 will plug the loopholes in the process.  The Department further claimed that the 28 day contentious deadline for submitting supporting documents would not be extended.  In this article, Mark Daly discusses his concerns about whether or not all three claims would be statutory under the new system.

28 February 2014 - 'Foreign Domestic Workers Across Asia Rise Up Over Exploitation' - The Guardian

An article regarding foreign domestic workers in Hong Kong speaking out about their working conditions and being treated like second class citizens appeared in 'The Guardian'.  In this article, Mr Mark Daly states that Hong Kong is slow to change the attitude towards a multicultural society based on respect and dignity.

27/7/13 the Pearl Report - 'Life in Limbo'

The Pearl Report recently featured a program on the plight of refugees in Hong Kong.  The Report looked at, in particular, the system of ISS and the right to work.  Mr Mark Daly, the firm's principal, is featured in this program.

27/6/2013 Hong Kong Government finally introduces a unified system to screen asylum / non-refoulement claims in Hong Kong

3 months after the judgment in C & Ors, the Hong Kong Government has decided to introduce to the Legislative Council, on 2 July 2013, its intention to expand the current scope of the torture claim screening mechanism to include assessments of persecution risks and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment ("CIDTP") risks. We have advocated for this unified system for many years and are pleased to learn of the Government's intention, despite its serious delays in making this decision. The Security Bureau just published a paper in respect of the new unified screening mechanism (see link). We note that the paper provides very few details about the scheme and will reserve our comments when they are unveiled.

25/3/2013 BBC - "Hong Kong court denies domestic worker residency"

"Hong Kong's top court has ruled that domestic workers are not eligible to apply for permanent residency, ending a two-year battle that has split opinion."