Since Hong Kong`s return to sovereign control of the People`s Republic of China (PRC) in 1997, much of the attention of international scholars working on Hong Kong has shifted to relations between Hong Kong and China. The field of law is no exception, as ongoing efforts to explore the potential for harmonization between Hong Kong constitutional law and Chinese constitutional law continue. conflicts of private law issues; the reciprocal influences of tax, investment and dispute settlement systems; and other cross-border cases have tended to dominate jurisprudence on Hong Kong. While these are undoubtedly important issues, the attention given to them has tended to diminish the appreciation of the importance of Hong Kong law as legal principles in their own right. Stephen Maus` book is an important corrective to this trend. “It is a clear and concise text that focuses on legal issues that will be frequently encountered. In the business environment, we must fall back on academic legal principles, which are now forgotten or misunderstood in the classroom. This text clearly sets out these legal principles in a practical and concise format that provides unprecedented coverage while removing irrelevant elements. A book I only dreamed of during law school is now a reality.
A must for anyone who wants to understand the common legal principles in Hong Kong. – Christopher To, Executive Director of the Hong Kong Construction Industry Council, former Secretary-General of the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre “The book is well structured, comprehensive, but informative in terms of business representation, supporting legal terms and reasoning. I highly recommend this book for undergraduate or other non-law students and those intending to study law in the second degree or minor. Ellen Lau, Senior Lecturer, Department of Building Science and Technology, Hong Kong City University In the continuous efforts of the PRC government to affirm the rule of law of the PRC, scientific efforts to present and analyze the basic legal principles of the Hong Kong legal system are welcome, even though they recognize China`s contractual obligations to respect Hong Kong`s autonomy. Unlike a PRC system, in which judicial decisions often make little reference to judicial authorities and are only marginally devoted to legal analysis, the analytical treatment of Hong Kong legal principles offered in this volume provides an invaluable comparative perspective. This volume shows how the law in the PRC can possibly be informed by a reliable and legitimate legal authority and rigorous legal analysis that influences the law in other parts of Greater China. Whether for students and non-specialist professionals who wish to gain an in-depth understanding of important aspects of private law in Hong Kong, or scholars interested in opportunities to develop legal principles in Greater China, this volume will be an important resource. One can only hope that the model of legal thought advocated in this volume, possibly combined with parallel efforts in Taiwan, can inform and inspire the legal communities in mainland China to pursue a similar level of attention to legal principles. This volume provides a modern guide to the general legal principles of Hong Kong and is an ideal companion for students and non-lawyers alike. The text now reflects the many changes made to Hong Kong law since the publication of the first edition in 2006. Reworked as a practical guide to general principles of law, including contract, tort, labor and property law, the volume helps readers better understand and anticipate legal issues related to today`s business environment and private transactions.
The new documents include coverage of recent court decisions and revisions to Hong Kong regulations. Although the title of the book refers to students and professionals, the author clarifies that these are not law students and lawyers, but university students and professionals who need a solid knowledge of the law, even if this may not be up to the standard of professional practice. This puts the author in the difficult position of serving seemingly contradictory goals. On the one hand, it must provide enough information to provide non-specialists with a sufficiently comprehensive and reliable text to be useful – in fact, each of the chapters included in this book would constitute its own overarching text for a standard law school class. On the other hand, the author must avoid giving the impression that speaking to non-specialists diminishes the value of the work, rather than trying to meet in any way the requirements of law school or the standards of professional practice. The author is doing a very credible job of meeting this challenge and has produced an extremely useful volume as a result. Billed as a handbook covering basic legal topics such as contract, tort, employment, property, and promotion, Maus Text covers the basics of private law in Hong Kong. Each section pays particular attention to design and definition issues, the elements needed to create certain types of legal relationships, and a number of enforcement issues. The book is the subject of detailed footnotes and provides readers with references to a comprehensive selection of reference cases.
The book makes excellent use of a scenario approach that illustrates the relationship between contract, tort and labour law and uses assumptions drawn from existing cases in other sections. In this way, the author is able to illustrate how basic legal principles work in everyday life that readers will easily understand. [End of page 521] Although there are publications on specific areas of law, no recent book contains several central legal topics that are presented in general. Because of this need for up-to-date work on the general principles of law in Hong Kong for non-legal students and non-lawyers, the first edition of this book was published in 2006. After three editions, the most recent in 2010, a new edition became necessary to accurately reflect the changes made to the law since the first publication. Designed as a practical general guide to the more general legal principles relating to Hong Kong – contract, tort, employment and property – the second edition aims to help the reader understand and anticipate legal issues that may arise in everyday business or personal situations. As a result, the second edition of this book has been updated to reflect recent court decisions and revisions to Hong Kong regulations, and has been reorganized to make the book more user-friendly. This book is the result of a perceived need for up-to-date work on the general principles of law in Hong Kong for the use of students and non-legal professionals, as well as the general public. Although there are publications on specific areas of law, no recent book contains several central legal topics that are presented in general.
Stephen D. Mau is Professor of Law and Deputy Coordinator of the Master of Science in Construction Law and Dispute Resolution at the Department of Building and Real Estate, Hong Kong Polytechnic University.