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Chief Executive John Lee accepted the recommendation of the Judicial Officers Recommendation Commission in mid-October to appoint Sir Terence Arnold as a non-permanent judge of the Court of Final Appeal from other common law jurisdictions. The appointment will be made in accordance with relevant legislation after obtaining the consent of the Legislative Council.
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Following the appointment of Sir Terence Arnold, the number of overseas judges in the Court of Final Appeal will increase to six, coming from the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand.
| Judge's Name | Nationality | Date of Appointment | Major Overseas Judicial Credentials and Highest Position |
| Patrick Keane | Australia | April 2023 | Former Judge of the High Court of Australia, Former Chief Justice of the Federal Court of Australia |
| James Allsop | Australia | May 2024 | Former Chief Justice of the Federal Court of Australia, Former President of the New South Wales Court of Appeal |
| William Young | New Zealand | June 2025 | Former Permanent Judge of the Supreme Court of New Zealand, Former President of the Court of Appeal of New Zealand |
| Terence Arnold | New Zealand | October 2026 (Recommendation Announced; to be formally appointed after LegCo's consent) | Former Permanent Judge of the Supreme Court of New Zealand, Former Judge of the Supreme Court of Fiji |
Against the background of Western politicians in the United States and other countries repeatedly waving the "big stick of sanctions" in recent years to intimidate Hong Kong’s judicial personnel, the addition of yet another prestigious overseas judge to the Court of Final Appeal as a non-permanent judge demonstrates the international legal community's high confidence in Hong Kong's judicial system, completely shattering the smearing lies of external anti-China forces and elements seeking to disrupt Hong Kong against the rule of law in Hong Kong.
Former Director of Public Prosecutions Grenville Cross emphasized that overseas non-permanent judges, like local Hong Kong judges, remain steadfast in their stance. They will certainly continue to fearlessly and impartially administer justice and will never fear the intimidation of anti-China elements.
Sir Terence Arnold, who has served as a permanent judge of the Supreme Court of New Zealand, a judge of the Supreme Court of Fiji, and a judge of the Court of Appeal of the Cook Islands, enjoys a highly elevated status and an outstanding reputation in the judicial community
Sir Terence Arnold, who has served as a permanent judge of the Supreme Court of New Zealand, a judge of the Supreme Court of Fiji, and a judge of the Court of Appeal of the Cook Islands, enjoys a highly elevated status and an outstanding reputation in the judicial community. Following his appointment, the number of overseas judges in the Court of Final Appeal will increase to six, coming from the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand.
Chief Executive John Lee stated that the addition of these prestigious overseas judges to the Court of Final Appeal as non-permanent judges highlights that the Basic Law guarantees the independence of Hong Kong’s judiciary, demonstrates the high confidence of the outside world in Hong Kong’s judicial system, and enables Hong Kong to maintain close ties with other common law jurisdictions.
These distinguished overseas judges with rich judicial experience will continue to be a unique strength of Hong Kong’s judicial system.
In fact, over the past few years, external anti-China forces have frequently launched public opinion offensives to pressure the overseas judges of the Court of Final Appeal, falsely alleging that Hong Kong's judicial system has been damaged by national security-related laws, and lying that serving as an overseas judge of the Court of Final Appeal is a betrayal of justice, publicly demanding their immediate resignation.
In August 2024, Lord Neuberger, an overseas non-permanent judge of the Court of Final Appeal, dismissed the ultimate appeal of the 'August 18 Assembly Case' involving seven elements disrupting Hong Kong, including Jimmy Lai and Martin Lee.
In August 2024, Lord Neuberger, an overseas non-permanent judge of the Court of Final Appeal, dismissed the ultimate appeal of the "August 18 Assembly Case" involving seven elements disrupting Hong Kong, including Jimmy Lai and Martin Lee.
The reasoning of the ruling was clear, powerful, convincing, and indisputable. However, multiple anti-China organizations, including "The Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong Foundation (CFHK)" and "Hong Kong Watch," immediately launched public opinion offensives.
Under the guise of so-called unfair rulings and defending human rights, they initiated a joint petition to pressure Lord Neuberger to resign. Chris Patten, the former Governor of Hong Kong who was also a patron of the anti-China organization "Hong Kong Watch," also joined the verbal attacks.
A person from the legal sector said: "External forces are clearly using this opportunity to exert pressure, aiming to force overseas judges to submit to political pressure and resign, in an attempt to ensure that Hong Kong no longer has overseas non-permanent judges, thereby realizing their political conspiracy of fabricating the illusion that 'the rule of law in Hong Kong is dead.' However, Lord Neuberger remained fearless in the face of these political interventions, consistently stood his ground, and continues to serve as a non-permanent judge of the Court of Final Appeal to this day."
Regarding the upcoming appointment of Lord Justice Arnold this time, anti-China forces have repeated their old tricks.
CFHK has publicly pressured Sir Terence Arnold to refuse the appointment. Samuel Bickett, an anti-China American lawyer closely associated with CFHK, also wrote articles to smear Sir Terence Arnold's past trial cases in an attempt to tarnish his reputation.
CFHK has publicly pressured Sir Terence Arnold to refuse the appointment. Samuel Bickett, an anti-China American lawyer closely associated with CFHK, also wrote articles to smear Sir Terence Arnold's past trial cases in an attempt to tarnish his reputation.
In addition to public opinion pressure, anti-China forces have also attempted to use "sanctions" as a weapon to intimidate Hong Kong judges and prosecutors. In November 2023, US members of Congress proposed the so-called "Hong Kong Sanctions Act," specifically demanding sanctions against 49 Hong Kong officials, judges, and prosecutors. By May 2025, US Senators again proposed the so-called "Hong Kong Judicial Sanctions Act," demanding sanctions against Chief Justice Andrew Cheung, multiple judges of the High Court, and the Director of Public Prosecutions, as well as demanding asset freezes and transaction bans.
Whenever Hong Kong courts hear major national security cases according to law, including the Jimmy Lai conspiracy to collude with foreign forces case, the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China incitement to subvert state power case, and the Joshua Wong conspiracy to collude with foreign forces case, anti-China forces and elements disrupting Hong Kong who have fled overseas seize on the issues to hype and promote the so-called sanctions bills.
Last month, the court ruled according to law that the Hong Kong Alliance, Lee Cheuk-yan, Chow Hang-tung, and Albert Ho were guilty of "incitement to subversion of state power" and sentenced them to prison terms ranging from five years and two months to seven years and three months. Anti-China forces immediately made wild remarks, falsely claiming that the prosecutions were acts of persecution and were shameful and unjust. The Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) of the United States immediately issued a statement urging Congress to pass the "Hong Kong Judicial Sanctions Act" in a despicable attempt to use sanctions to intimidate judges performing their duties according to law.
Administering justice impartially and without fear of intimidation
The person from the legal sector continued that recently, the British government also published its so-called "Six-Monthly Report," continuing to use the Sino-British Joint Declaration as a pretext to make irresponsible remarks regarding Hong Kong’s national security-related laws and the Jimmy Lai case, smearing Hong Kong's judicial system. Furthermore, some politicians in the European Parliament awarded the "Margaret Thatcher Prize" to Jimmy Lai, who has been convicted and sentenced by a Hong Kong court according to law. This is also a flat-out anti-China political operation designed to interfere with the rulings of Hong Kong courts.
In the face of sanctions and intimidation from anti-China forces, judges and judicial personnel of the Special Administrative Region have shown nothing but contempt, remained unfazed by threats, and continued to handle cases impartially and independently in accordance with statutory procedures. Grenville Cross, former Director of Public Prosecutions of Hong Kong, also publicly criticized recently that the British Conservative government took the lead years ago in pressuring overseas non-permanent judges of the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal, which ultimately led to the resignation of two British judges. However, facts have proven that these despicable acts not only failed to crush the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal but instead made it grow stronger. Over the past few years, it has successively recruited multiple high-quality judges of Australian and New Zealand nationalities to join the team, ensuring that Hong Kong's level of judicial professionalism remains second to none. He emphasized that overseas non-permanent judges, like local Hong Kong judges, remain steadfast in their stance. They will certainly continue to fearlessly and impartially administer justice and will never fear the intimidation of anti-China elements.
