法律援助署五十周年紀念特刊 | Legal Aid Department 50th Anniversary Commemorative Publication

P.32 觀看訪問精華片段，請掃描此 二維碼。 Please scan the QR code for the interview highlight. Ivan認為法援署與香港社會的發 展與時並進。 Ivan believes the Department has kept pace with the social development in Hong Kong. 見證社會的變遷 案件的處理有緩急先後，處理有可能為社會帶來重大影響的 緊急案件，更是考驗團隊合作的一大挑戰。當與申請相關的 訴訟並無先例可循，或涉及複雜的法律爭議問題時，法援署 可根據《法律援助條例》第9（d）條，就審批有關申請的理據向 大律師（包括資深大律師）徵詢獨立法律意見。 Ivan與團隊曾處理一宗非常緊急的司法覆核申請，由提出申請 到在法院進行聆訊，時間不足一個月。他憶述：「在過程中， 我們需要向多方人士蒐集大量資料，並徵詢大律師的意見。整 個過程非常緊迫，加上部門平日的工作已十分繁重，幸好我們 仍能夠在短時間內完成審批，這充分顯示法援署的同事在龐大 工作壓力下，仍能協助維護香港社會的法治。」 現今社會變化不斷，不同的文化和價值觀難免互相衝擊。面對 富爭議性的議題，其中一個解決爭議的方法就是把議題帶到法 庭，尋求最公平合理的解決方案。公務員爭取同性配偶的平等 福利便是一例，而法援署在當中亦扮演了重要的角色。入境處 一名高級入境事務主任於海外與同性伴侶註冊結婚，他因未能 獲得公務員配偶福利和兩人未可合併報稅等事宜而提出司法覆 核。在法援署的協助下，案件上訴至終審法院並獲勝訴。Ivan 表示：「法援署有責任確保有需要的人士獲得所需及足夠的協 助，以保障他們的權益。」他認為此案反映社會對婚姻的觀念 正在逐步改變，也欣喜法援署的工作可與香港社會的發展與時 並進。 Witnessing Social Changes The level of priority and severity is different in each case. The Department is no stranger to important or urgent cases that can have great social impacts. When an application involves new, complex or controversial legal issue(s), the Department may seek independent legal advice on the merits of the application from Counsel (including Senior Counsel) under section 9(d) of the Legal Aid Ordinance. Ivan and his team have once encountered an extremely urgent judicial review application. They were given less than a month from the application to the court hearing. “During the process, we needed to collect information from various parties and consult barristers,” he recalls. “The whole thing was in a massive rush. Thankfully, even with the already heavy daily workload, we managed to complete the processing in such a short period of time. This shows that colleagues are able to work under immense pressure to help the city in maintaining the rule of law.” As the world evolves, there are inevitable clashes between cultures and values. One of the best ways to settle controversial issues is to seek fair and just solutions in court. In a civil servant’s fight for equality in same sex marriage, the Department served an important role. A senior immigration officer of Immigration Department married his same-sex partner overseas. He and his partner were denied spousal benefits and joint tax assessment in Hong Kong. With the assistance of the Department, they applied for judicial review and eventually received a favorable ruling from the Court of Final Appeal. Ivan comments: “It is the Department’s duty to ensure that those in need can obtain the appropriate and sufficient assistance in order to protect their rights and benefits.” He believes that this case is evident of the changing attitudes of society towards marriage, and he is glad that the work of the Department has progressed with the times and kept pace with the social development in Hong Kong. 公義根基、精英團隊 An Elite Team for Justice