Australia’s former chief justice Robert French quits Hong Kong’s top court

Robert French’s resignation comes amid a years-long exodus of overseas jurists.

Robert French, former Chief Justice of Australia and chancellor of the University of Western Australia. Picture: Marie Nirme

Former High Court of Australia chief justice Robert French has resigned from Hong Kong’s highest court amid a years-long exodus of overseas jurists, following Beijing’s imposition of a sweeping national security law on the Chinese finance hub.

The city’s judiciary said on Friday that Justice French had cut short his term, which was meant to expire in May 2026, adding that the court’s operation will not be affected.

Hong Kong is a common law jurisdiction separate from mainland China and invites overseas judges to hear cases at its Court of Final Appeal.

Their presence has been seen as a bellwether for the rule of law since the former British colony was handed back to China in 1997.

But Justice French said in a statement on Friday that the role of overseas judges has “become increasingly anachronistic and arguably cosmetic”, according to the South China Morning Post.

The judiciary said Justice French “reaffirmed his continued respect for the independence and integrity of all of the judges on the Court of Final Appeal” in his resignation letter.

Former Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia Robert French in his chambers in 2016.

A Hong Kong government spokesperson “expressed regret” at Justice French’s resignation and thanked him for his contributions.

Justice French, who served as chief justice from 2008-2017, and had been on the Hong Kong bench for the past eight years.

Beijing passed a national security law on the former British colony in 2020, following huge and often violent pro-democracy protests the year before.

Since then, six overseas judges have quit the top court without finishing their terms.

Four others have not renewed their appointments.

On Friday, Justice French reportedly declined to comment on the national security law but said he would “reject the proposition that (overseas judges) are somehow complicit” in how the government applies that law.

British judge Jonathan Sumption resigned last year after saying Hong Kong’s “rule of law is profoundly compromised”, shortly after 14 pro-democracy activists were convicted of subversion.

Cases at Hong Kong’s top court are typically heard by a panel of four local judges and a fifth ad hoc member, who may be a foreign judge.

The line-up of overseas judges has gone from 15 at its peak down to five.

In January, Hong Kong’s chief justice said recruiting suitable overseas judges “may be less straightforward than it once was” given geopolitical headwinds.

The government has defended the security law as necessary to restore order after the 2019 protests and said the city remains a well-respected legal hub.