'HK Barristers Suffering Due To Court Closures'

Bar Association chairman Philip Dykes has urged the government to provide barristers with financial assistance during the coronavirus outbreak, saying their business has dried up with most court hearings cancelled until at least April 13.

In a letter to Financial Secretary Paul Chan, Dykes says there are around 1,500 practising barristers in Hong Kong, and he estimates they employ several hundred secretaries, messengers and other support staff between them.

Dykes says the pandemic is having a "calamitous effect" on barristers in the city.

"It is not a case of them going slowly but not stopping, their professional practices have suddenly ground to a shuddering halt. And that could be for a long time for the General Adjourned Period [for court business] may be extended even further if conditions do not improve significantly very soon," he writes to Chan.

"It is inequitable for the government to provide assistance and relief to enterprises and individuals whose businesses are only partly, albeit severely, affected by Covid-19 protection measures (e.g. the retail sector, food licence holders, the transport sector, the arts and culture sector), but then fail to provide help to barristers who cannot now practice their profession."

Dykes notes that some countries, including Australia, Canada, Ireland and the UK have set aside resources to support the self-employed.

He called for a one-off subsidy for barristers to pay their rent and staff costs for 12 months, and for a one-year postponement of income tax payments for the 2020/21 assessment year.