A Critical Review of Progresses and Challenges of Cross-Border Judicial Assistance in Civil and Commercial Matters between Mainland China and the Hong Kong SAR since 1997

Abstract

在香港回歸祖國十四周年之際,本文通過對兩地間已形成的合作機制和實際案例的分析對'一國兩制'下區際民商事司法協助的發展進行檢視。文章認為,迄今為止雖然強勁發展的經貿關系和民間互動為兩地司法協助提供了巨大的動力和需求,但這方面取得的進展有限,依然面臨著不少體制上的困難和挑戰,其中法系差異、法制發展程度不同和互信不足仍是最主要的癥結所在。人們對于沒有先例可循的中國區際司法的艱巨性已有共識;但需要指出的是,實踐中對一些民商事合作問題過度的政治化解讀可能會限制理性和創造性探索的空間,亦與經濟全球化中沖突法發展趨勢相違。 Through examination of the newly established mechanisms and leading cases this article critically reviews the developments in cross-border judicial assistance in civil and commercial matters between mainland China and the Hong Kong SAR since 1997 under the 'one country, two systems' principle. It argues that as compared with the strong momentum and needs in the dynamic course of integration, the progress in this field is still limited, where the discrepancies of the legal systems, the different stage of legal development and insufficient mutual trust of tthe judiciaries of the two sides are still the major causes of the difficulties and challenges. Despite the consensus on formidableness of the unprecedented cooperation it should be pointed out that, over-politicalizing certain legal issues in this regard may not only undermine sensible groundbreaking exploration, but also not be in line with the trend of conflict of laws in the globalized era.