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The following is issued on behalf of the Judiciary:

The Judiciary announced today (August 1) that the Honourable Mr Justice Keith, Justice of Appeal of the Court of Appeal of the High Court, is leaving the Hong Kong Judiciary with effect on 30 September 2001 to take up his new judicial appointment as Judge of the High Court in England. The appointment will also be announced in England today.

In response to Mr Justice Keith's new appointment, the Honourable Chief Justice, Mr Andrew Kwok-nang Li, paid tribute to his valuable contribution to the Hong Kong Judiciary and wished him well.

The Chief Justice said "Mr Justice Keith is a highly respected Judge. He has made an enormous contribution to our jurisprudence, and is one of our leading judges in the public law field. I understand his wish to join the English Judiciary. With the benefit of his experience in Hong Kong, he can contribute particularly in the public law field there, where there are exciting challenges with the recent Human Rights Act."

The Chief Justice added "Mr Justice Keith has also made a valuable contribution to various activities outside his judicial work. Since 1994, he has been a member of our Judicial Studies Board and has contributed a great deal to judicial training in the civil field. Since 1994, he has also been an honorary lecturer of the Faculty of Law at the University of Hong Kong."

The Chief Justice said, "On behalf of the Judiciary, I would like to thank Mr Justice Keith for his distinguished service and wish him every success in his new career in England."

Mr Justice Keith said: "I shall always be grateful for having had the opportunity to be a judge in Hong Kong, especially as my years here have proved to be the most intellectually challenging and rewarding of my professional life. I shall miss Hong Kong and my colleagues enormously, but I know that the future of the Judiciary is safe in the hands of Chief Justice Andrew Li and the very many able and distinguished judges who serve under him."

Mr Justice Keith, aged 57, joined the Hong Kong Judiciary in 1991 as a judge of the then High Court. In 1996 he was appointed as the Judge heading the Constitutional and Administrative Law List. He was elevated to the Court of Appeal in 1999. He is married with two children.

END/Wednesday, August 1, 2001

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