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Leaping forward to 1997: Bankruptcy law reform in Hong Kong
Author(s) -
Booth Charles D
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
international insolvency review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.125
H-Index - 7
eISSN - 1099-1107
pISSN - 1180-0518
DOI - 10.1002/iir.3940060303
Subject(s) - bankruptcy , law , citation , insolvency , library science , sociology , political science , management , computer science , economics
As part of the effort to reform Hong Kong’s laws in light of China’s resumption of sovereignty on 1 July 1997, dramatic changes have recently been made to Hong Kong bankruptcy law. The Hong Kong Bankruptcy (Amendment) Ordinance 1996 was enacted in December 1996, less than seven months before Hong Kong became a Special Administrative Region of China. This Ordinance makes the first comprehensive changes to Hong Kong bankruptcy law in over a century and will affect the insolvency of both individual debtors and partnerships. The new Ordinance is expected to come into operation later in 1997 after the new Bankruptcy Rules are drafted. This article presents an overview of the important changes to Hong Kong bankruptcy law made by the Ordinance. It also discusses some of the trends and policy changes that emerged during the reform process and highlights the strengths and weaknesses of the new legislation.