Australian judge William Gummow dies aged 83 after decade on Hong Kong’s top court

Non-Permanent Judge of the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal (CFA) William Gummow has died aged 83. The Australian judge had served on the city’s apex court since 2013.

Born in 1942, Gummow practised for ten years as a solicitor before being called to the New South Wales Bar in 1976. In 1986, he was appointed to the Federal Court of Australia.

Gummow served on the High Court of Australia from 1995 to 2012, and earned the honour of Companion of the Order of Australia in 1997.

He last sat on Hong Kong’s top court in May.

See also: Explainer: Why do foreign judges sit on Hong Kong’s top court?

Last year, he had committed to continuing in the role until July 2028.

Since its establishment in 1997, the CFA has periodically invited judges from other common law jurisdictions to serve on its panel.

The practice has long been seen as a vote of confidence from the international community in Hong Kong’s judicial system, bolstering the city’s reputation as a global financial and business hub.

However, in recent years, the presence of overseas judges has come under scrutiny amid a wave of resignations following the introduction of the national security law in June 2020. The UK has also considered pulling its judges from Hong Kong’s top court.

Condolences

The Judiciary said in a Thursday statement that he had “authored important judgments that have greatly enriched our jurisprudence,” as it expressed sympathies to his family.

In a Thursday statement, the Hong Kong Bar Association (HKBA) also expressed its condolences: “The HKBA and the wider community in Hong Kong strongly support and appreciate the contribution made by Overseas NPJs to the administration of justice in Hong Kong which includes all areas of the law including commercial law, human rights and criminal law.”

The High Court of Australia said it would hold a ceremonial sitting to honour him: “Justice Gummow was a deeply learned, rigorously analytical and highly collegiate member of the High Court who contributed greatly in that capacity and throughout his professional life to the content and trajectory of Australian law.”

Spate of resignations

Last April, Australian judge Robert French resigned from Hong Kong’s top court, saying the role of overseas non-permanent judges on the CFA had become “increasingly anachronistic and arguably cosmetic.”

He was the sixth foreign judge to depart Hong Kong’s highest court since the start of 2024.

Anthony Murray Gleeson from Australia did not renew his term when it ended in February 2024, citing old age; UK judges Jonathan Sumption and Lawrence Collins quit in June 2024 before their terms ended; while Canada’s Beverley McLachlin and the UK’s Nicholas Phillips did not extend their terms.

Sumption wrote an opinion piece for the Financial Times just days after his resignation, saying Hong Kong was “slowly becoming a totalitarian state.” Judges operate in an “almost impossible political environment created by China,” he said.

Before the most recent string of departures, two British judges, Robert Reed and Patrick Hodge, quit the CFA in 2022, citing the erosion of political freedoms.

Last June, a judge from New Zealand, William Young, joined the CFA.

Hong Kong’s justice chief has downplayed the departure of foreign judges in recent years, saying it is not about their numbers but whether the judges have “a good international reputation.”

Safeguard press freedom; keep HKFP free for all readers by supporting our team

Support HKFP  |  Policies & Ethics  |  Error/typo?  |  Contact  |  Newsletter  | Transparency & Annual Report | Apps

Make a one-off donation.

Tom founded Hong Kong Free Press in 2015 as the city's first crowdfunded newspaper. He has a BA in Communications and New Media from Leeds University and an MA in Journalism from the University of Hong Kong. He previously founded an NGO advocating for domestic worker rights, and has contributed to the BBC, Deutsche Welle, Al-Jazeera and others.

Tom leads HKFP – raising funds, managing the team and navigating risk – whilst regularly speaking on press freedom, ethics and media funding at industry events, schools and conferences around the world.