- Judicial Officers Recommendation Commission and, in the case of permanent judges, in accordance with the recommendation of the Chief Justice and in any such case the Chief Justice or permanent judge, as the case may be, shall accordingly be regarded as having attained the retiring age at the expiration of that extended period;
- (b) subject to paragraph (c) a person who has attained the age of 65 years may be appointed to be the Chief Justice or to be a permanent judge for a term of 3 years and that term may be extended for one period of 3 years by the Governor acting, in the case of the Chief Justice, in accordance with the recommendation of the Judicial Officers Recommendation Commission and, in the case of a permanent judge, in accordance with the recommendation of the Chief Justice;
- (c) a person may be appointed pursuant to section 12(2) to be the Chief Justice or to be a permanent judge for a term of 3 years.
(3) There shall be no retiring age for a non-permanent judge.
(4) A non-permanent judge shall hold office for a term of 3 years but that term may be extended for one or more periods of 3 years by the Governor acting in accordance with the recommendation of the Chief Justice.
(5) A judge may at any time resign his office by notice in writing addressed to the Governor.
(6) A judge may be removed from office only for inability to discharge his duties (whether arising from infirmity of body or mind or from any other cause) or for misbehaviour, and shall not be so removed except in accordance with subsection (7), (8) or (9).
(7) The Chief Justice may be removed only by the Governor, on the recommendation of a tribunal of judges appointed by the Governor and consisting of not fewer than 5 members each one of whom is either a permanent judge or a non-permanent Hong Kong judge.
(8) A permanent or non-permanent judge may be removed only by the Governor, on the recommendation of a tribunal of judges appointed by the Chief Justice and consisting of not fewer than 3 members each one of whom is either a permanent judge or a non-permanent Hong Kong judge.
(9) If the question of removing a judge from office is being investigated by a tribunal the Governor may suspend the judge from performing the functions of his office.
(10) Any such suspension may at any time be revoked by the Governor and shall in any case cease to have effect if the tribunal recommends that the judge ought not to be removed from office.
(11) In this section and section 15 “retiring age” (退休年齡) means the age of 65 years.
