看到Legal Cheek這篇報導: Late night and early morning courts are ‘not a disguised attempt’ to force lawyers to work more, insists top judge, 不期然想起回歸後香港也試過開夜庭。英國嘗試朝8晚8開庭, 雖然只有6個試點, 已惹起很大反彈。英國施行這做法的目的, 據Legal Cheek報導:

New late night and early morning courts are not a cunning plan to get lawyers to work more, the leading judge in charge of their roll-out has vowed.

Lord Fulford’s move to pacify solicitors and barristers worried about 8am-8pm justice was delivered via a letter sent this week in which he set out to “demystify” the controversial pilot scheme.

......

In the missive, Fulford states that longer and more flexible court hours are “not a disguised attempt to persuade, or force, judges, court staff, legal professionals and others to spend more time at court than they do at present”.

He goes on to emphasise that court sessions will be split to enable a longer court day but “populated by different people”.......

當年香港也有聲音, 打工仔要告假上庭, 故此希望在放工之後上庭以免影響生計。大老闆回歸後新上場, 四處巡視業務, 巡到標少那裏, 閉門傾談了1小時, 其中一個課題就是開夜庭的可行性。當時同一衙門工作的人都感奇怪, 標少卒仔一個, 大老闆竟會花這麼多時間傾談。我當時的看法是夜庭是可行的, 但不覺得效益會很大。我不知大老闆跟多少人傾夜庭的議題, 不久之後就試驗了。試驗範圍很細, 不涉刑事案件。試驗不久就告吹了。叫人返夜班, 當然「媽媽」聲, 但問題不單只是法庭人員晚上開工的麻煩, 你叫與訟雙方下班之後上庭也未必行得通。下班時間也不是很穩定的, 搞了一大輪也得個桔, 所以back to sqaure one。現時除了突發事件, 譬如臨時禁制令、人身保護令、精神健康的強制入院令及家事法庭緊急命令要法官在晚上也要當值外, 已沒有常規性夜庭的需要。法官晚上當值也只是候命式的而不是駐法院式的, 視乎性質, 有些是很少發市的。當然, 發市時可能半夜三更整兩劑畀你, 睇你好唔好彩。

英國試行的早晚加班庭我是不看好的, 尤其是那是涉及刑事案件的, 牽動的包括懲教署押解犯人, 譬如在晚上審訊之後被告被判監, 就涉及收犯入冊的程序, 加班的不單是法官、法庭職員、控辯雙方律師、證人及被告, 也涉及警方及懲教人員, 燈油火蠟的耗費, 生活作息習慣的影響, you name it, 犯得着嗎?