Hong Kong Ordinances

PREVENTION OF BRIBERY ORDINANCE - SECT 9

Corrupt transactions with agents

(1) Any agent who, without lawful authority or reasonable excuse, solicits or
accepts any advantage as an inducement to or reward for or otherwise on
account of his-

   (a)  doing or forbearing to do, or having done or forborne to do, any act
        in relation to his principal's affairs or business; or

   (b)  showing or forbearing to show, or having shown or forborne to show,
        favour or disfavour to any person in relation to his principal's
        affairs or business, shall be guilty of an offence.

(2) Any person who, without lawful authority or reasonable excuse, offers any
advantage to any agent as an inducement to or reward for or otherwise on
account of the agent's-

   (a)  doing or forbearing to do, or having done or forborne to do, any act
        in relation to his principal's affairs or business; or

   (b)  showing or forbearing to show, or having shown or forborne to show,
        favour or disfavour to any person in relation to his principal's
        affairs or business, shall be guilty of an offence.

(3) Any agent who, with intent to deceive his principal, uses any receipt,
account or other document-

   (a)  in respect of which the principal is interested; and

   (b)  which contains any statement which is false or erroneous or defective
        in any material particular; and

   (c)  which to his knowledge is intended to mislead the principal, shall be
        guilty of an offence.

(4) If an agent solicits or accepts an advantage with the permission of his
principal, being permission which complies with subsection (5), neither he nor
the person who offered the advantage shall be guilty of an offence under
subsection (1) or (2). (Replaced 28 of 1980 s. 4)

(5) For the purposes of subsection (4) permission shall-

   (a)  be given before the advantage is offered, solicited or accepted; or

   (b)  in any case where an advantage has been offered or accepted without
        prior permission, be applied for and given as soon as reasonably
        possible after such offer or acceptance, and for such permission to be
        effective for the purposes of subsection

(4), the principal shall, before giving such permission, have regard to the
circumstances in which it is sought. (Added 28 of 1980 s. 4)