THE LAW REFORM COMMISSION OF HONG KONG

The Law Reform Commission was established by the Executive Council in January 1980. The Commission considers such reforms of the laws of Hong Kong as may be referred to it by the Secretary for Justice or the Chief Justice.

The members of the Commission at present are:

The Hon Ms Elsie Leung Oi‑Sie, GBM, JP,

Secretary for Justice (Chairman)

The Hon Mr Justice Andrew Li, Chief Justice

Mr Tony Yen, SBS, JP, Law Draftsman

Dr John Bacon-Shone

The Hon Mr Justice Bokhary, PJ

Professor Albert Chen, JP

Mr Anthony Chow, SBS, JP

Professor Y K Fan, JP

Mr Alan Hoo, SBS, SC, JP

The Hon Mrs Sophie Leung, SBS, JP

Professor Michael McConville

Mr Benjamin Yu, SC

The Secretary of the Commission is Mr Stuart M I Stoker and its offices are at:

20/F Harcourt House

39 Gloucester Road

Wanchai

Hong Kong

Telephone: 2528 0472

Fax: 2865 2902

E‑mail: hklrc@hkreform.gov.hk

Website: http://www.hkreform.gov.hk

The Law Reform Commission

of Hong Kong

Report

Rules for determining domicile

_______________________________

CONTENTS

*Chapter*	*Page*

Preface	1

Terms of reference	2
The consultation process	3
Layout of this Report	3

1. The existing rules for determining a person's domicile	4

Major areas of law where the concept of domicile is used	4
General rules in respect of domicile	7
Existing rules for determining a person's domicile	8

2. Problems of the existing law	17

Domicile of children	17
Domicile of adults	20
Domicile of dependency of married women	21
Domicile of dependency of the mentally incapacitated	23
Burden and standard of proof	24
Domicile in a federal or composite state	25

3. Should domicile be retained as a general connecting factor?	26

Other common connecting factors	26
Reform proposals considered in other jurisdictions	28
Conclusion	30

4. The law in other jurisdictions, options for reform and recommendations	33

Domicile of children	33
Domicile of adults	51
Domicile of married women	74
Domicile of the mentally incapacitated	80
Standard of proof	87
Domicile in federal or composite states	89
Transitional provisions	92
Codification	95

5. Summary and practical effects of recommendations	100

Summary of recommendations	100
Practical effects of recommendations	102

Annex 1 - List of Respondents to the Consultation Paper	104

Annex 2 - Comparison table of the rules for determining a person's domicile	105

Annex 3 - Table comparing the current rules with the proposed rules in Hong Kong	116

Hong Kong Law Reform Commission