Need to declare reason for search means reporters and members of the public could be exposed to legal risks
DANNY.MOK@SCMP.COM
UPDATED : Monday, 02 May, 2016, 10:16am
Users are now required to tell the registrar if they are dealing with people related to the company concerned by selecting at least one out of six options. Photo: May Tse
Lawyers and a journalist group expressed concern that reporters and members of the public would be exposed to legal risks after the Companies Registry laid down a new requirement for users.
From Sunday, anyone using the online company register has been required to make a statement on why they are searching for information about a registered company and its director(s).
After inputting their log-in names and passwords as usual, users are now required to tell the registrar if they are dealing with people related to the company concerned by selecting at least one out of six options in order to proceed.
Users are asked whether they are dealing with: 1) a company or its directors or other officers, in matters of or connected with any act of the company;
2) a director or other officers of a company in matters of or connected with the administration of the company, or of its property;
3) a person against whom a disqualification order has been made by a court;
4) a person who has entered into possession of the property of a company as mortgagee;
5) a person who is appointed as the provisional liquidator or liquidator in the winding up of a company;
6) a person who is appointed as the receiver or manager of the property of a company.
The Companies Registry’s log-in page displays a reminder that if users submit the statement and choose to proceed, it means they understand that personal data obtained from the search should be used only for the stated purposes.
In other words, no one can use the register without a declared reason.
A Companies Registry spokesman said on Sunday night that the new arrangement was based on the Companies Ordinance section 45 and was introduced to prevent the abuses of personal particulars obtained from the register as the information obtained should be used only in the way the user declared.
It said the new arrangement was introduced based on advice in a privacy commissioner’s investigation report on public registers provided by government departments and public organisations.
The new arrangement seems to have presented a new obstacle for people such as journalists investigating political and commercial scandals of public figures and their related firms, as the journalist might find it difficult to choose a reason from the six preset options.
An arbitrary selection might bring legal liabilities for making false statements
Lawmaker James To Kun-sun, who is also a lawyer, told the media that the public’s right to use the registry was compromised by the six options, which did not exhaust all reasonable situations in which the registry could be used.
He was doubtful about whether journalists were considered to be “dealing with” a government official if they were just searching for the official’s particulars in the register.
He said journalists needed to explain how the purpose of the search complied with what they declared in the statement, or they might be accused of invasion of privacy.
Lawyer Daniel Wong Kwok-tung said the definitions of “dealing with” in the six options were broad and could leave room for a defence, but the new arrangement compromised the public’s right to know.
Hong Kong Journalists Association chairwoman Sham Yee-lan told the media that none of the six options were related to news reporting, and that the new arrangement would hinder journalists’ work and should be removed immediately.
She said the association would try to meet the Companies Registry over the issue.
http://m.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1940417/hong-kong-lawyers-and-journalists-concerned-over-new-requirement-when
