Other Government Legal Departments

X. Other Government Legal Departments

Here are some of the Government legal bodies which are also closely related to public interests:-

Land Registry

The main functions of the Land Registry are to:

register documents affecting land under the Land Registration Ordinance (Cap. 128) and its Regulations;
administer a land registration system by maintaining an up-to-date Land Register and related land records and to provide the public with facilities for search and supply of copies of the Land Register and other land records; and
register owners' corporations under the Building Management Ordinance (Cap. 344).

Companies Registry

The main functions of the Companies Registry are to:

incorporate corporate bodies and register local & overseas companies under the provisions of the Companies Ordinance (Cap. 6 22);
register documentation required by the various ordinances administered by the Companies Registry such as the Companies Ordinance, the Limited Partnerships Ordinance (Cap. 37), the Trustee Ordinance (Cap. 29) and a large number of miscellaneous incorporation ordinances;
provide the public with facilities to search for the information held by the Registry on the various statutory registers, microfilmed or computerized records; and
administer and enforce the provisions of the Companies Ordinance and related legislations with particular reference to the regulatory offences such as improper filing of statutory returns and striking off action (to remove a company name from the Registry).

Official Receiver's Office

(You may also refer to the topic of Bankruptcy and Winding-up for more details)

The principal functions of the Official Receiver's Office are to:

provide an in-house insolvency management service when appointed by the court and the creditors for the administration of estates, which includes realization of assets, adjudication of claims, distribution of dividends where appropriate, and performing a public sector role when acting as trustee or liquidator of last resort;