### Evidence Ordinance 《證據條例》

38. Courts to take judicial notice of signature of judges, etc.
All courts, judges, magistrates, officers of the courts, commissioners acting judicially, and other judicial officers shall take judicial notice of the signature of the judges, provided such signature is attached or appended to any judgment, decree, order, certificate, or other judicial or official document.
(Amended 50 of 1911; 62 of 1911 Schedule; 47 of 1997 s. 10)[cf. 1845 c. 113 s. 2 U.K.]

39. Prints of films of public documents
(1) A print, whether enlarged or not, purporting to be made from a film of a public document and purporting to be certified to be a print made from a film of a public document by the public officer or person who has custody of the film shall be admitted in evidence in any criminal or civil proceedings before any court on its production without further proof.
(2) On the production of a print under subsection (1) the court before which it is produced shall, until the contrary is proved, presume—
(a) that a certificate purporting to be signed by the public officer or person having custody of the film has been signed by him; and
(b) that the print to which the certificate refers has been made from a film of the public document.
(Added 6 of 1973 s. 2)

### Evidence Ordinance 《證據條例》

40. Prints from films of Government documents, etc.
(1) A print, whether enlarged or not, purporting to be made from a film of a document in the possession of the Government or an authorized person shall be admitted in evidence in any civil proceedings before any court on its production, upon proof that— (Amended 37 of 1984 s. 8)
(a) while the document was in the custody or control of the Government or authorized person the film was taken in order to keep a permanent record thereof; and
(b) the document photographed—
(i) was subsequently destroyed, whether deliberately or otherwise;
(ii) was so damaged as to be wholly or partly indecipherable;
(iii) was lost; or
(iv) had passed out of the custody or control of the Government or authorized person.
(2) Proof—
(a) that a print is made from a film of a document in the possession of the Government or an authorized person; and
(b) of compliance with the conditions in subsection (1),

may be given in respect of any document or groups of documents by a public officer, by an employee of an authorized person or by an authorized person, orally or by a certificate purporting to be signed by such public officer, employee or person.
(3) A certificate under subsection (2) shall be admitted in evidence in any civil proceedings before any court on its production without further proof. (Amended 37 of 1984 s. 8)
(4) On the production of a certificate under subsection (3) the court before which it is produced shall, until the contrary is proved, presume—
(a) that the facts stated in the certificate relating to the print and the compliance with the conditions in subsection (1) are true; and
(b) that the certificate purporting to be signed by a public officer, an employee of an authorized person or an authorized person has been signed by him.
(5) The Chief Secretary for Administration may, by order published in the Gazette, declare any person or class of persons to be authorized persons for the purposes of this section. (Amended 15 of 1975 s. 4; L.N. 362 of 1997)
(Added 6 of 1973 s. 2)

### Evidence Ordinance 《證據條例》

41. Interpretation
In sections 39 and 40, unless the context otherwise requires—
authorized person (獲授權人) means—
(a) a bank;
(b) a company authorized by any Ordinance to administer the estates of deceased persons or trust estates; and
(c) any person declared by the Chief Secretary for Administration to be an authorized person under section 40(5); (Amended 15 of 1975 s. 5; L.N. 362 of 1997)

film (軟片) includes a photographic plate, microfilm and machine-copy;
machine-copy (機製副本) means a copy made of a document by any machine whereby an image of the contents of the document is reproduced from surface contact with the document or by the use of photo-sensitive material other than transparent photographic film;
photograph (照片) and photographic copy (攝影副本) include a machine-copy;
public document (公共文件) means any document to which the public have a right of access.
(Added 6 of 1973 s. 2)

42. Proof of instrument to validity of which attestation is necessary
Subject as hereinafter in this Part provided, in any proceedings, whether civil or criminal, an instrument to the validity of which attestation is requisite may, instead of being proved by an attesting witness, be proved in the manner in which it might be proved if no attesting witness were alive:
Provided that nothing in this section shall apply to the proof of wills or other testamentary documents.(Added 6 of 1939 s. 2)[cf. 1938 c. 28 s. 3 U.K.]

43. Presumptions as to documents 20 years old
In any proceedings, whether civil or criminal, there shall, in the case of a document proved, or purporting, to be not less than 20 years old, be made any presumption which immediately before 24 March 1939, would have been made in the case of a document of like character proved, or purporting, to be not less than 30 years old.
(Added 6 of 1939 s. 2)[cf. 1938 c. 28 s. 4 U.K.]

44. Power to order proof of specified facts by affidavit with or without attendance of deponent
The court may at any stage of any proceedings by order direct that specified facts may be proved at the trial by affidavit with or without the attendance of the deponent for cross-examination, notwithstanding that a party desires his attendance for cross-examination and that he can be produced for that purpose.
(Added 6 of 1939 s. 2)[cf. 1938 c. 28 s. 5 U.K.]