The Honourable Andrew Li Kwok Nang served as the First Chief Justice of the Court of Final Appeal of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China from July 1997 to August 2010. As Chief Justice, he presided in that Court and was the Head of the Judiciary charged with its administration.
He has been widely recognized as a great Chief Justice who provided visionary leadership.1 He has left “an indelible mark in the annals of the history of the HKSAR”.2 He was “the main impetus” in the development of the Court of Final Appeal.3
He was born in Hong Kong in December 1948 into a well-known family originally from Heshan in Guangdong. He was educated at St Paul’s Co-Educational College and its Primary School and Repton School in England and graduated from Cambridge University. He practiced at the Hong Kong Bar from 1973 and was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1988.
Before 1997, his community service had included serving as a member of the Executive Council, the Chairman of the University Grants Committee and a Steward of the Jockey Club. His contribution was recognized in 1993 by the award of the Commander of the British Empire.
Thirteen honorary degrees have been conferred on him, including nine by universities in Hong Kong, Tsinghua University, the University of Oxford and the University of New South Wales. His awards include the Grand Bauhinia Medal by the Hong Kong Government in 2008 and the Woodrow Wilson Award for Public Service.
李國能先生於1997年7月至2010年8月出任中華人民共和國香港特別行政區終審法院的首任首席法官。作為首席法官，他掌領終審法院，為該法院的庭長 ; 他同時是司法機構之首，負責司法機構的行政管理。
李國能先生的領導才能和卓見，是大眾公認的傑出首席法官。在建立終審法院的聲譽及其發展，李先生居功至偉。他對法治的貢獻，更在香港特別行政區的史冊留下恆久的一頁。
李國能先生於1948年12月出生於一個顯赫家族，祖籍廣東鶴山。早年肆業於聖保羅男女中學及其附屬小學，其後負笈英國萊普頓中學，並於劍橋大學畢業。他於1973年成為香港執業大律師，並於1988年獲委任為御用大律師。
李國能先生1997年前曾出任行政局議員，擔任大學及理工教育資助委員會主席及香港賽馬會董事等多項公職，並於1993年獲頒英國司令勳章(CBE)，以表揚他對公共事務的貢獻。
李國能先生先後獲十三所大學頒授榮譽學位，當中包括香港九所大學、清華大學、牛津大學和澳洲新南威爾斯大學。他屢獲殊榮，包括於2008年獲香港政府頒授大紫荊勳章及於2010年獲頒伍德羅威爾遜公眾事業獎。