Issues surrounding old buildings have aroused public concern recently. After the building collapse on Ma Tau Wai Road, the Legislative Council approved a measure that would lower the threshold for compulsory sale of old properties to 80 percent of owners/occupants (the 80 percent scheme) last Wednesday. Citizens have been concerned about the maintenance and redevelopment of old buildings, especially resale values under the lowered 80 percent trigger.

According to the current Buildings Ordinance, without approval from the Building Authority, no person can carry out any major building restructuring works. Since ordinary citizens lack sufficient professional knowledge, it is left to the construction contractor to submit plans for approval.

With regard to the loopholes and deficiencies in the existing ordinance, I am of the view that the government should review the relevant ordinance and make separate provision that the owners or tenants shall, on their own initiative, make a declaration to the department concerned for examination and approval before contracting out major alteration or decorative works in their buildings as they must be the ones most concerned about the safety of their own buildings.

Moreover, arbitration should be introduced when conflicts arise over the compulsory sale of ownership for redevelopment.

Arbitration does not replace mediation, but provides an alternate dispute resolution (ADR) instead of litigation when mediation fails. Mediation is a good first step to help two parties reach a consensus. However, since mediation is not binding, the eventual winner may still face judicial proceedings involving huge legal fees once mediation fails.

Arbitration is more costly than mediation, but is definitely cheaper and quicker than the three-instance-trial.

Of course, this ADR may only be selected voluntarily by both parties. It is not a compulsory choice. Arbitration will not drag on for several years like litigation, but arbitration is also binding on both parties while neither party may lodge an appeal thereafter. Arbitration can settle a dispute in a one-off occasion. So it will be a good choice if the two parties want to save time and money.

Furthermore, an arbitration tribunal may be composed of various professionals such as architect, surveyor and engineer so as to reach a conclusion that better serves dispute resolution in a particular industry. Sometimes such awards are more appropriate than the judgments of the courts in settling disputes.

Hong Kong people tend to be familiar only with judicial proceedings. In fact, the mechanism of "mediation, then arbitration" has been widely used in many disputes around the world.

The author is a legislator and associate professor of the Law School at City University of Hong Kong

(HK Edition 03/25/2010 page1)