The possession, sale, transportation, and cultivation of cannabis is prohibited under the Dangerous Drug Ordinance[1] (Chapter 134 of the Law of Hong Kong), which was put into effect at January 17, 1969, during the British colonial period.

The principal tariffs for distributing cannabis resin were suggested in Attorney-General v Chan Chi-man ([1987] HKLR 221),[5] where it was noted that sentences should be scaled down appropriately based on the type of cannabis product being trafficked (i.e. the penalties are reduced if the product contains smaller amounts of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC): Other details in the case are also used to make judgments.

[6] However, the Magistrate dismissed the ability to appeal the sentence, under grounds of location and social context—the accused was selling cannabis in a place "where impressionable young people congregated, and was preying on their credibility".

[7] While the court tends to reduce the initial sentence based on cannabis potency and amount, it acknowledges that any role in the trafficking of a Schedule 1 drug should be taken seriously.

[3] For example, in R v Chan Shu Tong ([1996] 4 HKC 515), the accused admitted to storing 790 kg of cannabis being trafficked in a rented flat, under orders from his employer.