He was also appointed to the Court of Final Appeal of Hong Kong on 11 April 2011 as a non-permanent judge from other common law jurisdictions.

[1] He resigned from the court on 6 June 2024 due to the political situation in Hong Kong.

[3][4] Collins was born on 7 May 1941 and educated at the City of London School, and then at Downing College, Cambridge, graduating with a starred first in Law.

degree from Columbia Law School in New York City and was admitted as a solicitor in 1968, becoming a partner at Herbert Smith in 1971 until his appointment as a judge in 2000.

[5][6] In a landmark case in 2006, he required file sharers who had refused to settle with the British Phonographic Industry to pay damages running into thousands of pounds.

[14] Collins reached the compulsory retirement age of 70 on 7 May 2011 but stayed on as an acting justice until July.