A British judge of Hong Kong's Court of Final Appeal has resigned, making him the latest foreign justice to leave the apex court this year, according to reports.

A record fifth foreign judge will leave Hong Kong’s top court this year, further thinning the ranks of overseas jurists whose presence was seen as a selling point for foreign companies looking to do business in the Asian finance hub.

A third British judge has left a top Hong Kong Court amid growing calls for them to step down over a China-imposed crackdown on dissent. Lord Nicholas Phillips, 86, has left his post as an overseas non-permanent judge on the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal for “personal reasons” after his contract ended on Monday.

Nicholas Addison Phillips, 86, is fifth foreign judge to leave city's top court this year An 86-year-old British judge has stepped down from Hong Kong's top court at the end of his term, becoming the fifth foreign justice to do so this year.