Our firm has been appointed by Sun Hung Kai Real Estate Agency Ltd. in the sale of residential units in Wetland Seasons Park, Phase B of the YOHO Hub Development, Phase 1 of Tai Po Town Lot No.244 Development and Phase 1A of NOVO LAND.
Wetland Seasons Park is a residential project bordering the Hong Kong Wetland Park in Tin Shui Wai, New Territories which provides a total of 1,717 residential units and 10 houses. Our firm is responsible for handling the conveyancing works of about 40% of the properties in the development.
Phase B of the YOHO Hub Development is located in Yuen Long, New Territories which provides a total of 1,030 residential units. Our firm is responsible for handling the conveyancing works of around 103 residential units.
Phase 1 of Tai Po Town Lot No.244 Development, also known as Silicon Hill, is located in Pak Shek Kok, New Territories which provides a total of 576 residential units. Our firm is responsible for handling the conveyancing works of 173 residential units.
Phase 1A of NOVO LAND is located in Tuen Mun, New Territories which provides a total of 824 residential units. Our firm is responsible for handling the conveyancing works of 165 residential units.
The above projects are led by our partner Ms. Margaret Choi and assisted by Ms. Ida Chan (associate) and a team of experienced conveyancing clerks.
Our Partner Roy Leung and our litigation associate Jenny Wong led our litigation team in representing China CITIC Bank Corporation Limited Tianjin Branch, CITIC Bank International (China) Limited, Beijing Branch and China CITIC Bank International Limited (collectively referred to as “CITIC”) in series of proceedings in the High Court and the Court of Appeal in relation to an overdue indebtedness arising from a syndicated loan in the sum of over HKD8 Billion against Pan Sutong and a company controlled by him, including resisting his injunction application and the corresponding appeal (Case Nos: HCMP222/2021 and CACV301/2021), his application for setting aside the statutory demand (HCSD3/2021), company winding-up petition (HCCW295/2021) and bankruptcy petition against him personally (HCB6548/2021). After rounds of hotly-contested legal battles, our firm succeeded in obtaining winning judgments for the proceedings abovementioned. On 8th July 2022, the Court granted a Winding-up Order against Silver Starlight Limited and a Bankruptcy Order against Pan Sutong.
This series of proceedings involved various issues of law and fact, including (1) jurisdiction of the Hong Kong Court in winding up an overseas company; (2) whether there was bona fide dispute in relation to the said debt; (3) whether or not CITIC unreasonably obstructed Silver Starlight Limited and Pan Sutong in selling the lands, etc. The case papers involved over 4300 pages.
The series of proceedings moved at a cracking pace. Silver Starlight Limited and Pan Sutong attempted to oppose vigorously, launching severe resistance in every single step in the proceedings. Our team and counsel team worked closely and seamlessly day and night and managed to present the opposing evidence to the point with good analysis. Three Honourable Judges sitting in the Court of First Instance and the Court of Appeal (in CACV301/2021) rejected the alleged existence of the overall oral agreement by Silver Starlight Limited and Pan Sutong, summarized as follows : -
HCMP 222/2021
Deputy High Court Judge Mr. MK Liu ruled in favour of our arguments in his judgment that Hong Kong Courts had jurisdiction to wind up Silver Starlight Limited, rejected the existence of the alleged overall oral agreement and confirmed that CITIC had not unreasonably obstructed the sale of the lands concerned. The Court dismissed the injunction application with costs to CITIC and even allowed the certificate for three counsel.
CACV301/2021
The Court of Appeal confirmed and agreed the judgment below in HCMP222/2021 and dismissed the appeal with costs to CITIC and certificate for three counsel.
HCSD3/2021
Deputy High Court Judge Le Pichon dismissed the application by Pan Sutong for setting aside the statutory demand. The issues in dispute involved res judicata, issue estoppel and the “new” evidence after the HCMP 222/2021 judgment. Her Ladyship granted leave to issue bankruptcy petition against Pan Sutong, with costs to CITIC and certificate for three counsel.
HCCW295/2021 & HCB6548/2021
The Honourable Madam Justice Linda Chan held that Silver Starlight Limited and Pan Sutong are bound by the determination and findings made by the Courts in the judgments of HCMP222/2021, CACV301/2021 and HCSD3/2021. Both of them should not attempt to re-litigate the same issues which have already been decided by the Courts against them. Since Silver Starlight Limited failed to fulfill the statutory demand, which should be deemed as inability to pay its debt, the Court granted a Winding-up Order against it. As for Pan Sutong, he failed to comply with the statutory demand and the debt remains unpaid, together with the fact that it was ruled that there was no bona fide dispute in relation to the debt by the Bank of China (Shenzhen) to Pan Sutong which he was unable to pay, he is deemed unable to pay his debts. The Court granted a Bankruptcy Order against him.
This series of proceedings was led by our litigation partner Roy Leung and our litigation associate Jenny Wong, with the assistance of our litigation associates Alan So and Winnie Hui.
Our partner Mr. Roy Leung becomes the first batch of Hong Kong lawyers qualified to practise in the Greater Bay Area (“GBA”). After passing the written qualifying examination in September 2021, Mr Leung proceeded to attend the training courses organised by the School of Lawyer of the South China Normal University in all weekends for almost 4 months, and passed the various assessments by Guangdong Lawyers Association in June 2022. Following this accreditation, Mr. Leung is qualified to obtain a practising certificate and will be able to provide legal services on specified civil and commercial matters concerning PRC laws as a qualified PRC lawyer.
SFKS’s China Practice Group has a long history of providing legal supports to clients on a wide spectrum of civil and commercial matters in Mainland China. Mr. Leung’s GBA qualification will further enhance our capability in providing quality services to clients in an efficient manner. We are committed to strengthening our communication with the legal professionals in Mainland China, and contributing to the modernisation and development of the legal profession in GBA.
We worked closely with and provided support to Queen’s Counsel and lawyers in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) in successfully setting aside an ex parte Examination Order made by the Court of BVI after a full-day video hearing.
This case involves multiple levels of legal debate, including whether a Hong Kong resident who has no BVI presence can be treated as having submitted to BVI jurisdiction merely by having appointed legal representatives and litigating in BVI; whether sections 284 and 285 of the BVI Insolvency Act governing private examination by liquidators should be construed to carry extra-territorial effect; and whether liquidators in BVI should be allowed to examine individuals on the affairs of a foreign liquidated company in which the company wound up in BVI only has indirect minority interests, etc.. We also facilitated Counsel to put forward serious factual submissions to establish complaints of oppression and material non-disclosure on the part of the liquidators, to the extent that the Court of BVI took the view that the ex parte Examination Order should not have been sought by the liquidators in the first place and was satisfied that the ex parte Examination Order must be set aside.
This case is led by our Litigation Partner Mr. Roy Leung, assisted by Litigation Partner Mr. Sidney Ho and Litigation Associate Mr. Mathew Liu. While we practise Hong Kong law solely, we have prolific experience in the areas of cross-jurisdiction insolvency disputes and liquidation process, and collaborate to streamline and align views and contributions from learned advocates across jurisdictions in serving clients’ needs and interests round the clock.
We are pleased to announce that Ms. Cheryl Yuen of our firm was admitted as a solicitor of the High Court on 23rd April 2022, and she has celebrated the special occasion with our colleagues. She will join us as an Associate in the Conveyancing and Probate Department.
We are acting for the majority owners of an aged industrial building situated at a highly prominent location in Kwun Tong, and have successfully obtained an Order for Compulsory Sale under the Land (Compulsory Sale for Redevelopment) Ordinance (Cap. 545) (the “Ordinance”) in respect of the building after a lengthy 10-day trial with very extensive, novel and complex arguments on all fronts, including expert evidence on building condition, structural assessment and valuation. The trial bundles consisted of over 60 lever-arch files.
In arriving at its decision, the Lands Tribunal accepted almost all of the arguments raised by us on behalf of the applicants and the views of the applicants’ experts. The Tribunal also made its own observation during the site visit of the subject building and find without hesitation that redevelopment of the lot is justified by reason of the age and the state of repair of the building.
Furthermore, the Tribunal made extensive ruling on a number of issues, including the zoning of the lot in which the subject building is situated, the factors to be considered and the standard of repair to be adopted in the test of “age or state of repair” of the building.
Importantly and remarkably, this is the very first case where revitalization of industrial building was raised as a defence in a number of aspects, and as a result of which extensive expert evidence on valuation and building condition had been adduced and contested throughout the proceedings. In the Judgment, the Tribunal ruled that revitalization is not a relevant factor for consideration in an application for an order for compulsory sale under the Ordinance.
For the full text of the judgment, please refer to https://legalref.judiciary.hk/doc/judg/word/vetted/other/en/2018/LDCS011000A_2018.docx.
Our litigation team handling this case is led by our partner Mr. Roy Leung and assisted by our associates Mr. Ricky Cheung and Ms. Winnie Hui. We have abundant experience in handling compulsory sale cases under the Ordinance, assisting the teams of experts in different faculties, working out the best strategies, and fighting for the desired outcomes for our clients.
We are delighted to congratulate Mr. Sidney Ho on his admission as a partner of our firm, effective from 1 January 2022.
Mr. Ho is versatile. His practice ranges from civil and commercial litigation to regulatory matters, from commercial matters to conveyancing practice.
On an international level, Mr. Ho provides assistance to foreign lawyers and Counsel in offshore jurisdictions. Mr. Ho accompanied lay clients to attend trial in Saint Lucia and the British Virgin Islands regarding shareholders’ disputes and offshore winding-up proceedings, and attended watching brief in Privy Council proceedings in a landmark winding-up case. In 2019, Mr. Ho accompanied our Senior Partner Mr. Peter Sit to visit 5 leading silks in the United Kingdom seeking for tip-top opinions on constitutional laws. Mr. Ho also has established close professional links through representing our firm as member of the International Lawyers Network (ILN) for Hong Kong.
Alongside his professional works, Mr. Ho has been awarded in recognition of his active engagement in pro bono and community services. Mr. Ho is also interested in playing bridge and has played for the Law Society of Hong Kong bridge team in various competitions.
Our Consultant Ms. Sylvia Siu JP is appointed to serve as the Chairman of the Appeal Tribunal Panel, Section 45 of Buildings Ordinance (Cap. 123) for a term of 3 years from 1 December 2021 onwards.
The Appeal Tribunal (Building) hears appeals against decisions made by the Building Authority on a wide range of building-related matters, e.g. unauthorized building works, mandatory building and window inspections, approval of plans and demolition works. Among these, the Chairman exercises her statutory powers to determine the procedures of hearing and lead the panel to hold hearings in public, receive and examine evidence, and make orders to confirm, vary or reverse the decisions of the Building Authority that is subject to appeal. The Chairman has the casting vote in such decisions.
Given the quasi-judicial nature of the aforesaid, the Chairman of the Appeal Tribunal Panel is required to be qualified for appointment as a District Court Judge, pursuant to Section 48(2) of the Buildings Ordinance (Cap. 123).
Apart from the above, Ms. Siu has extensive social services as well as official and professional recognitions. To name a few, Ms. Siu now chairs the Joint Mediation Helpline Office and Hong Kong Federation of Women Lawyers’ ADR Committee. On the community service area, Ms. Siu has been a council member of Hong Kong Family Welfare Society for over 23 years. This is not to mention her past and present involvements in many arbitration panels#, Government and Law Society committees. We especially congratulate Ms. Siu being recently elected as a member of the 2021 Election Committee in the legal subsector.
We share Ms. Siu’s dedication to the society, and shall continue to serve the public with our professional knowledge and experience.
# Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre, Law Society of Hong Kong, World Trade Centre Macau Arbitration Centre, Macau Arbitration Center, China International Economic & Trade Arbitration Commission, Guangzhou, Qingdao, Wenzhou, Wuhan, Zhuhai and Nansha International Arbitration Court, and Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration.
Announcement of Sit, Fung, Kwong & Shum 薛馮鄺岑律師行 (the “Firm”)
We are pleased to announce that, as part of a strategic planning and realignment, CK Kwong, a founding partner of the Firm, will leave the Firm with his team to set up his law practice at 17/F, Chu Kong Shipping Tower, 143 Connaught Road Central, Hong Kong in the name of “SFKS CK Kwong, Solicitors (SFKS 鄺志強律師行)” (the “New Firm”) as from 1 January 2022. Jeffrey Hung, a partner, will join the New Firm.
Peter Sit, the other founding partner of the Firm, will continue the current legal practices of the Firm together with the other partners viz Tommy Tam, Alex Chan, Margaret Choi, Joseph Wong, Simon Siu, Roy Leung and Sidney Ho (who will become a partner of the Firm as from 1 January 2022) at 25A, United Centre, 95 Queensway, Admiralty, Hong Kong.
The New Firm will focus on promoting and expanding on intellectual property and related practices (including registration, commercialization, enforcement and dispute resolution) while the Firm will continue to provide a full range of legal services, promoting and expanding on corporate commercial, dispute resolutions, property transactions, regulatory and compliance matters.
As two independent law firms, the Firm and the New Firm will enter into an association in accordance with the Law Society guidelines to complement each other in the provision of legal services, with a view to providing good and reliable legal services to their respective clients. CK Kwong will remain as a consultant of the Firm after the said realignment.
Dated the 31st day of December 2021
We congratulate the following recipients of our long service awards this year:-
Mr. Yu Kwok Kan, Conveyancing Executive (served for 40 years)
Ms. Siu Wing Yee Sylvia JP, Consultant (served for 35 years)
Ms. So Yuk Lan Celia, Accounts Department Head (served for 30 years)
Mr. Li Yat Kim, Office Assistant (served for 25 years)
Mr. Wang Kam Shan, Office Assistant (served for 20 years)
Mr. Ho Kiu Chor Sidney, Senior Associate (served for 15 years)
Mr. Lam Kwok Wai Johnson, Conveyancing Executive (served for 15 years)
Their experience and excellence are valuable assets of our firm and deserve appreciation. Please see below a photo of the award session:-
We are honoured to welcome the team led by Ms. Zhang Yumei, Deputy Director-General, and Mr. Robert Xie, Director, of the Department of Law of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government (“CPG”) in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to our new office on 16 December 2021. Our five China-Appointed Attesting Officers, namely our senior partner Mr. Peter Sit, our partners Ms. Margaret Choi, Mr. Simon Siu and Mr. Roy Leung, and our consultant Ms. Sylvia Siu JP, together with our partner Mr. Alex Chan, and our associates Ms. Jenny Wong, Mr. Ricky Cheung and Ms. Carrie Li, extended our warm reception to the distinguished guests from the Department of Law of the Liaison Office of the CPG. We exchanged views extensively on the development prospects of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the challenges and opportunities of the legal profession and a number of other issues.
We are grateful that the Department of Law of the Liaison Office of the CPG has taken the time to visit us, and we look forward to attending more exchange activities with the legal professional bodies and lawyers in the Mainland in future.
Our first Zoom Christmas Party was successfully hosted on 23 December 2021.
Against the outbreak of Omicron variant in Hong Kong, we practised social distancing by celebrating virtually from different locations. Having been used to real-time technology in day-to-day legal services, we further utilized video conferencing to bring valuable memories of festive joy and companionship.
We wish colleagues, clients and members of the legal profession a new year with good health and happiness, and look forward to resuming a physical celebration next year.
