We act for 803 Funds Limited in an application for leave for judicial review and attended a hearing before the High Court on 31 March 2021. The said application is to challenge the decision of the Director of Buildings (“the Director”) in failing to take enforcement action against unauthorized building works and change in use at Two Spaces on Basement at No. 98 Repulse Bay. Issues before the High Court include whether the Director made an erroneous interpretation of section 41(3) of the Buildings Ordinance (Cap. 123) in relation to the Buildings Department’s own policy, whether 803 Funds Limited can make the application and has standing to challenge the decision. Having heard the submissions, the court has reserved its decision. This case is led by our Senior Partner, Mr. Peter Sit, assisted by our Litigation Partner, Mr. Alex Chan, and our Associate, Mr. Alan So.
We act for Speakout HK and issued letters of demands to various local and overseas media requesting for removal of articles and/or videos in which those media wrongfully alleged that our client has been mentioned in a report published by Graphika to have participated and/or assisted in the dissemination of false and incorrect information.
After receiving our demands, the said articles and/or videos had been removed and various media platforms also published public apologies to our client.
Our client's public statement on this matter can be found through the link below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvgRhDM7DTQ&ab_channel=Speakout%E6%B8%AF%E4%BA%BA%E8%AC%9B%E5%9C%B0
This matter is handled by our associate Alan So under the supervision of Alex Chan, our litigation partner.
We have successfully assisted our clients in defending two separate summonses at the Magistrates’ Court under which the each of them was prosecuted for providing information which he or she knew to be false or misleading as to a material particular, contrary to Section 26(2)(a) of the Housing Ordinance, Cap 283, (the “Ordinance”) when one of them, being a family member of the co-defendant, made an application under the “Sale of Home Ownership Scheme” to the Hong Kong Housing Authority. Even though it is a Summons by its nature, the maximum sentence is up to HK$500,000 fine and 1-year imprisonment. Worse still, once convicted, the Court shall order the property purchased by the offender be transferred to the Housing Authority pursuant to Section 26A of the Ordinance. With the seamless support of our firm, the Senior Counsel successfully fought for acquittal of these two summonses for our clients after trial and they are now free from any threat of being ordered to transfer the unit they have successfully purchased under the Home Ownership Scheme to the Housing Authority.
This case is led by our Associate Ms Jenny Wong as well as our Trainee Solicitors Ms Jennifer Choi and Ms Koey Wong.
We have successfully assisted our clients in obtaining and continuing various ex-parte orders for asset preservation and Mareva injunction involving assets in the total sum of over US$27 million and in resisting the defendants’ applications for discharge of the said orders and a stay of the ancillary disclosure order.
The matter involves a dispute of two camps of shareholders over a substantial shipping business worth over US$100 million and claims of unlawful and substantial misappropriation of assets and diversion of business from numerous companies.
This urgent and important application is led by our Partner Mr. Roy Leung, who is assisted by our Senior Associate Mr. Sidney Ho, our Litigation Associates Mr. Mathew Liu, Miss Theresa Law, Ms. Jenny Wong, our Trainee Solicitor Miss Winnie Hui, as well as other members from our Litigation Department.
Our Litigation Department has abundant experience in assisting clients and working with experienced counsel team in dealing with shareholders’ disputes and urgent applications for injunctions and other interim reliefs in order to provide timely protection of our clients’ interest.
We are glad to share our recent experience in conducting a trial using video-conference facilities (“VCF”) in the High Court of Hong Kong.
In Mega Honour Holdings Limited v 李森田 and Others[2021] HKCFI 149, we successfully defended a Taiwanese energy group against claims by a local company representing Mainland investors. One of the highlights is the exceptional use of VCF throughout all factual and expert evidence given outside Hong Kong.
The use of VCF is discretionary and upon careful considerations. The starting point is always for proceedings to be conducted in court, where the credibility of witnesses can be examined under the solemn atmosphere of court rooms. That said, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to practical difficulties for foreign witnesses to attend the trial physically, in terms of border control, quarantine requirements and other hygiene concerns. Weighing all the factors, the court shall exercise its case management powers to secure the just resolution of disputes.
According to our experience, the following help the smooth and effective use of VCF: (i) check the availability of the Technology Court as soon as practicable, and adjust the trial timetable accordingly; (ii) coordinate with the Technology Court’s staff to test the compatibility of equipment in advance; and (iii) arrange for a neutral place (e.g. a room in a conference centre) for the giving of evidence in the presence of an observer (e.g. a foreign lawyer) to ensure fairness. Further guidance can be found in Practice Direction 29: Use of the Technology Court.
As technology advances, legal practitioners are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the use of VCF and remote hearings, which will become a permanent feature of our legal system very soon.
Another highlight of this trial is our counsel Mr. Samuel Wong’s cross-examinations of Mainland factual witnesses in Putonghua. This proved to be effective not just in saving the court’s time for interpretation, but also maintaining the momentum flow along direct cross-examinations without breaking off, in order to test the witnesses to the fullest.
In the growth of Asia dispute resolution services, trilingual proficiency has become integral for advocates and all lawyers.
This case is led by our consultant Ms. Sylvia Siu JP, assisted by litigation associate Mr. Mathew Liu and trainee solicitor Ms. Koey Wong.
On 30 December 2020,
Ho Lai Sum, Secretary (35 years),
Margaret Choi, Partner (30 years),
Li Gi Gi, Secretary, (30 years),
Tse Wei Ching, Accounts Clerk (25 years),
Wu Yuk Shing, Litigation Clerk (25 years),
Siu Man Ho Simon, Partner (20 years),
Hung Tong Seng Jeffrey, Partner (20 years),
Lai Tin Lun, Senior Associate (20 years),
Wong Kei Nga Angela, Senior Associate (20 years),
Lau Nga Mei Rebecca, Secretary (20 years),
Choy Ming Ming, Intellectual Property Clerk (20 years),
Leung Ping Chiu, Partner (15 years),
Mok Chi Pui, Litigation Manager (15 years),
Lam Hon Piu Cary, Senior Associate (10 years),
Yung Tsam Ke Cecilia, Associate (10 years),
Tsang Mei Ling, Secretary (10 years),
Ho Kit Ying, Secretary (10 years)
received their long service certificates and awards from the senior partners of the firm.
See the photos taken on the occasion.
Upon the invitation of the Hong Kong Department of Justice, Senior Partner, C. K. Kwong chaired the final session of the Mediation Conference on 6th November 2020 before closing of the Hong Kong Legal Week 2020. The high power panel discussion on “Mediation Advocacy” comprised of Elaine Liu JP, Simon Chapman QC, Manon Schonewille and Professor Leung Hing Fung. The virtual conference took place at the Former French Mission Building by way of live streaming.
Although it was the last session starting at 4:30 pm on a Friday afternoon, the enthusiasm was overwhelming with a long list of questions from the floor.
The panel aimed at raising the awareness of mediation advocacy and its importance in the mediation process. The perspectives from the mediator, the advocate and the trainer as well as policy considerations were canvassed.
Mr. Kwong’s session was soon followed by the closing remarks for the Legal Week made by the Honourable Ms. Teresa Cheng, Secretary for Justice.
Our firm has made an application on 4 November 2020, on behalf of 803 Funds Limited to the High Court of Hong Kong for leave to apply for judicial review, in which the Director of Building, Buildings Department is asked to take enforcement action against the registered owner regarding the conversion of two parking spaces located at the Basement of No. 98, Repulse Bay Road, Hong Kong (HCAL 2215/2020), and 803 Funds seeks the Court’s indulgence to direct the Director of Building to do so. This case is led by our Senior Partner, Mr. Peter Sit assisted by our Partner, Mr. Alex Chan together with associates from our Litigation Department.
On 30 September 2020, our firm has made an application on behalf of 803 Funds Limited to the High Court of Hong Kong for leave to apply for judicial review, in which the Education Bureau is required to disclose the names of the teachers who have committed professional misconduct, the schools involved and the nature of the misconduct in such substantiated cases and/or cases of professional misconduct found by the Education Bureau. This case is led by our Senior Partner, Mr. Peter Sit assisted by our Partner, Mr. Alex Chan together with 2 other members from our Litigation Department.
Our firm is acting for the registered owner of Sun Hung Kai Centre in HCA 672/2020, and has successfully obtained from the High Court an injunction order (with an award of costs) against the Defendant to prevent him from continuing his nuisance and trespass acts at Sun Hung Kai Centre.
The case is led by partner Alex Chan and assisted by associate Sally Ngan, trainee solicitor Koey Wong, as well as other professional staff including our in-house translator Kei Leung.
We act for our client in the sale of her landed property in Braga Circuit, Kadoorie Hill, Kowloon, the transaction of which was recently captured in the news (relevant article attached). Our partner Mr. Peter Sit and our Senior Associate Mr. Trevor Lee are handling the transaction for our client.
https://www.hk01.com/article/531963?utm_source=01appshare&utm_medium=referral
We have provided support and assistance to a client, Queen’s Counsel and solicitors in the United Kingdom, British Virgin Islands (BVI) lawyers, as well as counsel in Hong Kong in respect of a final appeal before the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council on appeal from the BVI Court of Appeal under which our client has succeeded in overturning and setting aside the judgment and order of the BVI first instance commercial court in winding up a BVI company and appointment of liquidators. The case involves dispute between the shareholders (who have also litigated in numerous other cases around the world, including Hong Kong) concerning an enormous shipping business.
The appeal involves an in-depth examination and debate on the laws relating to just and equitable winding-up and the application of the principles and facts on various aspects including the definition and nature of deadlock, alleged quasi-partnership relationship, responsibility for the deadlock, relevance of post-commencement conduct, alternative remedies etc.
Our legal team for this case is led by our litigation partner Mr. Roy Leung (who has travelled to the BVI and London for the purpose of this case) and assisted by our litigation associates Mr. Sidney Ho, Ms. Jenny Wong, Mr. Mathew Liu and Ms. Theresa Law, and has achieved synergy with legal teams in Hong Kong, the BVI and the United Kingdom for maximizing the interest of our client.
While we practise Hong Kong law solely, our litigation department has established close professional network with lawyers and counsel in the United Kingdom and other offshore jurisdictions (including BVI, Cayman Islands, Bermuda, etc.) and abundant experience in providing full-range supports to client in shareholders’ disputes, board room disputes, winding-up proceedings, liquidation process and other disputes involving companies incorporated in those offshore jurisdictions.
