WONG KAM SAN AND OTHERS v. ZHAO KAI INVESTMENT LTD.

WONG KAM SAN AND OTHERS v. ZHAO KAI INVESTMENT LTD.

The court found the 1st plaintiff credible and proved on the balance of probabilities that the 74 shares registered in the 1st defendant and the one share registered in the 2nd defendant were held on trust for the 1st plaintiff; accordingly declarations of trust, orders for transfer of the shares, injunctive relief and costs were made; the defendants' account of an investor (Zhao) and related funding was disbelieved, and the 1st defendant's counterclaim for HK$4.2m was dismissed.

Citation
WONG KAM SAN AND OTHERS v. ZHAO KAI INVESTMENT LTD.
Parties
1st Plaintiff: WONG KAM SAN; 2nd Plaintiff: WONG LAI CHING; 3rd Plaintiff: LIU YONG; 4th Plaintiff: TRENGEI DEVELOPMENT LIMITED; 1st Defendant: ZHAO KAI INVESTMENT LIMITED; 2nd Defendant: YEUNG WING KEUNG; 8th Defendant: HAWKINS DEVELOPMENT LIMITED
Court
Court of First Instance
Jurisdiction
Hong Kong
Judgment Date
11 April 2006
Case Number
HCA1653/2004
Procedural Posture
Trust and Proprietary Rights Dispute (civil) / Judgment (trial)
Outcome
Plaintiff's claim allowed in part; declarations of trust granted; orders for return/transfer of shares made; injunction granted; counterclaim dismissed; costs awarded.
Legal Topics
Express/resulting Trust, Nominee/share Transfer, Beneficial Ownership, Preventive Injunctions, Costs and Counterclaim
Source Language
EN
Trusts Company Law Injunctions Civil Procedure Express/resulting Trust Nominee/share Transfer Beneficial Ownership Preventive Injunctions +1 more

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Parties

WONG KAM SAN

1st Plaintiff

WONG LAI CHING

2nd Plaintiff

LIU YONG

3rd Plaintiff

TRENGEI DEVELOPMENT LIMITED

4th Plaintiff

ZHAO KAI INVESTMENT LIMITED

1st Defendant

YEUNG WING KEUNG

2nd Defendant

HAWKINS DEVELOPMENT LIMITED

8th Defendant

Procedural Posture

Trust and Proprietary Rights Dispute (civil) / Judgment (trial)

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the 75 shares in Hawkins were held on trust for the 1st plaintiff
  2. 2 Identity of the true beneficial owner (Zhao or plaintiff)
  3. 3 Whether to grant proprietary declarations and mandatory transfer orders

Ratio Decidendi

The court found the 1st plaintiff credible and proved on the balance of probabilities that the 74 shares registered in the 1st defendant and the one share registered in the 2nd defendant were held on trust for the 1st plaintiff; accordingly declarations of trust, orders for transfer of the shares, injunctive relief and costs were made; the defendants' account of an investor (Zhao) and related funding was disbelieved, and the 1st defendant's counterclaim for HK$4.2m was dismissed.

Court Disposition

Plaintiff's claim allowed in part; declarations of trust granted; orders for return/transfer of shares made; injunction granted; counterclaim dismissed; costs awarded.

Orders

  • Declare that the 1st defendant holds the 74 Hawkins shares registered in its name on trust for the 1st plaintiff
  • Order the 1st defendant to forthwith transfer the 74 Hawkins shares to the 1st plaintiff or his nominee