KWAN CHUI KWOK YING AND ANOTHER v. TAO WAI CHUN AND OTHERS

KWAN CHUI KWOK YING AND ANOTHER v. TAO WAI CHUN AND OTHERS

The Third Party Proceedings were in substance a matter arising in the administration of the estate (category 2 of In re Buckton) so costs of parties are properly paid out of the estate taxed as between solicitor and client; however the 6th Defendant's malicious, scandalous and vexatious conduct justified indemnity costs to be paid by him personally and the estate should not be ordered to pay indemnity costs on his behalf; therefore the prior Costs Order items requiring the estate to pay 50% upfront on an indemnity basis were set aside and replaced by an order that the estate pay the 15th Defendant's recoverable costs (items (1)-(4) not inclusive of interest) taxed as between solicitor and...

Citation
KWAN CHUI KWOK YING AND ANOTHER v. TAO WAI CHUN AND OTHERS
Parties
1st Plaintiff: KWAN CHUI KWOK YING; 2nd Plaintiff: KWAN SAU HANG SUZANNA; 1st Defendant: TAO WAI CHUN; 2nd Defendant: KWAN SAU SAN SUSAN; 3rd Defendant: KWAN SAU FUN SYLVINE; 4th Defendant: KWAN WAI ON LAWRENCE; 5th Defendant: KWAN LAI ON WARREN; 6th Defendant: KWAN CHI ON; 7th Defendant: KWAN SAU YUNG; 8th Defendant: KWAN SAU KI; 9th Defendant: KWAN TONG ON JOHN; 10th Defendant: KWAN CHEE ON also known as JOHN KUAN YANG; 11th Defendant: KWAN YAN ON KENNETH; 12th Defendant: KWAN YEE ON (a bankrupt); 13th Defendant: KWAN KWOK ON; 14th Defendant: KWAN SAU WO WINNIE; 15th Defendant: KWAN TIT ON DANIEL; 16th Defendant: KWAN KIN ON NORRIS
Court
Court of First Instance
Jurisdiction
Hong Kong
Judgment Date
4 May 2007
Case Number
HCMP2996/1990
Procedural Posture
Probate / Third Party Proceedings (administration of Estate) / Application to Review Costs Order (costs Review)
Outcome
Application to review costs order allowed in part; items (6) and (7) of Costs Order of 30 May 2006 set aside and substituted; costs of the application to be paid out of the estate.
Legal Topics
Third Party Proceedings, Indemnity Costs, Solicitor and Client Costs, Estoppel, Interpretation of Correspondence, Adverse Litigation Vs Administration
Source Language
EN
Probate Trusts and Estates Civil Procedure Costs Third Party Proceedings Indemnity Costs Solicitor and Client Costs Estoppel +2 more

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Parties

KWAN CHUI KWOK YING

1st Plaintiff

KWAN SAU HANG SUZANNA

2nd Plaintiff

TAO WAI CHUN

1st Defendant

KWAN SAU SAN SUSAN

2nd Defendant

KWAN SAU FUN SYLVINE

3rd Defendant

KWAN WAI ON LAWRENCE

4th Defendant

KWAN LAI ON WARREN

5th Defendant

KWAN CHI ON

6th Defendant

KWAN SAU YUNG

7th Defendant

KWAN SAU KI

8th Defendant

KWAN TONG ON JOHN

9th Defendant

KWAN CHEE ON also known as JOHN KUAN YANG

10th Defendant

KWAN YAN ON KENNETH

11th Defendant

KWAN YEE ON (a bankrupt)

12th Defendant

KWAN KWOK ON

13th Defendant

KWAN SAU WO WINNIE

14th Defendant

KWAN TIT ON DANIEL

15th Defendant

KWAN KIN ON NORRIS

16th Defendant

Procedural Posture

Probate / Third Party Proceedings (administration of Estate) / Application to Review Costs Order (costs Review)

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the Third Party Proceedings were litigation adverse to the estate or a matter arising in administration of the estate
  2. 2 Whether the Costs Order requiring the estate to pay indemnity costs upfront should be re-opened
  3. 3 Whether the 15th Defendant was estopped by solicitor correspondence from claiming costs against the estate

Ratio Decidendi

The Third Party Proceedings were in substance a matter arising in the administration of the estate (category 2 of In re Buckton) so costs of parties are properly paid out of the estate taxed as between solicitor and client; however the 6th Defendant's malicious, scandalous and vexatious conduct justified indemnity costs to be paid by him personally and the estate should not be ordered to pay indemnity costs on his behalf; therefore the prior Costs Order items requiring the estate to pay 50% upfront on an indemnity basis were set aside and replaced by an order that the estate pay the 15th Defendant's recoverable costs (items (1)-(4) not inclusive of interest) taxed as between solicitor and...

Court Disposition

Application to review costs order allowed in part; items (6) and (7) of Costs Order of 30 May 2006 set aside and substituted; costs of the application to be paid out of the estate.

Orders

  • Item (6) of the Costs Order dated 30 May 2006 set aside and substituted: the total of the 15th Defendant's costs in items (1) to (4) above, not inclusive of interest, taxed as between solicitor and client or as agreed be borne by and paid out of the estate of Kwan Kai Ming.
  • Item (7) of the Costs Order dated 30 May 2006 set aside and substituted: upon recovery of any costs from the 6th Defendant, the 15th Defendant shall pay the same to the estate of Kwan Kai Ming to the extent that the costs paid by the said estate under item (6) have been fully reimbursed.