CHUN YIP CONSTRUCTION CO. LTD. v. E. BON BUILDING MATERIALS CO. LTD.

CHUN YIP CONSTRUCTION CO. LTD. v. E. BON BUILDING MATERIALS CO. LTD.

Yat Tung is binding on this court; the wider doctrine of res judicata prohibits later litigation of matters that could and should have been raised in earlier proceedings absent special circumstances; the counterclaim/set-off and facts were available and fundamental to the earlier District Court proceedings and no special circumstances were shown; accordingly the statement of claim is an abuse of process and must be struck out and the action dismissed.

Citation
CHUN YIP CONSTRUCTION CO. LTD. v. E. BON BUILDING MATERIALS CO. LTD.
Parties
Plaintiff: Chun Yip Construction Co. Ltd; Defendant: E. Bon Building Materials Co. Ltd
Court
Court of First Instance
Jurisdiction
Hong Kong
Judgment Date
16 January 2003
Case Number
HCCT77/2002
Procedural Posture
Construction and Arbitration Proceedings (civil Contract/debt) / Decision on Strike Out Application (chambers)
Outcome
Statement of claim struck out; action dismissed; costs ordered nisi in favour of defendant.
Legal Topics
Abuse of Process, Res Judicata (wider Sense), Set Off, Summary Judgment, Certificates of Origin
Source Language
EN
Civil Procedure Contract Construction Debt Recovery Abuse of Process Res Judicata (wider Sense) Set Off Summary Judgment +1 more

Case Brief

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Parties

Chun Yip Construction Co. Ltd

Plaintiff

E. Bon Building Materials Co. Ltd

Defendant

Procedural Posture

Construction and Arbitration Proceedings (civil Contract/debt) / Decision on Strike Out Application (chambers)

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the plaintiff's writ alleging damages raises matters that could and should have been litigated in earlier District Court proceedings and thus constitutes an abuse of process under the wider doctrine of res judicata
  2. 2 Whether any special circumstances exist to permit relitigation
  3. 3 Whether Yat Tung is binding on Hong Kong courts and applicable to these facts

Ratio Decidendi

Yat Tung is binding on this court; the wider doctrine of res judicata prohibits later litigation of matters that could and should have been raised in earlier proceedings absent special circumstances; the counterclaim/set-off and facts were available and fundamental to the earlier District Court proceedings and no special circumstances were shown; accordingly the statement of claim is an abuse of process and must be struck out and the action dismissed.

Court Disposition

Statement of claim struck out; action dismissed; costs ordered nisi in favour of defendant.

Orders

  • Statement of claim struck out
  • Action dismissed