LAU YUE KUI AND OTHERS v. PHILIP CHAN & CO (A FIRM)

LAU YUE KUI AND OTHERS v. PHILIP CHAN & CO (A FIRM)

Amendment of the summons was permitted and an interim payment of HK$15,000,000 was ordered to be paid by the 1st plaintiff because the 1st plaintiff did not oppose the application, the claimed fees were large (HK$40M), taxation was likely to be protracted with substantial interest already accrued, interveners could...

Source-derived case information.

Citation
LAU YUE KUI AND OTHERS v. PHILIP CHAN & CO (A FIRM)
Parties
1st Plaintiff (administrator of the Estate of LAU WAI Chau): LAU YUE KUI; 2nd Plaintiff (co Administrators of the Estate of LAU LEUNG Chau): MA WAH YAN and WONG CHI LEUNG; 3rd Plaintiff (administrator of the Estate of LAU LEUNG Kwai): MA WAH YAN; 4th Plaintiff: LAU YUE CHIU; 5th Plaintiff (administrator of the Estate of LAU LEUNG Kui): LAU YU SHING; 6th Plaintiff (co Executors of the Will of LAU LEUNG Wa): LAU YUE SUM and LAU YUE TING; Respondent (solicitor Firm): Philip Chan & Co.
Court
Court of First Instance
Jurisdiction
Hong Kong
Judgment Date
21 February 2014
Case Number
HCMP593/2007
Procedural Posture
Taxation Proceedings (costs) / Interlocutory Appeal From Master J. Wong's Decision
Outcome
Amendment allowed; interim payment ordered in part for the Solicitor; costs awarded to the Solicitor against the 1st plaintiff
Legal Topics
Interim Payment of Costs, Amendment of Proceedings, Intervention by Interested Third Parties, Abuse of Process and Estoppel, Interest on Unpaid Costs
Source Language
en
Costs and Taxation Probate and Administration of Estates Civil Procedure Legal Professional Conduct Interim Payment of Costs Amendment of Proceedings Intervention by Interested Third Parties Abuse of Process and Estoppel +1 more

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Parties

LAU YUE KUI

1st Plaintiff (administrator of the Estate of LAU WAI Chau)

MA WAH YAN and WONG CHI LEUNG

2nd Plaintiff (co Administrators of the Estate of LAU LEUNG Chau)

MA WAH YAN

3rd Plaintiff (administrator of the Estate of LAU LEUNG Kwai)

LAU YUE CHIU

4th Plaintiff

LAU YU SHING

5th Plaintiff (administrator of the Estate of LAU LEUNG Kui)

LAU YUE SUM and LAU YUE TING

6th Plaintiff (co Executors of the Will of LAU LEUNG Wa)

Philip Chan & Co.

Respondent (solicitor Firm)

Procedural Posture

Taxation Proceedings (costs) / Interlocutory Appeal From Master J. Wong's Decision

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether amendment of the summons on appeal to change the party liable for an interim payment should be allowed
  2. 2 Whether an interim payment should be ordered pending taxation of costs
  3. 3 What amount of interim payment is appropriate

Ratio Decidendi

Amendment of the summons was permitted and an interim payment of HK$15,000,000 was ordered to be paid by the 1st plaintiff because the 1st plaintiff did not oppose the application, the claimed fees were large (HK$40M), taxation was likely to be protracted with substantial interest already accrued, interveners could obtain recourse in the event of overpayment, and no abuse of process or estoppel barred the interlocutory relief; the court applied the principle that third-party taxation is governed by the same jurisdictional limits as solicitor-client taxation (Tim Martin).

Court Disposition

Amendment allowed; interim payment ordered in part for the Solicitor; costs awarded to the Solicitor against the 1st plaintiff

Orders

  • Amendment of the summons on appeal allowed to seek interim payment from the 1st plaintiff
  • Interim payment of HK$15,000,000 to be paid by the 1st plaintiff to the Solicitor (Philip Chan & Co.)