Hong Kong Case Law: Decisions & Judgments

Topic

Costs follow event

Legal area

Court

17 Nov 2025

SUNNI INTERNATIONAL LTD (IN LIQUIDATION) v. WIN HARVEST ENTERPRISES LTD AND ANOTHER

Citation

[2025] HKCFI 5526
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCA2380/2018

Although Sunni obtained partial success against Michael Kao and he was ordered to pay equitable compensation and interest, the court found the conspiracy claim against Michael Kao to be unmeritorious and lacking evidential support and that that failed claim materially expanded the scope and costs of his defence; balancing the parties' conduct and the need for a just, fair and proportionate result, the appropriate exercise of discretion is to make no order as to costs between Sunni and Michael Kao, but to order that the costs of the submissions on costs be borne by Sunni, taxed if not agreed,…
11 Jul 2025

LAM KWOK HING (as Administrator of the Estate of LAM PING SANG, deceased) v. LAU HA also known as LAU HA LILY AND OTHERS

Citation

[2025] HKCFI 2843
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCA2196/2020

The 3rd Defendant/STRC and 4th Defendant/STWA operated in substance as a single aligned interest that successfully defeated the Plaintiff's claim; therefore the Plaintiff's application to vary the costs order nisi fails and costs should follow the event, with the Plaintiff liable for the defendants' costs of the summons.
15 Aug 2023

ZHANG RUI KANG AND ANOTHER v. TUNGHSU GROUP CO LTD

Citation

[2023] HKCFI 2106
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCA1391/2021

Costs of the Company’s Summons are ordered to follow the event and be paid by the Company to Z&L with a certificate for three counsel, to be taxed if not agreed; costs of the defendants' Summons are ordered to be paid by the plaintiffs to the defendants with a certificate for three counsel, to be taxed if not agreed; indemnity costs are refused because the court made no finding of deliberate deliberation in the plaintiffs' non-disclosures; time spent on the two summons is to be apportioned 25% (Company) and 75% (Defendants) to facilitate taxation; no order as to costs for this paper disposal;…
14 Feb 2023

JTM324 STRATEGIC ADVISORS, INC. v. PERMEX CO LTD

Citation

[2023] HKCFI 403
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCA2109/2020

The summons was dismissed because the plaintiff failed to place adequate admissible materials before the Court (no supporting affidavit, improper reliance on prior affidavit of service and unsigned materials, and failure to lodge skeleton argument), and the asserted insolvency of the defendant could not be inferred solely from the fact that its solicitors ceased to act and it was unrepresented; the plaintiff therefore did not discharge the burden to show a good reason for discontinuance with costs in its favour.
3 Nov 2021

CHINA BAOLI TECHNOLOGIES HOLDINGS LTD (formerly known as REX GLOBAL ENTERTAINMENT HOLDINGS LTD) v. ORIENT EQUAL INTERNATIONAL GROUP LTD AND OTHERS

Citation

[2021] HKCA 1609
Court

Court of Appeal
Case number

CACV34/2018

The appeal was rendered academic by the defendants' decision to withdraw the third party proceedings; therefore the defendants, as the withdrawing/conceding party, must bear SVK's costs of the appeal and specified interlocutory proceedings, to be taxed on a party-and-party basis if not agreed; indemnity costs were not awarded.
30 Apr 2021

YNNA v. HCKW

Citation

[2021] HKFC 78
Court

Family Court
Case number

FCMC6626/2015

Leave to appeal was refused because none of the proposed grounds had a reasonable prospect of success; the judge had given adequate reasons (as recorded in the transcript), W had not sought substantive relief to challenge the SHWL reports in the summons, and the court was not required to admit an additional valuation report in absence of a trial or demonstrable need to determine value; costs were ordered to follow the event.
16 May 2018

SUM MUN KID FREDERICK v. AUTO ITALIA LTD AND OTHERS

Citation

[2018] HKCFI 1049
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCA60/2017

A preservation order cannot be granted over money that no longer exists as identifiable property because it has been paid away and intermingled with other funds; in such circumstances the correct remedy is a Mareva injunction. The applicant's preservation application was therefore wholly misconceived and costs should follow the event.
15 Jan 2018

CHEN MEI HUAN v. SILVER FAITH HOLDINGS LTD AND OTHERS

Citation

[2018] HKCFI 41
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCCW111/2014

The court refused to vary the Costs Order Nisi, granted certificate for two counsel as it was necessary and proper in all the circumstances, made the Costs Order Nisi absolute, and on summary assessment awarded Ng/Daughter party-and-party costs of HK$270,000. The court found many items in the bill excessive on a party-and-party basis and applied a broad-brush two-stage assessment under Practice Direction 14.3.
18 Sept 2017

WONG CHI CHING v. BOCOM INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS CO LTD

Citation

WONG CHI CHING v. BOCOM INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS CO LTD
Court

Court of Appeal
Case number

CACV113/2015

The review is dismissed because the Master found the documents were prepared by counsel and sufficiently complex to justify the original taxed time allowances; an arithmetic minutes‑per‑page formula is legally unsound for taxation and the plaintiff gave no satisfactory explanation for reducing her earlier objections, therefore the taxed allowances for items 15, 16 and 22 are upheld and the plaintiff must pay the costs of the review.
12 May 2016

候小梅對盧振煊及另一人

Citation

候小梅對盧振煊及另一人
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCPI565/2004

The court exercised its statutory discretion to vary the provisional costs order: it held that the second defendant's payment into court in January 2006 (pre-Civil Justice Reform) required accounting in costs allocation; accordingly the defendants must pay the plaintiff's costs up to 1 February 2006 at District Court level, there is no costs order for 2 February 2006 to 20 February 2014, and from 20 February 2014 the plaintiff must pay the second defendant's costs (including the present application) to be assessed at High Court level. The plaintiff's subpoena applications seeking deduction of…