22 Feb 2023
AISAN CORPORATION OF AMERICA AND ANOTHER v. UNKNOWN BANK ACCOUNT HOLDER(S) WITH DBS BANK (HONG KONG) LTD AND OTHERS
- Citation
- [2023] HKCFI 567
- Court
- Court of First Instance
- Case number
- HCA1661/2022
The court held that under section 21 Evidence Ordinance an ex parte order for inspection may be granted without service on unknown account holders if the applicant shows a probability that specified accounts contain materials germane to the issues; balancing privacy and banker-customer confidentiality justified a limited, supervised disclosure confined to specified accounts, account opening records, identities of authorised operators, contact details, statements and transfer particulars for a defined period, and rejecting open‑ended discovery to third tiers without further court application.