The Hong Kong Court of Appeal has issued twin decisions applying the seminal 2023 CFA decision in Re Lam Kwok Hung Guy ([2023] HKFCA 9) to applications to stay winding up petitions involving claims subject to arbitration. In Guy Lam,…

We are pleased to see that Kluwer Arbitration Blog has covered the conference “Europe Embraces a New Dawn of Arbitration in Asia” at which Mr. Jeremy Bartlett SC was a speaker. This was held in Dusseldorf in 29 November 2023…

Edward Alder had the great privilege of participating as a Moot Arbitrator in the Vis East Moot in Hong Kong last week: “Always good to give something back to the (future) profession, and I learn something new about law and…

Extra-territoriality for securities, corporate and competition regulators’ powers is a growing trend: international players beware. In 2022 the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) served s.26 document production notices under the UK competition legislation on UK subsidiaries of German entities, VW…

Prince’s Chambers is proud to be a sponsor for the HK45 & YAAP Cocktail Reception in Vienna. Please click the link and register. https://hkiac.glueup.com/event/hk45-yaap-cocktail-reception-103188/

The IBA has released its latest Guidelines on Conflict of Interest in International Arbitration (2024) to reflect changes in the arbitration landscape over the past decade. The new Guidelines include important updates for counsel and parties alike. Notably, the 2024…

Prince’s Chambers is pleased to announce that Eric Ng has joined Prince’s Chambers effective 1 March 2024. Eric was called to the Hong Kong Bar in 2014, maintaining a broad commercial and construction practice, with a specific focus on international…

Prince’s Chambers is pleased to announce that Eric Chim has joined Chambers in February 2024. Eric was called to the Bar in November 2023. Prior to commencing pupillage, Eric was a trainee solicitor at an international law firm. He then…

Prince’s Chambers congratulates Damien McDonald on becoming a Fellow of the Australian Centre for International Commercial Arbitration (ACICA) and his addition to ACICA’s Panel of Arbitrators. ACICA, founded in 1985, is Australia’s leading non-profit institution focused on resolving international commercial…

Sebastian Hughes has been co-opted as a Council Member of the Bar Council of the Hong Kong Bar Association for 2024.

Prince’s Chambers is delighted that Edward Alder is ranked once again by Chambers & Partners for Greater China Commercial Disputes – Hong Kong Bar. https://chambers.com/legal-rankings/commercial-dispute-resolution-the-bar-china-116:3072:60:2 #hongkong #civillitigation #martimelaw #internationalarbitration

Edward Alder had the honour of giving a short welcome speech at a dinner for Lord Phillips GBS NPJ held by the Hong Kong Maritime Law Association. Lord Phillips is in Hong Kong to sit in the Court of Final…

Prince’s Chambers completed its Hong Kong Legal Walk hike on Sunday! A great time was had by all. We will be back next year.  14.1km in 3h51m. HK$15,100 raised for the chosen charities. Well done to the organisers.  3D video here: https://www.relive.cc/view/vwq1rnLoYBv Photos here:https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7134799502607007744 

Prince’s Chambers is delighted to have received very strong and improved rankings in  Legal 500 Hong Kong Bar 2023 Commercial disputes https://www.legal500.com/c/hong-kong-bar/commercial-disputes/ Jeremy Bartlett SC – Tier 1 leading silk Edward Alder, Sebastian Hughes, Phillip Rompotis  – Tier 1 leading juniors Paul Carolan, Lavesh…

Prince’s Chambers are happy to be participating in this year’s Hong Kong Legal Walk! All for a good cause, with donations raised going to Mind HK, Justice Without Borders and Equal Justice Hong Kong.  Our walk will take place on…

Mr Jeremy Bartlett SC is looking forward to speaking on 7 December 2023 on the role of peaceful dispute resolution in achieving the objectives of UN Sustainable Development Goal 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions). http://princeschambers.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/HKU-IDRA-Law-final-2.pdf    

Sebastian Hughes was a speaker at the WIPO Mediation and Arbitration Center’s annual Panelists Meeting, on 6 November 2023, in Geneva. LinkedIn

Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal has held that the securities regulator, SFC, can serve investor class relief proceedings under Securities and Futures Ordinance (SFO) s.213 out of Hong Kong without permission under RHC O.11, r.1(2), SFC v Subotic [2023]…

Hong Kong Maritime Arbitration Group will hold its first in-person event to support Hong Kong Maritime Week 2023. “Captializing Hong Kong’s Maritime Edge – Ship Leasing, Maritime Arbitration and Beyond” Supporting Organisations: Hong Kong Maritime Law Association, ICS Hong Kong,…

Lavesh Kirpalani discusses how the Hong Kong courts have addressed the issue of forged arbitration agreements and the relatively recent decision Haller AG & Anor v Vestey International Group Ltd & Ors [2022] HKCFI 652 in his article featured on Hong…

The Hong Kong Maritime Week Mock Arbitration takes place on 24 November 2023. All are welcome to come and see what a maritime arbitration really looks like. The event is jointly run each year by the Hong Kong Maritime Law…

Congratulations to our three Prince’s Chambers contributors, Eugene Kwok, Kevin Lee and Josh Baker.

Congratulations to Phillip Rompotis for recognition from Who’s Who Legal 2023 as a “Thought Leader – Mainland China & Hong Kong SAR – Construction 2023”, the only non-silk barrister to be so recognised, and as a “Global Leader – Construction…

The Hong Kong Maritime Law Association’s popular Annual Dinner with the Admiralty Judge will be held on Thursday 28 September 2023 at the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club. All are welcome. Contact secretary@hkmla.org

Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal has determined that under LLMC 1976, where a State has opted to dis-apply the wreck removal (WR) head of limitation, shipowners may not limit liability for such expenses in any case, including where the…

Edward Alder of Prince’s Chambers reviews  Navin Ahuja’s fine book “Taming the Guerrilla in International Commercial Arbitration” in this month’s Asian Dispute Review http://www.asiandr.com/journal-detail.php?issue=202307

Edward Alder has been appointed to the Distinguished Panel of Arbitrators of the Thailand Arbitration Center for a period of three years, ending December 2026. Announcement: Thailand Arbitration Center Distinguished Panel of Arbitrators | Thailand Arbitration Center (THAC)

Hong Kong Maritime Arbitration Group will hold a seminar in Xiamen, PRC on 28 July 2023, supported by the Maritime Silk Road Central Legal District FTZ Pilot Zone (MSRCLD), Xiamen and Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Guangdong Fujian…

Eugene Kwok of Prince’s Chambers looks at substituted service of Hong Kong process by way of public announcement in mainland China (basically you can’t, at least for the time being) After Hong Kong’s return to the People’s Republic of China…

On 31 May 2023, Deputy High Court Judge Herbert Au-Yeung (Judge Au-Yeung) struck out a representative action commenced by Sir Elly Kadoorie & Sons Ltd (SEKSL) against a former employee for alleged harassment on the basis that a corporate plaintiff…

Prince’s Chambers are delighted that Paul Carolan and Lavesh Kirpalani have been ranked as leading employment barristers in this year’s Doyles Rankings. Leading employment barristers – Doyles Rankings 2023

Jeremy Bartlett SC, Edward Alder and Lavesh Kirpalani of Prince’s Chambers were delighted to co-host this seminar on Arbitrator’s Conflicts and IP Arbitration with HKIAC and GPS. Many thanks to Jade Lam and Xiaojun Wang of HKIAC and Anna Kim…

The English Court of Appeal has affirmed Blair J’s decision in The Giant Ace: the 12-month time bar in Hague Visby Rules Article III, r.6 does protect the carrier against mis-delivery claims where the cargo is released from port environs…

Princes Chambers on Both Sides: The employer’s appeal against a substantial Labour Tribunal award for constructive dismissal in favour of the employee broker was rejected by the High Court in this recent decision. The parties were represented by Edward Alder…

Chambers congratulates Kevin Lee and Josh Baker for their second-time contribution to the Butterworths Hong Kong Banking Law Handbook (6th Edition). The sixth edition continues to take a clear and practical approach to the law and practice relating to the…

Judgment dated 16 February 2023 was reported in an earlier post. The Plaintiff’s application for leave to appeal against the dismissal of her defamation and other claims at trial has now been dismissed in this decision which also reviews the…

Jeremy Bartlett SC, Edward Alder, and Lavesh Kirpalani will speak on Aspects of the Arbitrator’s Impartiality and Disclosure Obligations’ and ‘Arbitrating IP Disputes’ co-organised by HKIAC and Prince’s Chambers at the HKIAC on 25 May 2023. Registration link:https://hkiac.glueup.com/event/72152/   

The Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal will hear an appeal on whether an application by the Securities and Futures Commission to Court for remedies for investors under SFO s.213 can be served out of Hong Kong under gateway (f),…

Further developments on Quincecare duty. In PT v Citibank FACV 11/2022, (6 February 2023) the Hong Kong CFA took the opportunity to give clear guidance on a bank’s duty (and liability in debt when in breach) to its customer in…

Prince’s Chambers hosted its first drinks event in 3 years at the China Club on 24 March. We are grateful to the 80 solicitors and clients that joined us and for Karen Linker for the music. Prince’s Chambers Drinks  

The CFI’s decision in Mark Sutherland v CRB (a firm) [2022] HKCFI 3382 has been reported: [2023] 1 HKLRD 1. The decision contains discussion of solicitor / client taxations generally [60]-[75], ways in which firms can assist the court in preparing such bills for taxation (including…

The CFI has granted a non-party costs order against an unrelated company that funded litigation, and joined it for the purposes of indemnity costs: Hydrotech Waterproofing Solutions Ltd v Shun Yuen Construction Co Ltd [2023] HKCFI 601.  Hydrotech was a…

Josh Baker was delighted to work pro bono with Equal Justice and Holman Fenwick Willan, obtaining a legal aid certificate on appeal for a vulnerable young migrant mother. The certificate allowed the mother to bring claims for a declaration of parentage…

Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal has granted leave to appeal on whether a shipowner may limit liability for wreck removal expenses under LLMC 1976 where the contracting state (eg HK and UK) has suspended Art 2(1) head (d). Clifford…

The Court of First Instance gave judgment after trial, in Sze Fung Engineering Ltd v Trevi Construction Company Ltd [2023] HKCFI 419. The dispute arose out of construction works associated with a new combined cycle gas turbine unit at the…

Sportsperson fails to establish any grounds to complain of misconduct report to Lawn Bowling Association for her behaviour at league match. The decision provides a detailed analysis on the scope of defamatory meanings and the application of qualified privilege to…

Lavesh Kirpalani has been made a HK45 Committee Member for 2023-2025.

Prince’s Chambers is sponsoring the CIArb (EAB) YMG 4th Annual Regional Conference taking place on 23 and 24 February, with the Honourable Mr Justice Godfrey Lam giving the Keynote Address.  You are invited to join and attend in person. Click…

Philipp v Barclays Bank was argued in the UK Supreme Court on 1-2 February 2023.  Judgment will affect the circumstances in which victims of push payment frauds can look to their banks for recovery. The appeal concerns the basis and…

Prince’s Chambers continues its contribution to Chitty On Contracts, Hong Kong Specific Contracts, which is now released in its 7th Edition in two volumes. Edward Alder: Chapter 15 Information Technology Josh Baker: Chapter 1 Agency

Commercial dispute resolution EDWARD ALDER chambers.com/lawyer/edward-alder-greater-china-region-116:349952 “He is hard-working, reliable, concise and very user-friendly. He acted on very short notice in place of another counsel and did a great job in both the written and oral submissions.” Intellectual property SEBASTIAN…

Commercial disputes www.legal500.com/c/hong-kong-bar/commercial-disputes/  Jeremy Bartlett SC – Tier 1 leading silk  Edward Alder, Paul Carolan, Sebastian Hughes, Phillip Rompotis  – Tier 1 leading juniors Lavesh Kirpalani, Eugene Kwok and Kevin Lee  – Tier 2 leading juniors Administrative and public law…

The Court of Appeal has confirmed that the High Court has jurisdiction under RHC Order 11, r.1(1) to permit the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) to serve a Writ in a Hong Kong regulatory action on defendants out of Hong…

The Hague Court of Arbitration for Aviation (HCAA) took flight in mid-2022. Seated in The Hague, Netherlands and administered by the Netherlands Arbitration Institute, the HCAA is Europe’s first arbitration centre that specialises in resolving commercial and private aircraft related…

Hong Kong’s High Court grants specific performance of a HK$113m Put Option obligation over a bloc of Hong Kong and Shanghai list shares. Edward Alder, instructed by Simmons & Simmons, acted for the successful plaintiff in Wan Tai Investments v…

Edward Alder, instructed by Tanner De Witt, has won a rare costs appeal against ICBC, a major PRC bank, reported at Industrial & Commercial Bank of China (Asia) Ltd v Tse Ching [2022] 5 HKLRD 284. ICBC commenced an action…

HKIAC is promoting this survey on arbitrator selection practices. All are encouraged to participate: cortexcapital.org/theusualsuspects  

Sebastian Hughes represented the successful defendant in Yao-Hua Kang v Joe-Hsiang Lin (HCA1926/2020, 18 November 2022), a first instance appeal before Deputy High Court Judge Le Pichon. Madam Justice Le Pichon confirmed the test as to whether a plaintiff ought…

Prince’s Chambers are pleased to have continued their contribution to “Hong Kong Civil Procedure” with the just-released 2023 Edition. Edward Alder: Order 11 Service out of the jurisdiction / forum non conveniens Lavesh Kirpalani: Order 59 Appeals to the Court…

Sebastian Hughes comments on the Court of Appeal decision in Mary Kay Inc v Zhejiang Tmall Network Co Ltd, addressing the exhaustion of rights (parallel importation) defence.   The Court of Appeal in Mary Kay Inc v Zhejiang Tmall Network…

Edward Alder will take part once again in the ever popular mock arbitrations on 25 November 2022 for the forthcoming Hong Kong Maritime Week. www.hkmw.hk/en/index.html www.hkmw.hk/en/activities_details.html?id=0010

Edward Alder considers the Hong Kong implications of FIMBank plc v KCH Shipping [2022] EWHC 2400 (Comm) (The Giant Ace) (a s.69 arbitration appeal). Blair J held that the one-year time bar under the Hague Visby Rules (HVR) Article III,…

Edward Alder reports on the recent decision of the Hong Kong Court of Appeal that an application to set aside a bankruptcy notice (under Bankruptcy Rule 47) cannot be allowed on a condition that the debtor pay the disputed claim…

This judgment deals primarily with the impact of an exclusive jurisdiction clause in the context of winding up proceedings, but also provides an inkling of how an arbitration agreement may be dealt with in the same context, and considers the…

Harjang Singh v Secretary for Security & Anor [2022] HKCA 781. This was a successful appeal for release on Hardial Singh grounds of an individual detained for 1,208 days or 3 years and 4 months. The Court of Appeal updated…

Eugene Kwok of Prince’s Chambers was trial counsel for the 3rd Defendant in Macro Charm Ltd v Phoenix Nicaragua S.A. & Others [2022] HKCFI 1822. The case concerned a contract to conduct logging operations in Nicaragua over forests affected by…

Sebastian Hughes will be speaking on “Technology in Arbitration: Levelling the Playing Field” at THAC International ADR Week 2022.

Many companies in Hong Kong are not incorporated there. Nonetheless, the Hong Kong court has statutory jurisdiction (under section 327 of the Companies (Winding Up and Miscellaneous Proceedings) Ordinance) to wind up a foreign company. However, recognising that the most…

It is not unusual for arbitration agreements to contain pre-arbitration procedural requirements, such as negotiation or mediation, which the parties must attempt before proceeding to arbitration. These are commonly known as “tiered” or “escalation” arbitration agreements – you have to…

Common law courts, like those in Hong Kong and Singapore, usually exercise jurisdiction over foreign defendants in particular cases with certain factual connections to the territory. The long-arm service ‘gateways’ in the court rules include contract cases where there is…

The Court of First Instance gave judgment after trial,  in Hydrotech Waterproofing Solutions Limited v Shun Yuen Construction Company  Limited [2022] HKCFI 1170. As the judge observed, the claim arose from a not uncommon occurrence in the local construction industry…

Eugene Kwok recently represented the 8th Defendant in Lesnina H. D.O.O. v Wave Shipping Trade Co Ltd [2022] HKCFI 1070. The 8th Defendant was allegedly a second-tier recipient of the Plaintiff’s funds which had been wrongly paid out as a result of an…

Edward Alder, instructed by Lau, Horton & Wise LLP, acted for the claimant in successfully opposing a stay to arbitration of a €6m claim on ground that the arbitration agreement was a forgery in Haller AG v Vestey Intl Group…

Congratulations to Sebastian Hughes on his appointment as one of the 114 distinguished Panelists with the Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration,  on 21 February 2022.

Edward Alder, together with Clifford Smith SC, instructed by Ince & Co, appeared in the Court of Appeal for the owner of the Milano Bridge successfully opposing an appeal against a stay of a US$90m claim arising from an allision between…

Damien McDonald will be speaking on “Managing MENA and China-related M&A Arbitration Disputes” at the Qatar & MENA: 7th Annual International Arbitration Virtual Summit. Princes Chambers is a Silver Sponsor for this event.  The Summit will take place on Wednesday 2…

The Court of First Instance has held that there was no jurisdiction to give effect to a letter of request issued by an Administrative Law Judge on behalf of the US Federal Board of Reserve: AB v X & Ors…

We are delighted that Jeremy Bartlett SC, Paul J Carolan, Edward Alder, Sebastian Hughes, Phillip Rompotis are all ranked top tier for Commercial Disputes, Hong Kong Bar, with further rankings for Jeremy Bartlett SC (Family and Private Client), Edward Alder…

Prince’s Chambers is delighted to announce that Sebastian Hughes has again been listed as a leading intellectual property barrister in the 2022 Chambers Asia Pacific Guide. Many thanks to our loyal and supportive solicitors and clients. https://chambers.com/lawyer/sebastian-hughes-greater-china-region-116:25361092      

Prince’s Chambers is delighted that Edward Alder is ranked in Chambers Greater China for Commercial Dispute Resolution 2022. https://chambers.com/lawyer/edward-alder-greater-china-region-116:349952  

Prince’s Chambers is delighted to announce that Sebastian Hughes and Damien McDonald were appointed to the Panel of the Shanghai Arbitration Commission on 31 December 2021.

Is international arbitration tilted towards the common law system? Kevin Lee will be speaking as one of 8 panelists in the upcoming CIArb (EAB) Young Members Group seminar on 1 December 2021 (Wednesday) at 3:30 – 5:00pm.  Mino Han will…

Prince’s Chambers is delighted to announce that Eugene Kwok was recognised in this year’s APAC Insider Legal Awards as “Best Commercial Disputes Specialist 2021 (Hong Kong)”. Details of the award can be found at https://www.apac-insider.com/winners/princes-chambers.        

Edward Alder considers recent judgments on conflicts of interest for barrister arbitrators where a party’s law firm has instructed the barrister as counsel in other cases. Barrister-arbitrators: conflicts of interest and instructing solicitors In jurisdictions with independent Bars such as…

Damien McDonald will be joining a CIArb (EAB) YMG Panel on 12th October 2021 at 17:00 HKT with Ronald Pang, Bernice S. and Ng Ka Wai. Join our panelists, in this CIArb (EAB) YMG webinar, for a discussion of the Privy Council decision in RAV…

Edward Alder‘s article ‘Recent Developments in Forum Contests in Hong Kong and Common Law Jurisdictions’ has been published in the Hong Kong Civil Procedure 2022 Special Release. The article looks at various new decisions in the FNC, service out and…

Phillip Rompotis and Josh Baker, instructed by Minter Ellison, appeared for the defendant on the plaintiff’s application to amend its statement of claim and reply in a construction dispute: [2021] HKCFI 2785. The court ruled that it was not fair for the…

The High Court has confirmed that Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) may obtain leave to serve Hong Kong enforcement actions on defendants abroad, SFC v Subotic [2021] HKCFI 2172. Edward Alder instructed by Minter Ellison acted for the defendants. The High Court…

Online seminar dealing with an arbitrator’s duty of impartiality Online seminar dealing with an arbitrator’s duty of impartiality

Eugene Kwok of Prince’s Chambers advised and acted for Hong Kong Optical Company Limited, the operator of the venerable “Hong Kong Optical” chain, which was today wound up by the court on a petition issued by the company itself.  The…

Eugene Kwok of Prince’s Chambers acted for the respondents in Re Lucky Legend Industries Limited; Re Vintage Wine Cellar Limited [2021] HKCFI 2004, a decision which serves as a reminder to all practitioners of the need to take a little bit of extra care when instituting…

Phillip Rompotis reviews  Betamax Ltd v State Trading Corporation [2021] UKPC 14, where the Privy Council of England, in an appeal from the Mauritius Supreme Court, considered the extent of permissible intervention by a court in an international arbitration where public policy was…

Sebastian Hughes will be the Moderator at the seminar/webinar jointly hosted by the YMG of CIArb and HKIAC.  On 1 January 2018, amendments to the Hong Kong Arbitration Ordinance came into effect to clarify that all disputes over intellectual property rights may…

Phillip Rompotis reviews C v D [2021] HKCFI 1474, where the HK Court considered an application to set aside a partial award on jurisdiction on a ground that commonly arises in arbitration proceedings – whether an obligation to negotiate prior to…

Phillip Rompotis will be joining a great cast to discuss the appointment of arbitrators. Arranged by CIArb YMG. Join our CIArb (EAB) YMG panel discussion, supported by Stephenson Harwood, focusing on considerations when making arbitral appointments including youth and diversity!…

In International Arbitration Newsletter No. 13, Phillip Rompotis reviews a range of cases from Asia and England, including a number of judgments from the courts in Hong Kong and Singapore which highlight that while the set aside remedy is relatively…

Edward Alder of Prince’s Chambers enjoyed working with the Richard, Ruaridh and Alex of the Ince Hong Kong team and Clifford Smith SC on this recent case. The Hong Kong Court has stayed proceedings that arose out of an allision in…