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Edward - Sec For Costs - Apply Like Grand - Burden
Edward - Sec For Costs - Apply Like Grand - Burden
13 December 2013
CFI
HCA 857/2011
Lin Man Yuan v Kin Ming Holdings International Ltd & Others
(unrep., HCA216/2008, [2013] HKEC 1901)
Sun Legend Investment Ltd v Ho Yuk Wah David and Others (2011)
14 HKCFAR 541
Judgment:
P1 and P2 have not correctly stated their address in the Writ; and
P2 is a nominal plaintiff;
THE LAW
Order 23 rule 1
7. The power to order security for costs is in Order 23(1) RHC:-
Page 3
that the plaintiff (not being a plaintiff who is suing in a representative capacity) is a
nominal plaintiff who is suing for the benefit of some other person and that there is
reason to believe that he will be unable to pay the costs of the defendant if ordered to
do so, or
subject to paragraph (2) that the plaintiff's address is not stated in the writ or other
originating process or is incorrectly stated therein, or
…,
then if, having regard to all the circumstances of the case, the Court thinks it just to do
so, it may order the plaintiff to give such security for the defendant's costs of the action
or other proceeding as it thinks just.
The Court shall not require a plaintiff to give security by reasons only of paragraph
(1)(c) if he satisfies the Court that the failure to state his address or the mis-statement
thereof was made innocently and without intention to deceive "
"The onus is on the defendant to prove that P1 is ordinarily resident out of jurisdiction and
the question is one of fact and degree not depending on the duration of the residence, but
upon the way in which a man's life is usually ordered in contrast with temporary residence
[HKCP 2013, §23/3/4];"
"the phrase "ordinarily resident" should be construed according to its ordinary and natural
meaning, and that a person is ordinarily resident in a place if he habitually and normally
resides lawfully in such place from choice and for a settled purpose, apart from temporary
or occasional absences, even if his permanent residence or "real home" is elsewhere"
(Emphasis added): HKCP 2013, §23/3/4;
"When determining whether a plaintiff is "ordinarily resident" outside the jurisdiction it does
not necessarily matter that the plaintiff has spent significant amounts of time abroad. One
has to consider the reasons for the absence from the jurisdiction and whether the plaintiff
has "up-rooted" and relocated him or herself abroad" (Emphasis added): HKCP 2013, §
23/3/4;
"A holder of a Hong Kong identity card is not necessarily ordinarily resident within Hong
Kong." HKCP 2013, §23/3/4
"There is no inflexible rule or practice that a plaintiff resident abroad will be ordered to give
security for costs - the power to make such order is entirely discretionary [HKCP 2013, §
23/3/4];"
"One of the main factors which the Court will take into account when exercising its
discretion is the financial position of a foreign plaintiff [HKCP 2013, §23/3/4]"; and
"Subject to the general discretion of the Court, the ordinary rule of practice is that no order
for security for costs will be made if there is a co-plaintiff resident within the jurisdiction
[HKCP 2013, §23/3/4]".
In 2012, Eric resided in Hong Kong for 324 days (only 41 days away from Hong Kong)
[167];
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In 2013, from 1 January until the end of August, Eric has resided in Hong Kong for 219
days (only 22 days away from Hong Kong covering 2 trips to Macau and one trip to
Shanghai) [168]; and
None of Eric's time away from Hong Kong was in the United States except in January
2012 when one of his sons passed away;"
… …A civil case is a trial of the issues as put before the court. It is not a trial of the
character of the parties. This is a matter beyond the scope of analysis in a court of
law.
"… …to state his address as well as his solicitor's address, which is the address for
service, is to inform the other party whether the plaintiff or petitioner is ordinarily
resident within or outside the jurisdiction; if it is the latter, the other party may wish to
apply for security for costs. Thus, the address of the petitioner that should be stated in
the petition must be his place of residence."
18. It is correct for Mr. Whitehead SC to say that P1, who is being legally represented, does not have
to put in his address of residence in the writ because he has the option of having his solicitor's
address in the writ and that even if the PO box address is not a proper address, it is not evidence that
he had the intention to deceive.5 However, under Order 6 rule 5(1), P1 is required to indorse his writ
with his address, be it residential or business address:
where the plaintiff sues by a solicitor, with the plaintiff's address and the solicitor's
name or firm and a business address of his within the jurisdiction and also (if the
solicitor is the agent of another) the name or firm and business address of his
principal; (emphasis added)
It may be said that the PO box address is not a proper address as construed in Re Like Grand
Holdings Ltd, supra. There is no explanation from P1 for the PO box address that he has given
instead of his residential address. However, I am not satisfied that the evidence before me is sufficient
to support that Ps had the intention to deceive and that on that reason alone, the court should require
them to provide security for costs.
Mr. Whitehead SC has pointed out the discrepancies in D3's statements that he had given for his US
legal proceedings and for this action here in relation to P1's residence. At page 182 of the bundle, D3
had said that P1 is a resident of China, the United Kingdom and the United States whereas in his
affidavit on page 81 of the bundle, he said P1 is not ordinary resident in Hong Kong. The discrepancy
exists. But I do not consider that it demonstrates that D3's evidence is not reliable. There is a
difference between the residence of a person and his being ordinarily resident in a certain place.
19. As stated in paragraph 7a., supra, whether P1 is ordinarily resident out of the jurisdiction is one of
fact and degree not depending on the duration of the residence, but upon the way in which his life is
usually ordered in contrast with temporary residence. In the assessment of the evidence, the Court
must weigh all the evidence and circumstances as adduced by the parties, taking into account
whether there is any reasonable explanation for any doubts or incomplete picture as enunciated in the
evidence. It then comes to its own decision accordingly.
Conclusion
20. Having considered the evidence above, I come to a view that D3 has established that P1 was and
is not ordinarily resident within the jurisdiction. I have taken into account P1's assertion that with his
age of 87, he would like to be close to his family in Hong Kong and therefore he has the intention of
staying in Hong Kong for the future. However, these factors are diluted by his lack of evidence to
show his physical condition or health and particulars of his close family members, coupled with his
admission that he preferred the lifestyle of the US and that he had been residing in the US over the
past decades, with a few occasional brief stays in Hong Kong. His evidence that he wants to be close
to his family in Hong Kong does not sit well with his distrust of his family either. All these have caused
me to conclude that he is not ordinary resident in Hong Kong. He may, if he likes, leave Hong Kong
any time in future. D3 has reached the threshold under Order 23 rule 1.
ASSETS OF FIXED AND PERMNENT NATURE
21. Mr. Li SC submits in his written submissions that if P1 is found to be not ordinarily resident within
the jurisdiction, then in the exercise of this Court's discretion, the Court may consider whether P1 has
assets of fixed and permanent nature in Hong Kong. However, there is not one iota of evidence that
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he has any asset of fixed and permanent nature in Hong Kong (there was only the vague assertion
that he has wealth held by companies, trusts and bank accounts all over the world including Hong
Kong at P1/16/93).
22. Mr. Whitehead SC refers to D3's evidence in the legal proceedings in Virginia in the US, in which
D3 said that P1's wealth was estimated towards two billion US dollars.6 However, it is trite law that
the evidence in another legal proceeding is not admissible in this proceeding, let alone the evidence
in the legal proceedings in the foreign court. See Sun Legend Investment Ltd. I shall not consider
such evidence here.
23. D3 has stated clearly that he deliberately keeps the whereabouts of his assets to himself.7 This
Court is therefore unable to consider the nature of his assets in light of Mr. Li SC's submissions.
Inconsistent decisions
24. Notwithstanding this issue is not argued here, Mr. Li SC's proposition that the Court should
consider P1's assets of fixed and permanent nature is not entirely clear in view of the following
authorities:
HKCP 2013 at 23/3/6 : "Security will not be required from a person …if he has substantial
property, whether real or personal, within it â € ¦but semble, the property must be of fixed
and permanent nature, which can certainly be available for costs (
Ebrad v Gassier (1884) 28 Ch.D. 232
)";
On the basis of the above case, Anthony Neoh SC submitted to DHCJ S. Leung in his
appeal in
Lin Man Yuan v Kin Ming Holdings International Ltd & Others HCA216/2008 (unreported
DHCJ S. Leung) 29 November 2013, that even residential property was not regarded as
fixed and permanent asset sufficient to provide security, which the Deputy Judge did not
agree. See paragraph 35 of his judgment.
My views
25. The authorities above have made reference to the nature of the property being fixed and
permanent in order to determine it is sufficient to provide security for the costs. But there has not been
a consistent view. In my view, the meaning of security under Order 23 should be construed within the
context of the order itself. The Court of Appeal in Hui Yin Sang's case has already defined its meaning
as "The purpose of ordering security for costs against a plaintiff ordinarily resident outside the
jurisdiction is to ensure that a successful defendant will have a fund available within the jurisdiction of
this court against which it can enforce the judgment for costs."
26. The Court of Appeal in
Montgomery Ward & Co Incorporated v Evergo Trading Company Limited and Evergo Holdings
Company Limited, unreported, CACV 32/1996
, 31 May 1996, where Nazareth VP held (paragraph 8):
'Given that there are no proper factors weighing in favour of the foreign plaintiff or at least either
way, it seems to me that [the judge 's] discretion plainly had to be exercised in conformity with the
position set out in the judgment of Lord Denning in Aeronave SPA v Westland Charters [1971] 3
All ER 531 at 533 where he said this:
"I agree with the note in the Supreme Court Practice that the rule does give a discretion to the
court. In 1984 in Crozai v Brogden Lopes J said that there was an inflexible rule that if a foreigner
sued he should give security for costs. But that is putting it too high. It is the usual practice of the
courts to make a foreign plaintiff give security for costs. But it does so, as a matter of discretion,
Page 8
because it is just to do so. After all, if the defendant succeeds and gets an order for his costs, it is
not right that he should have to go to a foreign country to enforce the order." â € ¦' (emphasis
added)
27. On the basis of the above authorities, if the plaintiff is shown to be ordinary resident outside the
jurisdiction, it will be for the plaintiff to show to the court why an order for security for costs should not
be made. If the plaintiff says that he has sufficient assets within the jurisdiction to satisfy the costs
order in favour of the defendant, the plaintiff has to demonstrate that the assets are sufficient to meet
such costs. The emphasis should be on the security, that is to say, the plaintiff's proof that there
should be no risk of the defendant not getting its costs. The nature of the property, whether fixed and
permanent, is only one of the factors that the court should take into account to determine whether
sufficient security has been provided by the plaintiff. The nature of security can take various forms,
such as cash, real property, bank guarantee or other arrangements acceptable to the court.
Undertaking by the plaintiff to use the costs as ordered in another legal proceedings for the costs of
the defendant such as that mentioned in Desarrollo's case and asserted by Mr Li SC for this
application is another example. Cash has been taken as not sufficient because of its volatility. But it
can be sufficient if a party agrees to have a charge on the deposit or to give an undertaking to the
court not to withdraw it without court's leave. Real property may not be sufficient if it is a negative
equity.
P1’s and P2’s case
28. P1 has been found to be not ordinarily resident in Hong Kong and he elects not to disclose his
assets in Hong Kong. He has therefore failed to discharge his duty and should be ordered to provide
security for costs unless there are other circumstances, which show that it is unnecessary for P1 to do
so.
29. P2 does not dispute that it is a foreign company. On this basis, D3 is entitled to ask for an order
for security for costs against P2 under Order 23 rule 1. P2 only argues that it is not a nominal plaintiff
within the context of Order 23 rule 1(b), RHC. Even if P2 is successful in arguing that it is not a
nominal plaintiff within the context of Order 23 rule 1(b), it will still be liable to be ordered to give the
security for costs under Order 23 rule 1(a). I shall therefore refrain from discussing the meaning of
nominal plaintiff within the context of Order 23 rule 1 RHC.
30. P2's argument that it should not be ordered to give security for costs if P1 is found to be ordinary
resident within the jurisdiction will not be discussed as I have already found that P1 is not ordinary
resident within the jurisdiction.
THE REMAINING GROUND
HCMP 643 of 2012 order for costs
31. The only remaining ground as raised by Ps against D3's application for security for costs is that
this Court should not exercise its discretion to make the order as requested because in HCMP 643 of
2012, it has been ordered that D3 is to pay costs of P1 and P2 incurred in those proceedings on a
party and party basis and the estimated amount of costs up to the end of trial is HK$2.4 million [96/§
22]. D3 has not, in his reply affirmation, made any challenges to the estimated amount of costs
incurred by P1 and P2 in those proceedings. Mr. Whitehead SC also submits that in family
proceedings like HCMP 643 of 2012 the Court is frequently updated with estimates of costs.8
32. Mr. Whitehead SC also says that even on a 50% taxation, the amount due to P1 and P2 by D3 is
HK$1.2 million. This will more than cover the costs sought by D3 in the sum of about HK$1 million
odd.
33. Ps rely upon the court order above to say that the court should not make an order for security for
costs because of its indebtedness to the plaintiff, which has provided sufficient security for its costs,
reference made to
SNE Engineering Co. Ltd. v. Chim Kee Machinery Co. Ltd (HCA 2025/2012; Unreported
; Mr. Registrar K.W. Lung; 27 September 2013), §§21-22 and
Desarrollo Inmobiliario Y Negocious Industriales De Alta Technologia De Hermosillo, S. A. De C.V. v.
Kader Holdings Company Limited (HCCL 19/2012; Unreported
; A. Chan J; 26 November 2013), §39.
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34. Mr. Li SC accepts that this Court can take into consideration the above costs order against D3. He
points out that the order was under appeal and that the amount of the taxation bill is inflated and will
be challenged.
Undertaking by Ps to use the costs for security in this action
35. Mr. Li SC further submits that Ps should not be specially treated as judgment creditors and that
they have never agreed to give an undertaking that the costs as payable to them under the costs
order of HCMP 643 of 2012 could be used as security for costs (see §35 of Desarrollo Inmobiliario Y
Negocious Industries v Kader Holdings Co. Ltd.). Absent such undertaking, this Court should still
order security for costs.
36. Mr. Whitehead SC refers to the letter dated 30 August 2013 [211] and submits that although D3
had mentioned the costs in HCMP 643 of 2012 be held by D3 or be paid into court, it was not an offer
or mechanism that the Ps should consider. I consider that D3's solicitor had given sufficient reason for
the costs in HCMP 643 of 2012 be kept by him as security or to be paid into court. Otherwise, D3 will
be left without security despite the court now finds that according to the law, Ps should provide
security. This can be distinguished from the Decision that I made in SNE Engineering Co. Ltd as
counsel acting for the defendant had not argued on this issue.
37. I shall simply make an order for security for costs in favour of D3. As to how the parties will agree
to provide the security, I shall leave it to their solicitors.
38. As to the quantum of the security for costs, I have noted the criticisms on D3's draft bill. I agree
that it is an inflated bill, especially senior counsel's fee. But I do not consider that only nominal
security should be ordered.
39. On a broad-brush approach, I shall make an order for the sum of $600,000, including the costs for
this application.
40. On the question of costs for this application, including the costs reserved and for today, they
should be awarded to D3 (with certificate for one senior counsel). I have the schedule of costs from
D3, which amounts to $414,281. I agree with Mr. Whitehead SC that the complexity of this application
does not warrant senior counsel's service. However, since both parties are represented by senior
counsel, I simply consider that it is just to allow one senior counsel. The other comments are on the
amount for counsel to charge their fees on the drafting of D3's affidavit. On a broad-brush approach
basis, I assess the costs under Order 62 rule 9A RHC to be $150,000 to be paid by Ps to D3.
41. I shall now make an order in terms as follows:
The plaintiffs shall within 21 days from the date hereof provide security for costs for the
sum of $600,000 to be paid into court or in other forms as agreed by the parties, failing
which, the plaintiffs' claim be dismissed;
The costs of this application, including the costs reserved and today's hearing assessed at
$150,000 are to be paid by the plaintiffs to D3 within 14 days from the date hereof.