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Legal Updates
New Arrangement for Application for Leave to Appeal in the Family Court
The Court of Appeal has made several suggestions to improve the processing time of filed appeals in the Family Court. This has resulted in the adoption of the New Arrangement for Application for Leave to Appeal in the Family Court (“NAAL”), which is summarised below:…Read More
Legal update: Magistrate acquitted a broker of illegal short selling on re-trial
Case background Mr Wong Hung who was licensed to carry on Type 1 regulated activity (dealing in securities) under the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap. 571) (“SFO”) was charged by way of summons on 20 counts of illegal short selling. The Securities and Futures Commission…Read More
Legal update: District Court and Small Claims Tribunal maximum claim values increased
Following a consultation launched by the Judiciary in August 2015, the Legislative Council passed a resolution on 27 June 2018 approving the proposed increases to the jurisdiction of the District Court and Small Claims Tribunal. The changes are slated to take effect from 3 December…Read More
Legal update: Ten myths about token sale regulation in Hong Kong
No part of the tech universe has a greater abundance of myths than the crypto space, and no part of the crypto space has a deeper black hole of urban legends than the weird and wonderful world of token sales. Here are some of the…Read More
Legal update: Court of Final Appeal’s answers on the issue of establishing a defence to indecent assaults on underage victims
In October 2017, we wrote about the magistracy appeal decision of香港特別行政區訴蔡偉麟 (HKSAR v Choi Wai Lun) (unreported HCMA 620/2016, 31 July 2017): Is a genuine belief that an underage victim is over 16 a defence to an indecent assault? On 9 May 2018, the Court of…Read More
What founders need to know about Employee Share Option Plans
ESOPs can be a case of damned if you do, damned if you don’t. Founders need an ESOP to build out and retain its team as the business grows. But dilution will often only affect the founders. That can feel like a turkey voting for…Read More
Legal update: Terms and Conditions: the importance of the fine print
If you are a business owner or operator, underestimating or simply ignoring the importance of the fine print is a common mistake. Irrespective of whether you operate a start-up or a long-established business, you should have in place some terms and conditions that are appropriate…Read More
Know your rights: is a warrant needed before the Police can search seized mobile phones?
Case facts Mr Sham Wing Kan, a participant in the 1 July 2014 procession, was arrested by police for suspected offence of obstructing a police officer in execution of his duty by idling the vehicle during the procession. He was searched by the police and…Read More
Legal update: amendment to Employment Ordinance provisions relating to Employment Agencies
Effective from February 9 2018, the provisions in the Employment Ordinance relating to Employment Agencies (EAs) have been amended to: increase the maximum penalty for the offences of overcharging commission from job-seekers and the unlicensed operation of EAs up to a fine of HK$350,000 and…Read More
Legal update: amendment to existing sale of alcohol legislation is passed
Following an amendment to the law in respect of sale of alcohol to minors that was recently passed, it will become later this year a criminal offense to sell alcoholic beverages to minors with a maximum fine of HK$50,000. This change to the law will…Read More
Legal update: Changing trends in cyber fraud
As another year passes, the number and complexity of cyber frauds continues to grow. In this article we discuss three developments of 2017, which we expect to see continue this year. Traditionally, email hacking identity theft fraud was easy to detect. In an all too…Read More
Legal update: SFC bans former Investment Counsellor for taking confidential client lists
The Securities and Futures Commission (“SFC”) announced on 22 January 2018 that under section 196(1)(iii) of the Securities and Futures Ordinance (“SFO”) it has banned former DBS Bank employee Mr Chan Wai-Nun from re-entering the industry for a period of 6 months, on the grounds…Read More
