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Legal Updates
Legal update: Escaping the abscondee regime – Bankruptcy (Amendment) Ordinance 2016
A bankrupt’s successful 2006 Court of Appeal1 challenge to the “abscondee” provisions in the Bankruptcy Ordinance effectively forced LegCo to tighten up one of the loopholes plaguing the current legislation. As a result, the Bankruptcy (Amendment) Ordinance became law earlier this year and will come…Read More
Why appoint an Enduring Power of Attorney?
Individuals can make arrangements to appoint other persons responsible in the event that a loss of mental capacity causes an inability to manage his or her own financial affairs such as in the case of dementia. A document known as Enduring Power of Attorney (“EPOA”)…Read More
Legal update: Specialist Tribunals and Boards in Hong Kong
Many of the administrative and legal decisions that affect closely the lives of residents of Hong Kong and businesses that operate in Hong Kong are not made in the courts but are given in specialist tribunals or other bodies created by statute to deal with…Read More
Legal update: The Draft Code of Practice for Employment Agencies
The Labour Department is conducting a consultation on a draft Code of Practice for Employment Agencies. Through promulgating the Code for the industry’s compliance, the Labour Department aims to promote professionalism and quality services in the employment agencies industry. Members of the public can obtain…Read More
Ancillary relief: the case of short marriage between young couples without children
The Court of Appeal judgement in AVT v VNT [2015] HKEC 1298 is a good example of the departure from equal sharing of matrimonial assets in the case of a short and childless marriage. This case concerns a medium-sized estate and a comfortable standard of…Read More
The Child Abduction Legislation
The Child Abduction Legislation (Miscellaneous Amendments) Ordinance 2014 (the “Amendment Ordinance”) recently came into operation on 5 April 2016 to expand the scope of application of the current Child Abduction and Custody Ordinance (Cap 512) (“CACO”) to strengthen the powers of the courts and law…Read More
Legal update: Children’s Dispute Resolution in Hong Kong
Children’s Dispute Resolution, Practice Direction 15.13 becomes a permanent feature of Hong Kong Family Court practice. The Pilot Scheme on Children’s Dispute Resolution which began on 3 October 2012 came to an end on 31 March 2016 with Practice Direction 15.13 being formally adopted from…Read More
Legal update: The Collaborative Divorce: A new approach
Is the collaborative approach right for you? Do you trust yourself and your partner to prioritise the needs of your family? Do you trust yourself and your partner to be open about your financial situation? Are you able to communicate with your partner openly and…Read More
Are your employees stressed at work?
“In our daily work, there are many factors which may exert great stress on us, such as heavy workload or mundane job, poor working environment, long working hours, no clear working instructions, no job security, inharmonious relationships with colleagues and supervisors etc.” Labour Department, Occupational…Read More
Legal wedding checklist when preparing for marriage
Marriage is a legal matter. An important part of marital planning is to ensure that the implications of marriage on your legal status are well considered with ample time before the wedding. Planning takes time. Time will be short as the big day approaches. Consider…Read More
Pre-nuptial Agreements FAQs, examples
With marital planning, wealth acquired by one’s own hard efforts before marriage could be protected from the financial consequences of divorce. This firm has seen an increased client demand for protection of wealth acquired before marriage including family businesses, interests in family trusts, investment properties,…Read More
Will your inheritance count towards the matrimonial pot in your divorce?
The guidelines for how judges should deal with financial provision in a divorce case are set out by the Court of Final Appeal in the landmark case of DD v LKW (2010) 13 HKCFAR 537. Generally after providing for the needs of both spouses any…Read More
