Why one sixtysomething can skip court date but another can't

What's the difference between sixtysomething former Citic Pacific chairman Larry Yung Chi-kin and the sexagenarian investors seeking compensation from him for the company's share-price fall?

The Small Claims Tribunal allowed Tam Chi-cheung, the general manager of the treasury department at Citic Hong Kong Holdings, to represent Yung, 67, at a hearing yesterday. But housewife Wong Kam-wan, who jumped from her chair and said repeatedly that she was being treated unfairly and was also feeling unwell, was refused a representative. Deputy adjudicator Ivan Wong Lai-wing said Wong and the other claimant present, So Wai-chi, had received advance notice of Yung's representation and should have submitted their applications earlier.

So said: 'I received the letter submitted by Yung relating to the issue of his representation. In the letter, he mentioned his health problems. He is 67 years old, but I saw no medical proof. We're both in our 60s, I don't understand why he couldn't appear. He claims pressure, but he's a billionaire. We only want about HK$100,000 so the pressure on us is even greater.'

The deputy adjudicator said they could still secure representation for any future hearings.

Unhappy that Yung was absent - as he had been for the first hearing, in November - the claimants also sought in vain to have yesterday's hearing halted.

Explaining Yung's absence, Tam said the issue had received a lot of media attention. 'These claimants wanted to use the hearing to put pressure on Yung to settle the issue.'