HSBC International Trustee hits back at claims of favouritism in Great Eagle Holdings dispute
Lawyer for division of Hong Kong’s largest bank describes family infighting as a ‘sad state of affairs’
Lawyers for a division of Hong Kong’s largest bank hit back on Wednesday at accusations it took sides in a family feud surrounding one of the city’s richest property conglomerates, stressing that the bank’s arm did not favour anyone.
Barrister Paul Girolami QC, for HSBC International Trustee, made his rebuttal a day after lawyers for the widow of late tycoon Lo Ying-shek, a co-founder of Great Eagle Holdings, alleged that the trust favoured one of the sons during family infighting described by the lawyer as a “sad state of affairs”.
The widow, Lo To Lee-kwan, 98, is suing the trust manager for not acceding to her requests to stock up on shares in the family business, as she feared not doing so could lead to it falling into the hands of her third son, Lo Ka-shui. She wants the court to order HSBC International Trustee’s removal as trustee.
But in an opening remark on Wednesday, Girolami said: “We are not in that camp. We are not in anybody’s camp.”
Girolami also painted a picture of how the trust manager was sandwiched between two competing camps, having also to deal with Lo To Lee-kwan, who did not have a full grasp of the situation and was only wishing to discipline her children. It made the trust manager prone to legal challenges, he said, and the trust had been acting cautiously.