Hong Kong's Court of Appeal dismissed a renewed bid by the daughter of late Wahaha Group founder Zong Qinghou to challenge orders preserving about $1.8 billion in assets held in an HSBC (HKG:0005) account, according to a judgment released on Tuesday.
The court rejected Kelly Zong's application for leave to appeal, or alternatively for more time to file an appeal, against a High Court decision granting a preservation order over the assets and an ancillary disclosure order.
It also refused the defendants' request to stay parts of the disclosure order and ordered them to pay the plaintiffs HK$250,000 in legal costs.
The dispute stems from claims by three plaintiffs, identified in the judgment as Zong Qinghou's children by another mother, who allege the assets are held on trust for their benefit.
They are pursuing proceedings in Hangzhou seeking to enforce alleged trust and fiduciary obligations over the HSBC account assets, while Kelly Zong disputes the validity of those claims and denies wrongdoing.
