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Lawyers urge regulator action on Apex deal
Lawyers have called for securities regulators to assess whether a criminal investigation is needed into Hong Kong conglomerate Cheung Kong's sales of hotel suites in Kwai Chung despite an agreement with the developer to cancel the sales.
Hong Kong: hotel sale raises legal issue
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The lawyers raised the issue after it was reported that the Department of Justice - which has the final say over prosecutions - had not been consulted, according to the South China Morning Post.
The Securities and Futures Commission and Cheung Kong announced they had reached an agreement last week regarding the cancellation of sales of all 360 hotel rooms in Apex Horizon and refund deposits along with interest and legal expenses.
Collective investments
In an investigation, the SFC said the deals could have breached laws relating to unauthorised collective investments. However it declined to reveal if it would launch a criminal investigation.
Eric Cheung Tat-ming, assistant law professor at the University of Hong Kong, told the newspaper: ‘The SFC can go it alone with its lawyers, should it decide to prosecute. But if it wants to drop it, it must first consult the DoJ, which has the final say under the Basic Law.’
