Read the full judgment text of FAMV35/2012 on BabelCite. This Court of Final Appeal judgment was delivered on 18 December 2012 before Chief Justice Ma, Mr Justice Chan PJ, Mr Justice Tang PJ.
Ancillary relief – child maintenance – variation – mediation agreement – leave to appeal – question of great general or public importance – equality principle – LKW v DD (2010) 13 HKCFAR 537 – The Husband sought leave to appeal to the Court of Final Appeal against the Court of Appeal's decision restoring the original maintenance order of $27,500 per child per month. The original order was based on a Mediation Agreement which provided for review upon significant changes to the Husband's salary. The Husband ceased work in 2009 and applied for variation; the Family Court reduced the amount, but the Court of Appeal restored it. The Court of Final Appeal dismissed the application for leave, holding that none of the four grounds raised questions of great, general or public importance. The first ground seeking to extend the equality principle to child maintenance did not arise given the agreement and was fact-specific. The remaining grounds were also entirely fact-specific. The 'or otherwise' ground had no merit. Notice of motion dismissed.
Legal issues: Whether the equality principle applies to child maintenance
Outcome: Application for leave to appeal dismissed.