Herbert Smith Freehills review the Hong Kong High Court’s decision in Leung Kwok Hung trading as Kaiser (M&E) Decoration Engineering Company v. Johnson Controls Hong Kong Limited [HCCT 56/2017], where the Court granted the Defendant’s application under s.20 of the Arbitration Ordinance, staying Court proceedings in favour of arbitration. In doing so, the Court noted that the principles for granting such a stay were clear and had not been disputed by the parties.
The authors observe that the Court’s decision to defer to the arbitral tribunal, in light of a valid and applicable arbitration agreement, accords with both the letter and the spirit of the Arbitration Ordinance, and the Hong Kong courts’ consistent refusal to interfere in any dispute that is subject to an arbitration agreement.
