Jocelyn Tsao
Partner
Jocelyn is a partner in the divorce and family team.
Jocelyn started her family law practice 15 years ago in 2007, and advises on all aspects of matrimonial law including divorce, prenuptial agreements, child care and custody and financial disputes. She advises husbands, wives, and unmarried partners. She is an experienced advocate in court as well as a seasoned negotiator in mediations.
Jocelyn has been involved with some of the most high profile cases to come before the courts in Hong Kong as part of a team involving high net worth individuals with diverse and complex issues. She has considerable experience in divorce cases involving trusts, corporate structures and injunctions, as well as complex cross-jurisdictional divorces which requires co-ordinating with other solicitors overseas and experts, as well as leading counsel in Hong Kong and London.
Her cases have recently been concerned with international child abduction, issues of jurisdiction, financial discovery and dealing with the preliminary issue of beneficial ownership, with one notable case involving two famous banking families in Hong Kong.
Jocelyn is passionate about cases involving children’s interests, custody, care and control, and has successfully dealt with a number of child relocation cases, with expertise on Hague Convention cases involving child abduction before the High Court.
From 2020-2021, Jocelyn is recognised as a Recommended Lawyer in Doyle’s Hong Kong Family & Divorce Lawyers Ranking and rated as a Future Star in Benchmark Litigation in the practice areas of Family and Matrimonial. She is also recognised as an Up and Coming practitioner in Chambers and Partners in 2021 and 2022.
Track record
Admissions
Publications
Memberships
Talks
Advised a very high profile client when she achieved the largest ever award from a court in Hong Kong, namely HK$1.4 billion. This case involved issues relating to s17 applications as well as consideration as to whether or not shares in a business of considerable valuable should form part of the marital assets. It also considered the impact of corporate documents in the context of divorce following the landmark Supreme Court decision in England of Prest v Petrodel. This matter subsequently went to the Court of Appeal and was reported as TCWF v LKKS (No. 1) [2014] HKFLR 1; [2014] 1 HKLRD 896.
Responsible for a complex case involving a wealthy family in Hong Kong in particular successfully applying for detailed specific discovery and running a preliminary case to determine beneficial ownership: LCJWY v LCKS [2015] HKEC 1403 and [2016] HKEC 789.
Acted for the applicant in a highly acrimonious case involving custody, care and control and access on the issue of custody, care and control, and access. She successfully secured sole custody, care and control and restricted access to the father, with costs. Represented and advised client against the father’s false criminal allegations of child abuse: CCAIH and CGCL FCMP122/2013.
Hong Kong, 2009
‘Enforcement and recognition of matrimonial orders between Hong Kong and the Mainland’, Feb 2022, co-author
_’Parental choices over vaccinations and how it relates to custody in Hong Kong’_- Jan 2022, co-author
_’Parental rights for same-sex partners in Hong Kong and Singapore’_, Dec 2021, co-author
Hong Kong Family Law Association
Law Society of Hong Kong
‘Protecting ones’ wealth in the event of a divorce’, Dec 2021
‘Pro Bono Hong Kong Seminar on Family Law ‘- Pro Bono, Nov 2021
‘Divorce across multiple jurisdictions’ and ‘The Protection of Assets in Trusts’, Transcontinental Trusts Asia Conference - March 2015
En resumen sobre mí
People often say they have Monday blues, but I never feel that way. I love what I do.
Educación
Idiomas
- Cantonese
- English