Liu Estate (Re), 2021 ABQB 963

Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta Citation: Liu Estate (Re), 2021 ABQB 963 Date: 20211206 Docket : SE03 156557 Registry: Edmonton Court File Number SE03 156557 Court Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta (Surrogate Matter) Judicial Centre Edmonton Estate Name Jiasen Liu Applicant (Plaintiff) Lina Zhang Respondents (Defendant) Harry Yi Liu, Alto Liu, and Gerry Liu _______________________________________________________ Endorsement of the Honourable Mr. Justice M. J. Lema _______________________________________________________ A.

Introduction [ 1 ] The applicant seeks interim support from an estate pending determination of her support claim. [ 2 ] The respondents object and also seek more information on perceived-as-incomplete and refused undertaking arising from cross-examination of the applicant. [ 3 ] I find no interim support payable and direct certain information be provided. B. Interim support

[ 4 ] The matters raised in Ms. Zhang's amended amended application for maintenance and support, or at least issues 1-5, are collectively beyond the scope of an ordinary Chambers application. [ 5 ] Concerning the application for interim maintenance and support, the evidence is insufficient, at least at present, to demonstrate financial need, which I assume is a precondition to such an award being made: • I infer from the common-ground evidence of Ms.

Zhang's travels that she must have a source or sources of income beyond her Chinese-pension income or significant assets on which she can draw (or at least has been able to draw) or both to fund such travels, with the present evidence showing that Mr. Liu did not underwrite them or at least not to any material extent; • Ms. Zhang confirmed that she has funds in China.

Per her July 21, 2021 update affidavit (para 7): "When I left China in August 2020, I did not anticipate the pandemic would get worse[,] and I did not bring enough funds with me." As well, in this day and age, her claim of having to travel to China to access her funds is inadequately explained; • Ms. Zhang's evidence concerning the property owned or formerly owned by her in China is vague (para 9 of her update affidavit).

While she says she "sold [it] years ago" and that the "sale proceeds were used to purchase another property that [her] son and his family now reside [in]" and that the property is "in [her] daughter-in-law and [her] grand-daughter's names now", she does not address whether she continues to have beneficial ownership of that property or some portion of it. I have no evidence of Chinese property law to the effect that property in the name(

s) of another person or other person is necessarily owned by that person or those persons beneficially (or otherwise); • Ms. Zhang swore in her update affidavit (again, sworn July 21, 2021) that "[she] cannot last until [opposite counsel] completes questioning", but she presented no "updated update" evidence at the recent chambers application i.e. she did not explain how she has been able to cover her necessary expenses over the last four months. More generally, she has not adequately explained how she has been able to cover such expenses since her return to Canada in summer 2020; • Ms.

Zhang has not provided sufficient evidence of her Chinese pension since 2018 (as discussed further below); • she may not have provided sufficient evidence of her WeChat Small Change (possibly also known as AliPay) account activity (see further below); and • she did not provide any evidence of an inability to receive financial support, interim or otherwise, from her family in China (or otherwise). C.

Undertaking responses [ 6 ] Concerning the application for further or better answers to certain undertakings and to compel answers to certain refused undertakings: • concerning #3 (current and previous Chinese passports, back to 2010): Ms.

Zhang answered (in part) that "she does not have her previous Chinese passport in her possession." She is hereby directed to advise whether her previous passport(s) (back to 2010) still exist (to her knowledge), if not what happened to it or them (e.g. lost, destroyed or otherwise), and if it or they still exist, whether she can obtain possession of it or them and, if not, why not; • concerning #6 (travel-related documents): concerning the subset of documents not provided because they "are in Chinese and the quality of the documents is not good", she is directed to provide them nonetheless. (As for whether they should be translated, see further below); • concerning #8 (pension information): she responded that her pension "was still administered by her previous employer ... [and] never transferred to a [certain government bureau." She is directed to obtain the requested information from her previous employer; • concerning #13 and #14 (WeChat Small Change account information): she provided information largely in Chinese.

I cannot tell whether it is the information requested or not (see further below on translation); • concerning #20 (travel information): I cannot tell whether this information was provided, in whole or in part, in response to undertaking #18. If undertaking #20 sought information beyond that requested in #18 or, in any case, beyond that answered on #18, she is directed to provide it; • concerning #21 (ownership of Chinese property): as noted above, Ms. Zhang did not address beneficial ownership of the property, which she is now directed to address.

If her evidence is that one or more other persons are the beneficial owners, she is directed to provide an explanation of any proceeds received by her or for her benefit and, if no proceeds were received, to explain why the property was given away; • concerning refused #9 (provide missing page 1 to certain banking statement): she is directed to take the necessary steps to obtain and provide a copy of that page; • concerning refused #11 (pension information): I believe this is addressed in the direction on #8 above. If not, I invite Ms.

Wang's counsel to so advise, and I will consider what additional direction, if any, should be made; and • concerning refused #15 and #16 (certain account information): I believe this is addressed above (re #13 and #14). If not, same invitation to Ms. Wang's counsel. D. Translation [ 7 ] On Ms. Wang's request that Ms. Zhang arrange for "in Chinese only" documents in support of her application to be translated

into English and to cover the translation costs, I did not receive any, or at least not adequate, submissions from either party on this aspect. For instance, I do not know, or do not recall, if Ms. Wang or others privy to her are able to read and understand the documents in question. I invite follow-up submissions from each side, via email, on this point, to be provided by close of business on Friday, December 3rd. E. Next steps [ 8 ] I direct that Ms.

Zhang provide the responses and information directed above by December 17, 2021. [ 9 ] If the parties are unable to agree on next steps (i.e. once that information is provided), such as any further cross-examination or the scheduling of a special-chambers application to address issues beyond interim support and undertakings, they can contact me via my assistant (Stacy Adams) with their separate proposals, and I will provide directions. Heard in chambers on the 22 nd day of November, 2021 . Dated at Edmonton, Alberta this 6 th day of December, 2021. M. J. Lema J.C.Q.B.A.

Appearances: Monica Wang Duke Law Office for the interim-support applicant (undertakings respondent) Francoise H. Belzil Biamonte LLP for the interim-support respondent (undertakings applicant) Tracy King The Estate House for the Personal Representative