Date:    02 October 2026 (Friday)   Time: 2:30pm–5:45pm   Language: English  Level: Elementary

Speaker:          Stephen Gallagher, Professor of Practice in Law, Associate Dean (Academic & Student Affairs), the  Faculty of Law, The Chinese University of Hong Kong

Lawyer CPD / ACCA CPD / SFC CPT / Insurers’ CPD Pts:  3 points                 Fee: HK$1,800

Highlights:

This three-hour seminar will consider the disputes which have arisen and may arise with regard to digital property, and the actions and remedies that may be available to reconcile them. Disputes involving digital property have so far involved issues of contract, property, theft and fraud. The evidential processes, actions and remedies available to assist in reconciling these disputes and obtaining compensation for or recovery of missing digital property have been considered in the light of one important consideration- is digital property really property. Concerns have been raised that certain forms of digital property should be categorized as currencies or even non-property. This seminar will consider these issues and disputes, and consider whether missing digital property should be identified as property and subject to the consequences of such identification. This will include the ability to use evidential processes such as tracing to identify substitutions, and orders such as injunctions to freeze digital property in the hands of any possessor. The seminar will consider whether equitable remedies such as the constructive trust may be suitable to effect recovery, or even if common law actions such as unjust enrichment may be developed to assist in the recovery of new forms of property.  Some of the topics which will be covered in this course include:

  • What disputes have arisen with regard to digital property? What are digital assets and digital property?
  • Is digital property really property? Should cryptocurrencies be considered currencies? Are non-fungible tokens merely data??
  • Can digital properties be traced? Can digital property be the subject matter of a constructive trust;
  • Can digital property be recovered by an action for unjust enrichment?

 

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Stephen Gallagher

Stephen Gallagher, Professor of Practice in Law, Associate Dean (Academic & Student Affairs), the Faculty of Law, The Chinese University of Hong Kong. Steven Gallagher was awarded a first class LL.B. He was called to the Bar of England and Wales in 2006. Steven teaches the equity and trusts courses for undergraduate and postgraduate students. Steven also teaches a course on art, antiquities, cultural heritage and the law on the LLM programme. Steven has presented continuing professional development courses for solicitors in Hong Kong on many topics associated with equity. Steven’s research interests include equity and the law of trusts, cultural heritage law and legal history. In September 2021, Steven published the book, “Protecting Built Heritage in Hong Kong: what heritage and what protection?”