Serinah Ho
Thursday, August 12, 2010
"Tutor King" Karson Oten Fan Karno, facing court actions involving almost HK$35 million, is on the brink of bankruptcy.
Fan - better known as "Tutor King" K Oten and one of Hong Kong's highest- earning English tutors - yesterday made the bombshell announcement that he has decided to apply for bankruptcy to terminate his debt.
"My son has just been born and I don't want to get entangled further in a lawsuit," he said.
"I am not only my family's pillar, but also father of a child. I believe I should put aside my personal honor and be responsible for my family."
He said he can no longer afford to pay for lawyers, adding: "I have been fighting alone with this big group [King's Glory Education Centre]."
Fan, in his 30s, starts a new job today with Cantab Education tutorial center.
He was ordered last year to pay King's Glory - his former employer - HK$8.87 million in compensation for breach of contract and recently lost an appeal to overturn the judgment.
Fan is also being sued by another tutorial center and was arrested for copyright infringement in another case, although he has not been charged.
In July last year, the Court of First Instance ordered Fan to hand over HK$8.87 million to King's Glory for breach of a five-year contract signed in 2003. He failed in his appeal in June.
He also faces litigation by Modern Education, which terminated his contract in January this year and sued him for more than HK$26 million.
According to Modern Education, Fan printed large advertisements on buses without consent from the company and falsely claimed to be "chief English tutor."
In May, Fan was arrested for suspected infringement of copyright of public examination papers along with seven others in a raid by customs officers on 14 tutorial centers run by Advanced Contemporary Education Centre.
Fan denied responsibility and said it is Advanced Contemporary that should clear copyright with the Examinations and Assessment Authority, not the tutors.
A Customs and Excise Department spokeswoman said Fan's case is still under investigation and refused to comment on his announcement of bankruptcy.
A lawyer, who would not be named, said that under the Official Receiver's Office, bankruptcy applicants have to execute the repayment order for four years.
The repayment depends on the applicant's financial ability.
"The receiver has to ensure a reasonable standard of living for both the applicant and the applicant's family," he said.
"The repayment amount, calculated based on the applicant's salary and existing assets, is the amount left after deducting reasonable living expenses."
The repayment could be waived after four years if the applicant performs well during the bankruptcy period, but uncooperative applicants may be ordered to prolong the bankruptcy period to a maximum of four years.
During the bankruptcy period, applicants are ordered to sell their cars, flats and other assets.
"In many cases, applicants would have to move to a simple flat, and not be allowed to live in a luxurious environment, or use luxurious goods," the lawyer said.
Hong Kong 'tutor king' Karson Oten Fan Karno, known to the city by the pseudonym of 'K. OTen', applied for  following a failed appeal. He was sued by the   and  for breach of contract and was sued for 8.87 million and $26 million respectively.

Karno is a well-known but controversial  tutor who taught under Modern Education and King's Glory who claimed to have 9,000 students at the peak of his career. In his notes he used words which some parents considered coarse, and he reportedly used profanity in class. Modern Education accused him of printing  without authorisation and lying by saying that he was the chief English tutor. He has also been accused previously of copyright infringement, but was not charged. A former student said that he 'used slang in class, taught dating skills in notes, and was just like the students' friend.'

Karno said that he is not only his family's pillar, but is also a father. He explained that he could not afford to pay for lawyers while fighting alone against a large corporation. He decided to stake his reputation for the sake of his family by applying for bankruptcy. On Wednesday, he signed a contract with Contab Education as the chief English tutor and would continue to provide lessons twice a week. He also urged King's Glory to patch up the monetary quarrels and strive to improve the city's education instead.

A tutorial school sector worker stated that the application was expected, but feared that the incident will make the students think that one does not have to be responsible for one's own actions. He went on to say that the incident may give the impression that tutors cannot be trusted, and that the image of the tutorial industry may be greatly affected.