United Daily News and TVBS reported that Chang Yung-fa’s foundation asked Taipei District Court to add seven heirs to its NT$1 billion estate claim, putting his charitable pledge at the center of a family dispute.
The foundation initially filed suit against four executors of Chang’s will, United Daily News reported. At an Oct. 22 hearing, it asked for the heirs to become primary defendants and sought payment from the estate, according to United Daily News and TVBS.
In a May statement, the foundation said Chang had promised to donate the wealth he had left when he died. His 2012 autobiography also records a pledge to give his remaining money to the foundation. The foundation said it filed suit after learning that some estate assets had been transferred to an account jointly controlled by the will’s executors.
The executors’ lawyers argued that Chang’s statements did not establish a binding gift agreement, TVBS reported. Lawyers for Chang Kuo-wei, one of the heirs, argued that the will left the estate to him and that Evergreen-related companies would continue supporting the foundation, according to TVBS and Liberty Times.
The executors’ lawyers also said real estate had been registered under the heirs’ joint ownership, while some movable assets and accrued interest remained in an executor-controlled account as other inheritance proceedings continued, United Daily News and TVBS reported.
Taiwan’s Supreme Court upheld Chang’s sealed will in August 2024 after a challenge to its validity. That ruling addressed the will; the foundation’s separate case asks whether Chang’s pledge can be enforced as a donation. If the foundation succeeds, the requested NT$1 billion would go to charitable purposes, according to the foundation’s May statement.
United Daily News, TVBS and Liberty Times reported that Taipei District Court closed arguments and scheduled a ruling for Nov. 29 at 10 p.m. ET (03:00 UTC Nov. 30), or Nov. 30 at 11 a.m. in Taipei.
