Fong
Fong v. E. W. Bank
Opinion
lead Opinion
Tucher, J.
*226 Plaintiff Sheldon Fong is an octogenarian real estate investor who sought to help some younger friends establish a real estate business. He borrowed money in his own name and stood behind two loans that he helped the new business procure from defendant East West Bank (Bank). When some of these transactions ended badly, Fong brought this action, alleging conversion and financial abuse of an elder under *840 Welfare and Institutions Code section 15610.30 (Elder Abuse Act). The trial court granted the Bank's motion for summary judgment. We find a triable issue of material fact as to one of the challenged conversions and therefore reverse the grant of summary judgment.
FACTS AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
Except as otherwise noted, the following facts are undisputed.
Fong was born in China in 1931, and moved to San Francisco as a young man. He never received a degree, but learned various construction and building trades, operated his own building maintenance company, and invested profitably in San Francisco real estate. By 2010, he owned more than 20 properties, encumbered by mortgages from various banks but representing close to $20 million in equity.