Douglas Todd: The saga of how one family's riches in China turned into roughly $60 million worth of property in Metro Vancouver comes to light through a bitter lawsuit

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The saga of how one extended family transformed their wealth from China into roughly $60 million worth of property in Canada, specifically in Metro Vancouver, has come to light in a lawsuit that has been working its way through B.C. courts.

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The case, presided over by B.C. Supreme Court Justice Gordon Funt, tells a remarkable story that blends the trans-national transfer of huge sums out of China with the yearning of migrating families for a more secure lifestyle abroad.

The tale, according to court documents, includes the once-hyperactive housing markets in both China and Canada, “gunny sacks of cash,” tax evasion, “unreliable” witnesses, Communist Party corruption scandals, the seizure of dozens of properties, China’s one-child policy, Beijing’s famous Opera House, and the allure of Canadian “tolerance,” as well as of its private schools.

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The multi-faceted narrative has come to light only because a wealthy Chinese family, the Zhangs, who had made........

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