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Issue #41/2020 01 October 2020

New This Week Case(s) of the Week LIM CHOON SENG v. LIM POH KWEE [2020] 9 CLJ 1 PP v. TENGKU ADNAN TENGKU MANSOR [2020] 9 CLJ 30 JUDICIAL QUOTES  Latest Cases Legal Network Series CLJ 2020 Volume 9 (Part 1) Articles LNS Article(s) Legislation Highlights Principal Acts Amending Acts PU(A) PU(B) Legislation Alert

LIM CHOON SENG v. LIM POH KWEE [2020] 9 CLJ 1
FEDERAL COURT, PUTRAJAYA
AZAHAR MOHAMED CJ (MALAYA); ROHANA YUSUF FCJ; ABANG ISKANDAR FCJ;
NALLINI PATHMANATHAN FCJ; ABDUL RAHMAN SEBLI FCJ
[CIVIL APPEAL NO: 02(F)-16-03-2019(J)]
29 JULY 2020
[2020] CLJ JT(6)

CIVIL PROCEDURE: Appeal - Notice of appeal - Procedure - Appeal to Court of Appeal - Treatment of test case on appeal vis-a-vis other related cases - Whether separate notices of appeal should have been filed - Whether existence of agreement between parties to be bound by decision in test case could exempt other parties from lodging their own notices of appeal against decision - Whether liabilities separate and distinct - Whether Court of Appeal has jurisdiction to set aside decision in absence of any appeal by other parties - Whether no order could be made for or against or bind non-party - Rules of the Court of Appeal 1994

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PP v. TENGKU ADNAN TENGKU MANSOR [2020] 9 CLJ 30
FEDERAL COURT, PUTRAJAYA
NALLINI PATHMANATHAN FCJ; VERNON ONG LAM KIAT FCJ; ABDUL RAHMAN SEBLI FCJ
[CRIMINAL APPEAL NO: 05(L)-18-02-2020(W)]
17 JULY 2020

CRIMINAL PROCEDURE: Judge - Recusal - Application for - Joint trial for persons giving and accepting bribe - Co-accused pleaded guilty - Allegation that trial judge heard and recorded facts of case involving co-accused and co-accused agreed to become prosecution witness - Whether there was 'real danger of bias' on part of trial judge in hearing case involving co-accused who had not pleaded guilty - Whether guilty plea of co-accused evidence against other accused who had not pleaded guilty - Whether trial judge ought to recuse himself

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“The concept of secret trust, which is part of the law of trust and is governed by the rules of equity and the common law of England, is applicable in Malaysia subject to the proviso to s. 3(1) of the Civil Law Act 1956 unless there is an explicit abrogation, variation, restriction or modification by written law.”

“The concept is statutorily applicable in Malaysia; what is apparent is that the Malaysian Wills Act 1959 or other statutes or Acts of Parliament do not explicitly abrogate the application of secret trust. The proviso to s. 3(1)(a) of the Civil Law Act 1956 too does not exclude the applicability of the law on trust and secret trust. This is because the court upholds secret trust to prevent fraud on a testator and the rules of equity are applied to compel the trustee under a will to fulfil his promises to the testator.”

“In our considered view, there is no cogent reason to 'abrogate' secret trust in Malaysia. There are circumstances in which a testator creates 'secret trust' to facilitate the intention to provide for certain parties.” – per Mohd Zawawi Salleh FCJ in Chin Jhin Thien & Anor v. Chin Huat Yean & Anor [2020] 7 CLJ 137

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Legal Network Series

[2019] 1 LNS 456	LIBERTY EQUITY SDN BHD lwn. KETUA PENGARAH TANAH DAN GALIAN, SELANGOR DARUL EHSAN & YANG LAIN Alamat yang didaftarkan di dalam Sistem Pungutan Hasil Tanah ('SPHT') merupakan alamat yang terakhir diketahui dan penyerahan notis tuntutan berkanun 6A Kanun Tanah Negara 1965 di alamat yang didaftarkan di dalam SPHT tersebut adalah teratur. Ia adalah tanggungjawab pemilik untuk memaklumkan berkenaan sebarang penukaran alamat bagi membolehkan bil cukai dan sebarang notis dapat diserahkan ke alamat yang betul. UNDANG-UNDANG TANAH: Pelucuthakan - Kesahihan - Tanah dilucuthakan akibat kegagalan pemilik membayar cukai tanah - Penyerahan notis tuntutan berkanun 6A Kanun Tanah Negara 1965 ('Notis 6A') - Sama ada penyerahan Notis 6A di alamat sepertimana yang dinyatakan di dalam Sistem Pungutan Hasil Tanah adalah sempurna - Sama ada ia adalah tanggungjawab pemilik untuk memaklumkan berkenaan pertukaran alamat - Sama ada pemilik boleh mempertikaikan penyerahan Notis 6A setelah notis tersebut telah diterima olehnya melalui pos AR berdaftar - Kanun Tanah Negara 1965, ss. 97, 98 & 431 UNDANG-UNDANG TANAH: Pelucuthakan - Kesahihan - Tanah dilucuthakan akibat kegagalan membayar cukai tanah - Kelewatan - Tindakan diambil 3 tahun selepas dimaklumkan berkenaan pelucuthakan - Sama ada tindakan plaintif adalah di luar tempoh masa yang ditetapkan di bawah ss 418 dan 134(1) Kanun Tanah Negara 1965 - Sama ada plaintif seharusnya merayu dalam tempoh masa 3 bulan setelah keputusan dimaklumkan Bagi pihak perayu - Nahvinah Selvaraj; T/n AJ Ariffin, Yeo & Harpal Bagi pihak responden - Nurul Husna Lucyia & Zulhary Abdul Rashid; Kamar Penasihat Undang-Undang
[2019] 1 LNS 463	NELSON YESU lwn. ASMADI MAT & SATU LAGI Kelewatan dalam penyerahan notis rayuan yang disebabkan oleh kecuaian kerani peguamcara yang terlepas pandang merupakan alasan yang remeh untuk mahkamah menggunakan budi bicara untuk mempertimbangkan suatu permohonan perlanjutan masa penyampaian notis rayuan. PROSEDUR SIVIL: Rayuan - Notis rayuan - Perlanjutan masa - Kelewatan hampir 5 hari untuk menyampaikan notis rayuan - Kecuaian penyampaian notis rayuan - Kerani peguamcara terlepas pandang - Budi bicara mahkamah - Sama ada sebab dan keadaan yang menyebabkan kepada berlakunya 'terlepas pandang' telah dijelaskan di dalam afidavit peguamcara dan kerani peguamcara - Sama ada terdapat sebab dan alasan yang baik dan munasabah mengenai kelewatan untuk Mahkamah menggunakan budi bicaranya untuk membenarkan perlanjutan masa - Sama ada A. 55 k. 5(2) Kaedah-Kaedah Mahkamah 2012 merupakan peruntukan yang mandatori yang perlu dipatuhi - Sama ada alasan 'terlepas pandang' adalah remeh  Bagi pihak perayu - C Sivasankar; T/n GK Sritharan & Co Bagi pihak responden - Idza Hajar; T/n Zul Rafique & Partners
[2019] 1 LNS 466	MINES RESORT SDN BHD (DALAM PENGGULUNGAN) lwn. JMB MINES-HERITAGE RESIDENTS ASSOCIATION Injunksi interlokutori harus dibenarkan untuk mengekalkan status quo yang asal dengan mengaktifkan kad akses iaitu keadaan sebelum daripada semua pertikaian antara pihak-pihak terjadi. Arahan untuk pengaktifan semula kad akses dan selanjutnya untuk tidak menyahaktifkan kad akses sementara menunggu pelupusan tindakan adalah berbentuk menghalang sifatnya untuk mengekalkan status quo. Injunksi interlokutori wajar diberikan apabila ganti rugi adalah tidak memadai untuk membayar kerugian perniagaan yang dialami plaintif akibat sekatan kad akses. PROSEDUR SIVIL: Injunksi - Injunksi interlokutori - Pengekalan status quo - Badan pengurusan bersama menyekat akses pemaju ke beberapa unit kediaman yang dimilikinya dengan menyahaktifkan kad akses akibat tunggakan caj penyelenggaraan - Sama ada segala keperluan undang-undang di bawah A. 29 k. 1(2A) Kaedah-Kaedah Mahkamah 2012 telah dipenuhi - Sama ada terdapat persoalan yang serius untuk dibicarakan - Sama ada status quo perlu dikekalkan sehingga pelupusan penuh tindakan - Sama ada status quo yang asal adalah ketika kad akses masih aktif dan boleh digunakan untuk mengakses ke unit pemaju - Sama ada arahan mengaktifkan kad ases adalah berbentuk mandatori atau menghalang sifatnya - Sama ada ganti rugi adalah memadai untuk dibayar jika sekatan kas akses akan menjejaskan perniagaan pemaju Bagi pihak plaintif - Vinesh Mathew Varghese; T/n Teja Singh Penesar & Co Bagi pihak defendan - Ng Yew Huoi & Nesamalar Kannan; T/n Yew Huoi, How & Associates
[2019] 1 LNS 824	BANK PERTANIAN MALAYSIA BERHAD v. STOCK HARVEST SDN BHD The onus lies upon the caveator to show proof that it has a caveatable interest over the land. The mere existence of a deed of assignment or such other contractual interest and issuance of consent to transfer land by the state authority does not fall within the legal ambit of caveatable interest under s. 323 of National Land Code. A caveat should be removed when there are no sufficient grounds in law to support maintenance of the caveat. LAND LAW: Caveat - Private caveat - Removal of caveat - Caveatable interest - Application by chargee - Caveator entered into sale and purchase agreement and deed of assignment with chargor - Whether caveator has caveatable interest over land - Whether mere contractual interest accrued from a deed of assignment could create a caveatable interest - Whether issuance of consent to transfer by state authority could create caveatable interest - What amounts to caveatable interest - Whether there were sufficient grounds in law to support maintenance of caveat - National Land Code, s. 323 WORDS AND PHRASES: 'any right to such title or interest' - Meaning of - Section 323(1) of National Land Code - Caveatable interest - Whether would mean personal or contractual rights For the plaintiff - Ratha Govindasamy; M/s Skrine & Co For the defendant - Zainal Narudin; M/s Fai Zainal & Co
[2019] 1 LNS 878	DAN-BUNKERING (SINGAPORE) PTE LTD v. THE SHIP OR VESSEL "PDZ MEWAH" (IMO NO.: 9064009) OF PORT KLANG & ANOR A party who has willingly and voluntarily submitted itself to the jurisdiction of the court by intervening in an admiralty action in rem thus concedes that there are questions and issues to be tried between the parties and is therefore estopped from claiming that it has been wrongly made a party to the said action. Hence, the intervening party should remain a necessary and proper party in the action for effective and complete adjudication of the dispute between parties. CIVIL PROCEDURE: Parties - Misjoinder - Admiralty action in rem - Application by 2nd defendant to withdraw as a party - 2nd defendant on its volition had earlier made itself a party by intervening - Whether 2nd defendant had willingly and voluntarily submitted itself to jurisdiction of admiralty court - Whether 2nd defendant agreed that issues to be adjudged in rem action will directly affect its interest - Whether 2nd defendant conceded there were issues to be tried - Whether 2nd defendant should be estopped from insisting leave be obtained by plaintiff from winding up court - Whether 2nd defendant should remain a party to the action For the plaintiff - Onn Thian Seng & Wiwin Abdul Kahar; M/s T S Oon & Partners For the 1st respondent - Kunamony Kandiah; M/s Mohd Latip & Associates For the 2nd defendant - Lim Wei Han; M/s The Law Office of Hann

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CLJ 2020 Volume 9 (Part 1)

The Court of Appeal herein cannot in law effectively reverse the separate orders of the High Court made in separate but similar proceedings dealing with separate defendants when what the appellate court had before it was only a single appeal lodged as a test case by one of the defendants, and not separate appeals lodged by the defendants separately. The mere existence of an agreement between the defendants to be bound by the decision in the test case cannot in law exempt the other defendants from lodging their own notices of appeal against the High Court decision, what more when there was no order or direction by the High Court to consolidate the suits or treat them as one proceeding; to each his own liability.
Lim Choon Seng v. Lim Poh Kwee [2020] 9 CLJ 1 [FC]

• SUBJECT
• CORAM
• COUNSEL

The guilty plea of a co-accused in a joint trial cannot be used as evidence to the detriment of the other co-accused who did not plead guilty. Criminal justice guarantees the fair trial of the remaining co-accused and demands that the facts pertaining to the charge be adduced and proven afresh against him. The presiding judge hearing the joint trial must thus consider the case against the latter separately and independently, and decide the same based on the set of evidence against him. The other co-accused, by not pleading guilty, has a sacrosanct right to be heard and to defend himself.
PP v. Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor [2020] 9 CLJ 30 [FC]

• SUBJECT
• CORAM
• COUNSEL

The application for leave to challenge the validity of the appointment of the Chief Minister of Sabah ought to be allowed as the questions of law posed were of great constitutional effect and should be resolved in order to give certainty to the law. The applicant too had fulfilled the threshold as provided under s. 96 of the Courts of Judicature Act 1964. The dissolution of the State Legislative Assembly, likewise, had not rendered the issue sought to be resolved and determined by the apex court academic.
Tan Sri Musa Hj Aman v. Tun Datuk Seri Panglima Hj Juhar Hj Mahiruddin & Anor And Another Application [2020] 9 CLJ 44 [FC]

• SUBJECT
• CORAM
• COUNSEL

Tuntutan-tuntutan pemilik berdaftar sebidang tanah untuk penyerahan milikan kosong tanah tersebut kepada mereka tidak perlu diperiksa lebih lanjut melalui perbicaraan penuh untuk menyangkal hak milik mereka apabila penghuni tanpa izin tanah tersebut gagal membuktikan beliau adalah pemilik benefisial tanah tersebut, serta gagal mengemukakan keterangan untuk menunjukkan terdapat penipuan atau fraud terhadap dokumen-dokumen pindah milik tanah tersebut kepada pemilik-pemilik berdaftar. Apabila tiada isu untuk dibicarakan, permohonan pemilik-pemilik berdaftar untuk penghakiman terus di bawah A. 14 Kaedah-Kaedah Mahkamah 2012 harus dibenarkan.
Lee Choon Beng & Yang Lain lwn. Lee Keng Wang & Yang Lain [2020] 9 CLJ 84 [CA]

• SUBJECT
• CORAM
• COUNSEL

A house purchaser in a housing development project who came to be such a purchaser through a novation agreement executed with a previous purchaser is entitled to declare as null and void a charge and a lienholder's caveat as entered into between the previous purchaser and the housing developer prior to the said novation agreement and without his consent. As a novatee, the new purchaser has stepped into the shoes of the original purchaser and is hence entitled to all rights, title and interest as so granted to the latter under the statutory sale and purchase agreement (SPA). Such a charge and caveat, if permitted to prevail, would contravene the Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Act 1996 and its 1989 Regulations, as the SPA makes it clear that the developer shall not at any time after the execution of the SPA subject the land to any encumbrances without the prior consent of the purchaser.
Ng Pak Mei v. Sierra Delima Development Sdn Bhd & Anor [2020] 9 CLJ 101 [CA]

• SUBJECT
• CORAM
• COUNSEL

The doctrine of purposive construction of contract entails that, in the construction of a contractual term, there must be ascribed to the words a meaning that would make good commercial or business sense. The duty of the court is to construe the words used in the contract to give business efficacy to the bargain between the parties, rather than to strike down the words as bearing no meaning or an obtuse literal meaning. Every word used in the contract must be presumed to be used by the parties intentionally and for a purpose and the words must be given their plain and ordinary meaning. If the terms of the words used can be given a meaning that would accord with the purpose for which the term is contained in the contract, then a purposive construction must be made to give effect to it.
Parkwell Departmental Store Sdn Bhd v. ICSD Ventures Sdn Bhd [2020] 9 CLJ 107 [CA]

• SUBJECT
• CORAM
• COUNSEL

The company, having utilised the loan and publicly acknowledged defaulting on the repayment of the loan, and further having announced that the lenders had the right to transfer the pledged shares in the event the company was unable to make repayment, had then sought to renege on the same by filing ex-parte applications for injunctive reliefs based only on the presumption under the Moneylenders Act 1951 that the lenders were carrying on the business of moneylending because interests were charged to their advances. Clearly, the company had not come to court with clean hands and the applications for the injunctive reliefs were not made in good faith nor bona fide. The balance of convenience favoured the lenders as, inter alia, the transfer of the pledged shares was purely a recovery action to recoup the sum that was disbursed to the company.
Scomi Group Bhd v. Gelombang Global Sdn Bhd & Anor And Another Application [2020] 9 CLJ 122 [HC]

• SUBJECT
• CORAM
• COUNSEL

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LNS Article(s)

1. SEXUAL HARASSMENT AT THE WORKPLACE: 3 CIVIL PROTECTIONS FOR VICTIMS ^{[Read excerpt]}
   by Cynthia Lee Mei Fei* Amanda Pang** [2020] 1 LNS(A) cii

[2020] 1 LNS(A) cii



MALAYSIA

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SEXUAL HARASSMENT AT THE WORKPLACE: 3 CIVIL PROTECTIONS FOR VICTIMS

by
Cynthia Lee Mei Fei*
Amanda Pang**

The long anticipated Sexual Harassment Bill which is expected to be tabled in Parliament this year has met with several delays. The Bill was intended to provide a more effective mechanism for victims of sexual harassment to lodge complaints. In the meantime, victims of sexual harassment may be relieved to know that filing a police report is not the only option available. Below are 3 current protections offered by the law to victims of sexual harassment:

1. The Employment Act imposes employers with a statutory obligation to inquire into sexual harassment complaints at the workplace

Under Section 81B of the Employment Act 1955 (Revised 1981) ("EA"), employers are required to inquire into a sexual harassment complaint raised in the workplace. An employer who refuses to inquire into a complaint must have reasons for his refusal and he must inform the complainant of his refusal in writing.

. . .

*Cynthia Lee Mei Fei completed her studies in law at Cardiff University with an LLB Law (Hons) and the Bar Professional Training Certificate (BPTC). She is a dispute resolution lawyer at Messrs Chai & Co. and a member of the KL Bar Women's Rights Committee.

**Amanda Pang Tsu Teng completed her studies in law at Cardiff University with an LLB Law (Hons), LLM (International Commercial Law) and the Bar Professional Training Certificate (BPTC). She is a dispute resolution lawyer and occasionally writes in her legal blog at latenightlaws.com.

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2. ANALYSIS ON THE ROLE OF PARTY AUTONOMY IN INTERNATIONAL COMMERCIAL ARBITRATION ^{[Read excerpt]}
   by Nur Syakirah Binti Mohd Adnan* [2020] 1 LNS(A) ciii

[2020] 1 LNS(A) ciii



MALAYSIA

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ANALYSIS ON THE ROLE OF PARTY AUTONOMY IN INTERNATIONAL COMMERCIAL ARBITRATION

by
Nur Syakirah Binti Mohd Adnan*

ABSTRACT

The recent economic growth of international trade and commerce has drawn attention to the creation and amendment of various international commercial arbitration laws, principles, and regulations. Like the "principle of party autonomy", many well-recognized doctrines have emerged so far. This principle broadens the freedom of the parties to essentially determine laws, arbitrators and places of arbitration. However, certain restrictive principles have been developed which limit its application. This paper mainly endeavours to provide a critical evaluation of such influences and boundaries of the party autonomy focusing on the relevant laws.

INTRODUCTION

International commercial arbitration is the most preferred alternative dispute settlement in recent years. One of the reasons behind this popularity is flexibility of the arbitral process. Basically, the principle which makes the arbitral process flexible is party autonomy.

. . .

*G1915632 IIUM, LLM in International Law, adnansyakira@yahoo.com.

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3. A NOT-SO ARBITRARY SOLUTION: ADR IN POST COVID-19 LANDSCAPE* ^{[Read excerpt]}
   by Debra Parker** Claire Naidu** [2020] 1 LNS(A) ci

[2020] 1 LNS(A) ci



AUSTRALIA

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A NOT-SO ARBITRARY SOLUTION: ADR IN POST COVID-19 LANDSCAPE*

by
Debra Parker**
Claire Naidu**

Debra Parker and Claire Naidu from the Law Society's ADR Committee discuss the new opportunities for alternative forms of dispute resolution arising from the disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The arrival of COVID-19 brought with it a wave of uncertainty that rippled across almost every industry.

In the area of law, it meant a surge of adjournments and delayed court proceedings. It also led to a number of court occasions and other tribunal or dispute resolution meetings conventionally held face to face being performed virtually, either by video link or by telephone.

The disruptions, although a big shift for practitioners, introduced new and exciting opportunities for certain forms of law practice to develop, adapt, and modernise to keep up with the new circumstances. Australian Courts have placed a great emphasis on embracing new technology to meet the needs of parties in a time of inaccessibility and geographical isolation.^[1]

. . .

* Published with kind permission of the Law Society of the Australian Capital Territory. See Ethos Winter 2020, Issue 256.

** Debra Parker is an Equity Partner at Watts McCray Lawyers in Canberra and an accredited specialist in Family Law and Dispute Resolution with the Law Society of NSW. Debra is a Nationally Accredited Mediator and Arbitrator and member of the Australian Institute of Family Law Arbitrators and Mediators, as well as an Accredited Collaborative Law Practitioner.
Claire Naidu is a Partner and Principal Mediator at Claire Naidu & Co. She is an Accredited Family Law Specialist, a Relationship Specialist and a Nationally Accredited Mediator and Arbitrator, as well as a Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner and Conflict Coach.

The authors acknowledge the assistance of Alexandra Elgue in preparing this article.

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