PUTRAJAYA (Jan 4): Prominent lawyer Mohd Haniff Khatri Abdulla has today been fined RM30,000 in default of one month's jail by the Federal Court, after he was found to have committed contempt of court when advising his clients and filing two review applications to set aside an apex court decision in 2017 in a commercial matter and seeking a stay of execution at the High Court from returning properties in the same matter.

The decision was made by a three-member Federal Court bench led by Justice Datuk Abdul Rahman Sebli, who also ordered the lawyer to pay RM10,000 in costs to two individuals who regained the properties in Ipoh, Perak.

Meanwhile, Haniff's previous client Golden Star's partnership owners Ding Toh Biew, Ding Toh Gien and Ding Toh Lai, who are money-lenders, were fined a total of RM150,000 or RM50,000 each in default of one month's jail, and also ordered to pay another RM50,000 costs to the two individuals.

However, the Federal Court allowed the contemptors to pay the amount by Friday, owing to their mitigation whereby the tough Covid-19 situation has affected their business and they need time to fork out the amount.

Justice Rahman, in passing the sentence, said any contempt proceeding in the face of this court must be taken seriously and this is especially so as this quasi-criminal case took place at the Federal Court.

“The three respondents have not expressed regret or remorse in the contempt they had committed in not abiding to the court directive. They had persisted in accepting the advice of their counsel to file the review.

“This is not a mitigating factor (accepting advice of counsel) and hence we found them guilty and fined them RM50,000 each or in default a month's jail,” the top judge said.

On Haniff, Justice Rahman said the court recognised that he had apologised unequivocally and his regret is genuine.

“He had shown genuine remorse but the fact he decided to apologise is made after he is found guilty of contempt. We are mindful not to impose any form of custodial sentence but noted that him being an officer of the court had committed contempt not against any other court but to this apex court.

“For the following reason, we sentenced him to a fine of RM30,000 or one month's jail,” he said.

Haniff was represented by counsel Datuk M Reza Hassan while Golden Star and the Dings were represented by lawyer LK Chieng. Meanwhile, counsels Edmund Lim and Hong Choong Hang appeared for Ling Peek Hoe and Ling Boon Huat, who are the applicants in the contempt proceedings.

Although Justice Rahman led the three-member bench, the written judgement was read by Datuk Seri Hasnah Mohammed Hashim, while the other judge was Datuk Zabariah Mohd Yusof.

Justice Hasnah ruled that the apex court was satisfied that the contempt of court has been proven beyond reasonable doubt against the respondents (Dings) and Haniff, for intentional disobedience of the Federal Court.

"We are of the view that such behaviour of the respondents and Haniff were contumacious (correct) and disrespectful. In the circumstances of this case, we are satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that they are guilty of contempt of court," she said.

In 1996, Peek Hoe bought landed properties in Perak, and initially took a bank loan.

However, he had problems paying arrears of the bank loan and acquired the services of Golden Star and its three owners to resolve the matter.

Golden Star, in turn, is said to have acquired the properties, resulting in Peek Hoe and his son Boon Huat filing a suit against the company and the trio in 2006. In turn, they filed a counterclaim. 

At the High Court in 2012, the judicial commissioner granted a decision in Peek Hoe's favour and ordered that the properties be returned to them.

However, the Court of Appeal reversed the decision, citing the Money-Lenders Act.

On appeal at the Federal Court on June 20, 2017, Peek Hoe was successful in reversing the appellate court decision, and the five-member bench ordered Golden Star and the Dings to return the properties within 60 days.

However, the Dings did not do so and subsequently filed the first review. Their lawyers for the first review subsequently withdrew the review at the Federal Court and it was struck out.

It was then that they approached Haniff to file the second review and subsequently a third review of the apex court's decision due to problems in the earlier filing. Subsequently, both reviews were dismissed by the court in late 2019.

Haniff told the Federal Court bench in mitigation after he was found guilty of contempt that he had advised his former clients to comply with the 2017 decision but they had not done so. However, he did advise them on filing the stay of contempt proceedings at the Ipoh High Court pending the review application which was being heard at the Federal Court.

While the lawyer expressed regret to the court on its decision, he respected the decision and asked that a non-custodial sentence be imposed on him.

The contempt proceeding was initiated by Peek Hoe and his son after the defendants failed to abide by the 2017 Federal Court decision, denied the validity and enforceability of the court order, falsely accused the 2017 apex court bench of bias, ignored the Federal Court's authority and bypassed the court by filing the stay of execution at the High Court.