KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 29): As both Zico Holdings Inc managing director, Chew Seng Kok, and Zaid Ibrahim & Co executive chairman, Datuk Seri Dr Nik Norzrul Thani N Hassan Thani, are opposing Datuk Mohd Zaid Ibrahim's discovery application of documents pertaining to the firm he set up and matters related to the company, the former minister maintained in his affidavit responding to them that he has a 10% stake in the Singapore-based company.

In his Jan 8 affidavit, Chew, a former managing partner of Zaid Ibrahim & Co, denied Zaid's ownership of a 10% stake in Zico Holdings Inc, which the former Kota Bharu member of Parliament (MP) claimed in exchange of the firm not continuing its annual payment to relinquish his stake for disposing his 57 %share in the firm. He maintains the remaining 5% stake in Zaid Ibrahim & Co, after disposing his stake in 2004 and 2008. He also rejected the politician's claims that there were dividends and premiums due to him.

However, Zaid — in an affidavit dated Jan 26 sighted by theedgemarkets.com — responded that there was an agreement between him and Chew dated May 27, 2014, stating the politician will hold the 10% stake and should he pass away, that stake will be given to his wife Datin Suliana Shamsuddin.

Theedgemarkets.com previously reported on Dec 30 that Zaid had filed a discovery application against Chew, Nik Norzrul Thani and the firm he founded.

Zaid is seeking documents from the law firm on payments made to him after he relinquished his 57% equity stake in the law firm in 2008 for RM25.65 million, which was to be made in 20 annual instalments of RM1.2 million and a final payment of RM1.65 million. This followed his appointment as a minister under the then Barisan Nasional government.

"I retain 5% equity of the firm as stipulated in the sale and purchase agreement," he said.

Zaid maintained that he relinquished his 5% equity in the firm and the payments due to him were for 10% of Zico Holdings shares, which are listed in Singapore.

Chew denied the 5% remaining stake that Zaid had in his former law firm will be transferred for his 10% stake in Zico Holdings, saying it was totally untrue.

"Zaid also never registered himself as a Zico Holdings shareholder," the company's managing director said in his Jan 8 affidavit, adding that since the company's formation on Nov 11, 2014, it has never declared any dividends.

On Zaid's claim of his stake in Zico Holdings said to be worth S$4 million, Chew alleged that it was an estimate by financial experts to facilitate his loan application to purchase a property.

According to its website, Zico Holdings is an integrated network of professional service firms focused on the ASEAN region, providing advisory and transactional services, management and support services and licensing services.

Zaid, in his Jan 26 affidavit, said the sales proceeds to the 2008 transfer were not paid in full to him.

"To address the balance of payment due to me from both of them, Chew arranged for me to beneficially own shareholdings of Zico Holdings which he held as trustee. In this regard, Chew signed an agreement confirming that he held the shares in Zico Holdings in trust for me," the former minister added.

The former MP said he had continuously asked Chew to provide him what was due to him from Zico Holdings but claimed that the managing director avoided him.

On Chew's claim that he was not a registered shareholder, Zaid said this was due to Chew holding all the documents.

"The documents are readily available to Chew who has power over them to give the disclosure. There should be no objection from him in the circumstances to provide the documents," his affidavit stated further.

"Chew never gave me an account of my beneficial interests in the shares or made any payment to me for the shares. Chew now admits that the financial experts themselves valued my beneficial interests in excess of S$4 million."

"It is for this reason that I verily believe that Chew is seeking to engage in subterfuge in creating such smokes and mirrors. He has not given a pointed answer as to what has happened to my beneficial shareholding in Zico Holdings. That is the basis for my intended claim against Chew to seek an account from him as my trustee," he alleged further in the dispute.

While Chew maintained that the 2017 payments were merely advances for the 2008 agreement, the former minister said Chew well knew that he had not been paid in full the sales proceeds of the 2008 transfer.

"He has not also accounted to me for my beneficial shareholdings in Zico Holdings. At the same time, it was only natural that I required payment for my own family's upkeep. I therefore turn to where the source of my money was, ie Chew or the firm where I still had interests and overdue payments," he said.

Zaid said he also needed the documents for him to start in his suit against his former law firm.

He filed the suit last November, claiming the firm misrepresented in its practice by continuing to use his name from when he set up the firm and that the wrongful use of his name deprived him of using his own name to set up his own law firm after leaving the firm in 2008 to become a minister.

The termination of his posts from the firm late last year, which he claimed was for purportedly "unauthorised acts" alleged to have done unilaterally, was not specified to him.

He further claimed that as a result of this, he would face the prospect of suffering substantial damage of not being able to use his name in continuing his law practice.

"The firm has also breached the Bar Council Ruling 2.01 that states when a partnership has [been] dissolved, no partner may continue to practise under the name of the dissolved firm name unless the partners of the dissolved firm so consent, subject, however, to any provision to the contrary in the partnership agreement governing the partners of the dissolved firm. This rule does not apply to the death of a partner," the statement of claim said.

A case management of the discovery application was held before High Court deputy registrar Maslinda Selamat today.