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Mohd Radwan - Director Appointment by Written Resolution

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF MALAYA AT KUALA LUMPUR

IN THE FEDERAL TERRITORY


ORIGINATING SUMMONS NO.: WA-24NCC-616-11/2018

In the matter of Sections 41, 50 to


53, Specific Reliefs Act 1950

And

In the matter of Order 15 Rule 16,


Rules of Court 2012

And

In the matter of Section 351


Companies Act 2016

And

In the matter of the inherent


jurisdiction of this Honourable
Court

BETWEEN

MOHD RADWAN ALAMI


(KP No.: 530723-71-5201) …PLAINTIFF
AND

1. IBRAHIM BIN MOHD YUSOF


(KP No.: 450204-01-5211)

2. JAMIL BIN HARON


(KP No.: 550709-71-5027)
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3. ALAMI VEGETABLE OIL PRODUCTS SDN BHD
(No. Syarikat : 489927-K)

4. MOHD ZAKIE BIN SOAD


(KP No.: 750325-08-5907) …DEFENDANTS

GROUNDS OF JUDGMENT

Introduction

[1] The Plaintiff by an Originating Summons applied to this court to


declare the appointment of the First Defendant as a director of the
Third Defendant null and void. The basis of the application stems
from the Plaintiff’s contention that the manner in which the
appointment was made i.e. via a circular resolution, contravenes
section 302(2)(a) of the Companies Act 2016 (“the Act”) as the
company’s constitution requires a general meeting to be convened for
such appointments. The Defendants argued otherwise, stating that
there was justification to employ the manner in which the resolution
was passed and there was no contravention of the Act.

[2] This Court allowed the application and ruled that there was a breach
of the Act when the Second Defendant was appointed via a written
resolution. This is contrary to an express provision under the
constitution of the company which provides for the appointment of

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directors to be carried out via a general meeting. This had attracted
the prohibition contained under section 302(2)(a) of the Act.

Background

The background of the matter are as follows:

[3] The Plaintiff, a Syrian national with a permanent residency in


Malaysia is a director and a 40% minority shareholder in the Third
Defendant. The Second Defendant is a director and 60% majority
shareholder of the Third Defendant. Both were the founding directors
of the Third Defendant. The Third Defendant is a private company
limited by shares that was incorporated in Malaysia in 1999. Its
business is related to the process, manufacture and export of
upstream and downstream palm oil and other edible oil products.

[4] The First Defendant was appointed as director in the Third Defendant
on 4.9.2018. The Fourth Defendant is the Company Secretary who
was appointed by the Third Defendant’s board after the appointment
of the First Defendant on 6.9.2018.

[5] Sometime in 2015, relationship between the Plaintiff and the Second
Defendant turned sour. It led to a situation where there was deadlock
at the Board of Director’s level. Both the Plaintiff and Second
Defendant no longer could cooperate together. The company’s
financier filed a lawsuit against the Third Defendant which resulted in
the relationship between the two founding members of the company
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to deteriorate even further. The deadlock resulted in the company not
being able to function in its ordinary course of business.

[6] It was explained in the Affidavit in Reply of the Second Defendant


that as a result of the deadlock, he had to act in the best interest of
the company. This led to the passing of the resolution dated 4.9.18
(the “Written Resolution”) which appointed the First Defendant.

[7] The Plaintiff refused to recognize the appointment of the First


Defendant. The subsequent appointment of the Fourth Defendant as
Company Secretary was also disputed by the Plaintiff. This led to the
filing of the application before this Court.

The Plaintiff’s contention

[8] The Plaintiff’s contended that this application revolves around a


narrow construction of law on the appointment of the First Defendant
as director of the Third Defendant. The specific provision of law
being section 302(2)(a) of the Act.

[9] The Plaintiff contended that the Second Defendant’s action on


10.8.2018 to issue a Notice of Requisition to propose by ordinary
resolution to appoint the First Defendant as an additional director of
the Third Defendant under section 290(1)(a) of the Act (the
“Proposed Resolution”) had breached the Act. This was because the
Proposed Resolution was eventually passed as a written resolution

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on 4.9.2018 when the Second Defendant, as a major shareholder
signified his agreement to the Proposed Resolution by way of email.

[10] The Plaintiffs argued that as Article 67 of the Articles of Association


(“the AOA”) provides that all ordinary resolutions are to be passed at
a general meeting, the action of the Second Defendant passing the
Written Resolution was contrary to the provision of section 302(2)(a)
of the Act which provides that any resolution may be properly moved
as a written resolution unless the resolution if passed, would be
ineffective by reason of inconsistency with the constitution of the
Company. By definition, the constitution of the company includes the
Articles of Association (“AOA”) of the company.

[11] It was argued by the Plaintiff, that section 302(2)(a) of the Act was a
carve out intended by Parliament to allow the provision of the AOA to
take primacy over the Act. The Latin maxim of generalia specialibus
non derogant was therefore, applicable.

The Defendant’s contention

[12] The Defendants on the other hand, argued that Section 290(1) of the
Act provides that a resolution of members of a private company (of
which the Third Defendant is one) shall be passed either by a written
resolution or a meeting of members. As the Third Defendant is private
company, the said provision allows for an option to be chosen when
passing a resolution. It was argued that Article 67 of the AOA cannot
override the provision of the Act (section 290(1)) as the strict
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prohibition in section 32(2) of the Act states that a provision of any
AOA which contravenes the Act has no effect. That essentially, was
the gist of the Defendants’ argument.

Analysis

[13] For the purposes of considering this application, it is important that


the relevant provisions which were highlighted by the Plaintiff and
Defendants counsels are discussed.

[14] Section 32 provides for how a company adopts a constitution. The


constitution once adopted, will have no effect to the extent that it
contravenes or is inconsistent with the provisions of the Act. It was
contended by the Defendants that section 32(2) is the provision under
the Act that nullifies any provision of the constitution which is contrary
to the Act. It reads as follows:

Section 32. Company may adopt a constitution

(1) A company may adopt a constitution for the company and


the adoption shall be by way of special resolution.

(2) The constitution of a company has no effect to the


extent that it contravenes or is inconsistent with the
provisions of this Act.

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(3) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the
constitution adopted under subsection (1) shall be binding
on the company, its directors and its members.

(4) The company shall lodge the constitution with the


Registrar within thirty days from the adoption of a
constitution under subsection (1).

(5) The company and every officer who contravene subsection


(4) commit an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to a
fine not exceeding fifty thousand ringgit and, in the case of a
continuing offence, to a further fine not exceeding
five hundred ringgit for each day during which the offence
continues after conviction.

[15] It was argued by counsel for the Defendants that the passing of a
private company’s resolution can either be passed by a written
resolution or a meeting of members. As such, an option is given to
members to determine the appropriate mode of passing a resolution.
In this regard, section 290 of the Act was alluded to. It reads as
follows:

Section 290. Passing a resolution

(1) A resolution of the members or of a class of members of a


private company shall be passed either—

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(a) by a written resolution; or

(b) at a meeting of the members.

[16] Appointment of directors is provided for under Chapter 3-


Management of Company. Section 202(2) provides that directors who
are appointed subsequent to the incorporation of the company, may
be appointed by ordinary resolution. Section 202 of the Act provides:

Section 202. Named directors and subsequent directors

(1) A person named as a director in an application for


incorporation of a company shall hold office as a director
from the date of incorporation until that person ceases to
hold office as a director in accordance with this Act.

(2) All subsequent directors of a company may be appointed


by ordinary resolution.

(3) Subject to the constitution, the Board may, at any time,


appoint a director in addition to existing director and the
director so appointed shall hold office—

(a) in the case of a public company, until the next annual


general meeting; or

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(b) in the case of a private company, in accordance with
the terms of appointment.

[17] This in turn will require the examination of what Ordinary Resolutions
mean under the Act. Section 291 provides that an ordinary resolution
may be passed by members or a class of members representing a
simple majority by either voting in person or proxy at a members
meeting or by way of a vote on a written resolution. Section 291
provides as follows:

Section 291. Ordinary resolutions

(1) An ordinary resolution of the members or a class of


members of a company means a resolution passed by a
simple majority of more than half of such members—

(a) who are entitled to vote and do vote in person, or


where proxies are allowed, by proxy at a meeting of
members; or

(b) who are entitled to vote on a written resolution.

(2) Subject to paragraph (1)(a), an ordinary resolution passed


at a meeting on a show of hands is passed by a simple
majority if it is passed by members representing a simple
majority of members who are present at the meeting.

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[18] It was contended that a written resolution cannot be passed to
remove a director. However, it is silent where appointment of
directors is concerned. Reference is made to section 297 which reads
as follows:

Section 297. Written resolutions of private companies

(1) A resolution shall be proposed as a written resolution by the


Board or any member of a private company.

(2) The following shall not be passed as a written resolution:

(a) a resolution under section 206 to remove a director


before the expiration of his term of office; or

(b) a resolution under section 276 to remove an auditor


before the expiration of his term of office.

(3) An ordinary resolution is passed on a poll taken at a


meeting if it is passed by members representing more than
half of the total voting rights of the members who are
entitled to vote and do vote in person or by proxy on the
resolution.

(4) Subject to the provision of the constitution, any matter that


may be passed by ordinary resolution may also be passed
by special resolution.
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[19] Relying on the above provisions, counsel for the Defendants argued
that by virtue of section 32(2), the AOA of a company cannot
contravene any provision of the Act. The Act on the other hand,
provides that in a private company such as the Third Defendant, can
rely on section 297 where written resolutions can be passed by a
board or a member of a private company. What cannot be passed by
a written resolution is contained in section 297(2) (a) and (b). The
sum total of this analysis means that the Written Resolution passed
on 4.9.2018 was therefore valid.

[20] Counsel for the Plaintiff on the other hand, sought to rely on section
302(2)(a) of the Act. It was argued that when a written resolution is
moved, it cannot contravene the written law or the constitution of the
company. It reads as follows:

Section 302. Members’ power to require circulation of


written resolution

(1) Any member of a private company having a total of five per


centum, or such lower per centum as specified in the
constitution, of the total voting rights of all eligible members
may require the company to circulate a resolution that may
properly be moved as a written resolution.

(2) Any resolution may properly be moved as a written


resolution unless the resolution—

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(a) if passed, would be ineffective whether by reason of
inconsistency with any written law or the constitution;

(b) is defamatory of any person;

(c) is frivolous or vexatious; or

(d) if passed, would not be in the best interest of the


company.

[21] It was argued that Article 67 being a provision of the constitution of


the company, stipulates in no uncertain terms that the appointment of
a director is to be carried out at a general meeting. Counsel for the
Plaintiff argued that the prohibition in section 32(2) of the Act did not
operate as section 302(2) (a) was an exception provided under the
law to give primacy to the constitution of the company.

Findings of the Court

[22] Reference is made to Article 67 of the Articles of Association where it


provides as follows:

“The Company may, from time to time by ordinary resolution passed at a


general meeting, increase or reduce the number of directors, and may
also determine in what rotation the increased or reduced number is to go
out of office.”

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[23] It is obvious form a reading of Article 67 of the AOA, the appointment
of directors must be done at a general meeting. Even if the emphasis
is on the word “may”, it does not provide any other alternatives. As
such the words may refers specifically to the company convening a
general meeting.

[24] This Court is compelled to agree with counsel for the Plaintiff that this
represents a carve out of the general prohibition in section 32(2). It is
an exception specifically provided for by the Act and would fall under
the application of the maxim generalia specialibus non derogant. The
usage of that canon of construction is not alien in its application. This
can be seen in Qatar Islamic Bank v Asian Finance Bank Bhd &
Ors [2015] 7 MLJ 445 Wong Kheng Kong J at paragraph 42(b) held:

“(iii) there is a canon of construction, 'generaliaspecialibus non derogant',


which provides that if there is a conflict between two provisions in the
same document, the specific provision should prevail over the general
provision. This maxim has been applied in statutory interpretation but
according to Bowen LJ in the English Court of Appeal case of Curtis v
Stovin (1889) LR 22 QBD 513, at 517, rules for construing statutes also
apply to construe documents. In Grundt, at 28, Cohen LJ (as His Lordship
then was) favoured a specific provision in the AA vis-a-vis a general
provision in the AA. In applying the maxim 'generaliaspecialibus non
derogant', I have no hesitation to give effect to the specific provisions of
art 70(e) and (g) in preference to the general closing words.”

[25] It has to be noted that section 302(2)(a) provides primacy to the


constitution/AOA when it states that any resolution, moved as a

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written resolution, would be ineffective if it is inconsistent with any
written law or the constitution of the company.

[26] This Court is of the opinion that where there is a specific provision
that allows for an exception under the Act, such exception must be
taken as a literal approval to derogate from the general provision.

[27] In Luggage distributors (M) Sdn Bhd [1995] 3 CLJ 520 at page
550, the Court of Appeal held as follows:

“There is another compelling reason for holding that the respondents have
no caveatable interest in the land. It lies in the rule of construction
expressed in the maxim generalibus specialia derogant. Where there are
two provisions of written law, one general and the other specific, then,
whether or not these two provisions are to be found in the same or
different statutes, the special or specific provision excludes the operation
of the general provision.”

Thus in Commissioner of Income Tax v Shahzada Nand & Sons AIR


1996 SC 1342, where (at p. 1347) Subba En. Rao J, said:

“Another rule of constructions which is relevant to the present


enquiry is expressed in the maxim generalia specialibus non
derogant, which means that when there is a conflict between a
general and a special provision, the latter shall prevail. The said
principle has been stated in Craies on Statute Law 5th Edn., at p.
205, thus:

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The rule is, that whenever there is a particular enactment and a
general enactment in the same statute and the latter, taken in its
most comprehensive sense, would overrule the former, the
particular enactment must be operative, and the general enactment
must be taken to affect only the other parts of the statute to which it
may properly apply.”

See also Public Prosecutor v. Chew Siew Luan [1982] 2 MLJ 119.
(Emphasis added)

[28] This Court is of the opinion that there is no incongruity between the
constitution/AOA and the Act if such interpretation is made. The
prohibition under section 32(2) merely operates as notice that when a
company adopts a constitution, any provision of the constitution that
contravenes the Act cannot be sustained. However, section 302(2)(a)
cures the inconsistency as it provides primacy of the constitution/AOA
over the Act.

[29] In response to the Plaintiff’s arguments, Counsel for the Defendant


argued that the words “if passed” in section 302(2)(a) presupposes
that a resolution has been passed. It does not refer to the manner on
how the resolution was passed. The ineffectiveness of the resolution
only comes into play after the resolution has been passed i.e. if the
object of the resolution offends the written law or the constitution of
the company, only then will the resolution fall foul of sub-section
302(2)(a). It does not touch on the manner in which the resolution
was passed. As such, there is a distinction between the “object” and
the “manner”.
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[30] With respect, this Court is unable to agree with the interpretation by
counsel for the Defendant. It presupposes a two stage assessment
when interpreting section 302(2)(a) of the Act. From the facts of this
case, the resolution was approved and acted upon. The question to
be answered is whether the manner in which the resolution was
passed contravened the constitution of the company.

[31] This Court is of the view that even before the object is met (as
suggested by counsel), the manner in which such resolution was
moved must first be in accordance with the constitution/AOA of the
company. It cannot mean that the law is not concerned with the
manner in which the resolution was moved. Such an interpretation
would suggest that it is open for parties to disregard the constitution
of the company. This renders the specific provision of the
constitution/AOA otiose. It cannot be so.

[32] The appointment of a company director is a significant action by the


company. It must be in accordance with the constitution/AOA of the
company. If the manner in which such appointments are to be made
is prescribed, it has to be followed religiously as the AOA of the
company is the basic law of a company. In fact, the AOA is a
contractual obligation that members subscribe to and it contains
covenants that each member will observe all the provisions of the
AOA.

[33] In the early case of Wong Kim Fatt v Leong & Co Sdn Bhd & Anor
[1976] 1 MLJ 140, Chang Min Tat J held as follows:
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“He made two concessions, one was that a member was bound by the
Articles of Association as a matter of contractual obligation which he had
undertaken by subscribing thereto. With respect, he is of course right. To
contend otherwise would mean he had to prove, for example, the following
passage from the judgment of Lord Herschell M.R. in Welton v
Saffery [1897] AC 299 at page 315, wrong:

“Section 16 of the Act of 1862 provides that the articles of


association, when registered, shall bind the company and the
members thereof to the same extent as if each member had signed
his name and affixed his seal thereto, and there were in such
articles contained a covenant on the part of himself, his heirs,
executors, and administrators to conform to all the regulations
contained in such articles, subject to the provisions of this Act. The
articles thus become in effect a contract under seal by each
member of the company, and regulate his rights. They cannot, of
course, diminish or affect any liability created by the express terms
of the statute; but, as I have said, the statute does not purport to
settle the rights of the members inter se, it leaves these to be
determined by the articles (or the articles and memorandum
together), which are the social contract regulating those rights.

I think it was intended to permit perfect freedom in this respect, It is


quite true that the articles constitute a contract between each
member and the company, and that there is no contract in terms
between the individual members of the company; but the articles do
not any the less, in my opinion, regulate their rights inter se. Such
rights can only be enforced by or against a member through the
company, or through the liquidator representing the company; but I
think that no member has, as between himself and other member,

17
any right beyond that which the contract with the company gives.”
(emphasis added)

See also Ling Beng Hui v Ling Beng Sung [1990] 2 MLJ 186;
Fairview Schools Bhd v Indrani a/p Rajaratnam (No. 2) [1998] 1
MLJ 110.

[34] In Beh Chun Chuan v Paloh Medical Centre Sdn Bhd &
Ors [1999] 3 MLJ 262 at 268 Kang Hwee Gee J observed that:

“Much like a club is governed by its constitution, a company is governed


by its memorandum and articles of association. A company’s
memorandum and articles are therefore the cananic yardstick upon which
the legality of its act and those of its officers must be tested and any acts
of the company or of its officers which are opposed to its memorandum or
articles are likely to be struck down by the court as ultra vires.”
(emphasis added)

[35] The effect of a constitution when adopted, will bind the company and
the members to the same extent as if the constitution had been
signed and sealed by each member and contained covenants on the
part of each member to observe all the provisions of the constitution.
(see section 33(1) of the Act).

[36] This Court is of the firm view section 302(2)(a) can be interpreted
literally upon a plain reading of the said provision. There is no
ambiguity in such an interpretation. Conversely, the argument taken
by counsel for the Defendants in his submission urged this Court to
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read section 290(1) of the Act, in light of section 32(2) read together
with section 619, rendering Article 67 of the AOA to be inconsistent
with section 290(1) of the Act. The latter approach as suggested,
would be an interpretation that does not support the plain meaning of
the provision.

[37] It is an accepted principle that legislation is always to be understood


first in accordance with its plain meaning (see Criaes on Legislation
(8th edition)). In N.S Bindra’s Interpretation of Statutes (10th
Edition) at page 435 provided the following comments:

“It is elementary that the primary duty of a court is to give effect to the
intention of the legislature as expressed in the words used by it and not
outside consideration can be called in aid to find that intention. A statute
must be constructed in a manner which carries out the intention of the
legislature. The intention of the legislature must be gathered from the
words of the statue itself. If the words are unambiguous or plain, they will
indicate the intention with which the statute was passed and the object to
be obtained by it. When the language of the law admits of no ambiguity
and is very clear, it is not open to the courts to put their own gloss in order
to squeeze out some meaning which is not borne out by the language of
the law.”

Deadlock situation

[38] The dilemma faced by the Second Defendant in this case was his
inability to convene a meeting due to the breakdown in relationship
between him and the Plaintiff. It is before this Court that the Second

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Defendant holds 60% shares while the Plaintiff holds the remaining
40%.

[39] Article 47 of the company’s AOA provides as follows:

“No business shall be transacted at any general meeting unless a quorum


of members is present at the time when the meeting proceeds to
business. Save as herein otherwise provided, two members present in
person shall be a quorum. For the purposes of this regulation "member"
includes a person attending as a proxy or as representing a corporation
which is a member.”

[40] It is therefore clear that in a General Meeting of the company, that no


business shall be transacted at the General Meeting if there is no
quorum. Quorum would constitute two members. It could be
reasonably presumed that the Second Defendant was relying on
Article 47 when he moved for the resolution to be passed to appoint
the First Defendant.

[41] As can be seen from the Affidavit in Reply of the Second Defendant,
he was having difficulty in convening a meeting. See paragraph 6
and paragraph 10 (i) to (iii). It was admitted that the Board of
Directors of the Third Defendant was in a deadlock (“buntu”). Further,
it was admitted by the Second Defendant that he and the Plaintiff
were no longer cooperating and working together. As such, the
Second Defendant decided to appoint the First Defendant as an
additional Director. The mode of which was done by way of a

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circularized written resolution signed by a single director namely the
Second Defendant.

[42] It is also clear form the Affidavit in Reply of the Second Defendant
that his actions to circulate the written resolution stems from the
impracticability of convening a general meeting. A read of his
affidavit would lead to an understanding that even if the meeting was
convened, it would be inquorate as the Plaintiff will not attend. In fact,
there was no evidence of the email sent by the Second Defendant to
the Plaintiff requisitioning the meeting was responded to by the
Plaintiff.

[43] In such a situation, where there is a clear breakdown between the


two shareholders of the company, the action by one party (such as
the Second Defendant) to unilaterally appoint an additional director
cannot be the solution to be adopted, no matter how altruistic the
intentions were.

[44] The Second Defendant must resort to what is provided under the Act.
This Court is of the firm view that the solution to the deadlock can be
resolved by having recourse to section 314 of the Act which provides
as follows:

Section 314. Power of Court to order meeting

(1) This section applies if for any reason it is impracticable—

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(a) to call for a meeting of members of a company in any
manner in which meetings of that company may be
called; or

(b) to conduct the meeting in the manner prescribed by


the constitution or this Act.

(2) The Court may, either of its own motion or on the


application—

(a) of a director of the company;

(b) of a member of the company who would be entitled to


vote at the meeting; or

(c) of the personal representative of any such member,


order a meeting to be called, held and conducted in
any manner the Court thinks fit.

(3) Where such an order is made, the Court may give such
ancillary or consequential direction as the Court thinks
expedient.

(4) Such directions may include a direction that one member of


the company present in person or by proxy at the meeting
be deemed to constitute a quorum.

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(5) A meeting called, held and conducted in accordance with an
order under this section shall be deemed for all purposes to
be a meeting of the company duly called, held and
conducted.

[45] The predecessor to section 314 of the Act is section 150 of the
Companies Act 1965 (the “1965 Act”). It is in parimateria with the
section 314 of the Act. In LOW SON SIANG @ LOO SOON SIONG
v LEE KIM YONG [1998] MLJU 467, Malik Ishak J (as he then was)
held as follows:

“Now, when confronted with an application like enclosure 4 grounded on


section 150 of the Companies Act, 1965, the first and foremost question to
pose would be : Whether the desired EOGM can be conducted ? Here,
surely the onus would be on the plaintiff to show to this court that it was
impracticable to call for a meeting of the company in any manner
whatsoever or even to conduct the meeting in the manner as prescribed
by the Articles of the company (Leong Ah Hong v. Hup Seng Co Ltd
[1963] MLJ 164, 165). Article 46 of the Articles of Association of the
company states that:

"No business shall be transacted at any general meeting unless a


quorum of members is present at the time when the meeting
proceeds to business. Save as herein otherwise provided, two
members present in person shall be a quorum. For the purpose of
this regulation 'member' includes a person attending as a proxy or
as representing a corporation which is a member."

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and clearly "two members present in person shall be a quorum".
Here, the defendant refused to attend the EOGM and surely this
court has the discretion to call for such EOGM with a quorum of
one as sought for by the plaintiff in enclosure 4.”

[46] The Court in LOW SON SIANG @ LOO SOON SIONG v LEE KIM
YONG (supra) went on to direct a general meeting as it was
impracticable to call it by any other means.

[47] The Court of Appeal case of Tamabina Sdn Bhd & Anor v
Nakamichi Corporation Berhad [2016] MLJU 462 section 150 of
the 1965 Act was interpreted as follows:

“[4] The gist of the section is that, if for any reason it is impractical to call a
meeting or to conduct a meeting in the manner prescribed the articles of
association of the company or the Act, Court may on its own motion or on
an application of any director or any member entitled to vote at the
meeting or personal representative of such member order a meeting to be
called held and conducted in such manner as the Court thinks fit. The key
phrase in the section is 'if for any reason it is impracticable' to call or
conduct a meeting.”

[48] From the above discussion, it is patently clear that recourse must be
made to section 314 of the Act by parties in a situation where a
deadlock has occurred at the Board level. Section 314 of the Act
clearly does not preclude a court form convening a meeting by the
attendance of one single shareholder. The onus lies on the party
seeking to move the court to order such a meeting by demonstrating
that it is impracticable to do so under the normal provisions of the
24
company’s AOA. The Second Defendant failed to resort to the above
provisions of the Act.

[49] Given that this Court is of the opinion that the written resolution was
ineffective, it is of the view that other alternative arguments raised by
the parties were no longer necessary to be considered. Parties too,
had not pursued the other points assiduously as the crux of the issue
was on the interpretation of section 302(2)(a) of the Act.

Conclusion

[50] In the circumstances, this Court is of the view that the resolution
passed on 4.9.2018 was against the constitution/AOA of the company
in particular, Article 67. As such, the resolution was ineffective by
virtue of subsection 302(2)(a) of the Act. The application in Enclosure
1 is therefore allowed. Cost of RM 10,000 as agreed upon by parties
is awarded to the Plaintiff.

(AHMAD FAIRUZ BIN ZAINOL ABIDIN)


Judicial Commissioner
High Court of Malaya
Kuala Lumpur

Dated : 6th May 2019

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Counsels :

Surendra Ananth together with SS Gabriel for the Plaintiff


Messrs. N Saraswathy Devi
No. 47, Jalan Sultan Ismail
50250 Kuala Lumpur

Arun Krishnalingam together with Aaron Siva for the Defendants


Messrs. Sativale Mathew Arun
No. 6, Jalan SS15/8B
47500 Subang Jaya
Selangor

26

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