Proceedings against a registered society must comply with statutory requirements; otherwise, they are deemed defective, resulting in potential harm to personal credit ratings.

JUDGMENT

(Enclosure 15)

Tee Geok Hock JC:

Introduction

[1] The Plaintiffs are owners of lands in the proximity of a development project developed by the Defendant-company.

[2] By the original action herein, the Plaintiffs sue the Defendant- company for damages said to be caused by the Defendant- company's negligence in developing and constructing a road and related works at land neighbouring the Plaintiffs' lands thereby adversely affecting the aesthetics and height of and causing obstruction of view to the Plaintiffs' lands.

[3] The Defendant-company denied the Plaintiffs' claims and pleaded inter alia that the road and related works were constructed at the request and/or instruction of the Residents Association in the development project.

[4] By a third party notice, the Defendant-company commenced third party proceeding against three third parties, namely, (1) Persatuan Penduduk Bukit Damar Dengkil (No Pendaftaran PPM-014-10-11052016); (2) Dato' Mohamad Hussin bin Semail; (3) Muhammad Faizal bin M Hairi.

Third Parties' Application And Parties' Submissions

[5] By Encl 15, the Third Parties applied under O 18 r 19(b) and (d) and/or under the inherent jurisdiction of the court to strike out and/or set aside the Defendant-company's Third Party Notice.

[6] It is the contention of the Third Parties that the Plaintiff-company's Third Party Notice is defective and/or incompetent as it contravenes s 9(c) of the Societies Act 1966 and that the second-named and third-named Third Parties cannot be sued in their personal capacities.

[7] In opposing the application for striking out, the Defendant-company argues in the Defendant's Written Submission that the Third Party Notice is not obviously unsustainable, that the Defendant-company has pleaded sufficiently, and that the documents tendered by the Defendant-company are relevant. In the Defendant's Submission in Reply, the Defendant-company refers to O 1A and argues that the irregularity can be remedied and there are triable issues between the Defendant-company and the Third Parties.

Analysis And Decision Of This court

Third Party Notice Against The Registered Society In Its Own Name

[8] The relevant sections of the Societies Act 1966 provide as follows s 2(1) definitions:

"office-bearer" of a society means any person who is the president or vice-president, or secretary or treasurer of such society or any branch of a society, or who is a member of the committee or governing body thereof, or of any branch thereof or who holds in such society or branch of a society any office or position analogous to any of those mentioned above;

Section 9 (c), (d) and (e)(i):

9(c) a society may sue or be sued in the name of such one of its members as shall be declared to the Registrar and registered by him as the public officer of the society for that purpose, and, if no such person is registered, it shall be competent for any person having a claim or demand against the society to sue the society in the name of any office-bearer of the society;

(d) no suit or proceeding by or against a registered society in any civil court shall abate or discontinue by reason of the person, by or against whom the suit or proceeding has been brought or continued, dying or ceasing to fill the character in the name whereof he has sued or been sued, but the same suit or proceeding shall be continued in the name of, or against the successor of, that person;

(e) (i) no judgment in any such suit against a registered society shall be put into force against the person or property of the person sued but against the property of the society;

[9] It is clear from s 9(c) of the Societies Act 1966 that in a court suit against a registered society, the plaintiff cannot cite the registered society as a defendant in the name of the registered society itself, and whatever suit or legal proceeding against a registered society has to cite as a defendant "in the name of such one of its members as shall be declared to the Registrar and registered by him as th