S Nantha Balan JCA:

Introduction

[1] This is an appeal (by the plaintiff) against the decision of the learned Judicial Commissioner ("the JC") of the High Court at Shah Alam dated 11 October 2019 dismissing the plaintiff's claim per Shah Alam High Court Suit No. BA-23NCVC-20-09/2017 (with costs of RM40,000.00) ("Suit 20"). Suit 20 (which was filed on 13 September 2019) is essentially a claim for professional negligence and breach of contract against the defendant who is an advocate and solicitor. For the sake of convenience and brevity, we shall refer to the appellant and respondent as "plaintiff" and "defendant" respectively.

[2] The starting point in the narrative is a tragic road accident involving the plaintiff's daughter. The accident took place on 14 September 2008. She died on 15 September 2008 as a result of the injuries sustained in the motor accident. The defendant was asked (through a tout) to file a dependency action. The tout via a letter dated 4 August 2011 gave express instructions for the suit to be filed.

[3] On 12 September 2011, the defendant filed a claim (on behalf of the plaintiff) for dependency under s 7 of the Civil Law Act 1956 (Revised 1972) (Act 67