IN CHAMBERS JUDGMENT

1. This is my judgment in respect of the petitioner's application, encl. 33 filed in the petition under section 181 of Companies Act 1965 (CA 1965) seeking an interlocutory order inter alia that:-

(1) a team of two (2) approved company auditors be and is hereby appointed to carry out a full investigative audit of the accounts of the 9th respondent Sanyan Wood Industries Sdn Bhd on the following terms:

(a) the period of the accounts to be audited shall be from 2-08-1991 up to the date of this order.

(b) the court-appointed auditors shall have full and unrestricted access to all accounting and other records of the 9th respondent and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, such records shall include: (i) general ledger; (ii) debtors' ledger; (iii) creditors' ledger; (iv) all payment vouchers; (v) all official receipts and receiving vouchers; (vi) all monthly bank statements along with their respective monthly bank reconciliation statements; (vii) all sales invoices; (viii) all purchases invoices/supplier invoices; (ix) all purchase orders; (x) all goods receipt notes; (xi) all shipping documents relating to sales and purchases of stocks; (xii) all custom declaration forms for import and export of all goods including property plant and equipment purchased from overseas; (xiii) all sales and purchases agreements for logs purchased, sales of plywood and all other related timber products; (xiv) forestry removal passes for all the logs purchased; (xv) all letters of credit and bills of lading; (xvi) all journal vouchers; (xvii) all cheque butts (for all those cheques that have been issued/used); and (xviii) fixed assets register book.

(c) the court-appointed auditors shall jointly and/or severally, by written notice addressed to the 1st respondent as managing director of the 9th respondent delivered to the 9th respondent's registered address, specify the type of records to be produced for the investigative audit and the managing director shall produce such records within 48 hours of the receipt by the 9th respondent of such written notice.

(d) the court-appointed auditors, at their discretion, shall be entitled to retain audit assistants, clerks and such other support staff as they may decide they need to carry out and complete the investigative audit.

(e) the remuneration and expenses of the court-appointed auditors shall be taxed or certified by the court and paid by the 9th respondent within 7 days of the court's certification provided that an initial deposit of RM100,000.00 shall be paid by the 9th respondent to the court-appointed auditors within three (3) days from the date of this order.

(f) the court-appointed auditors shall commence the audit forthwith upon the making of this order and shall file a monthly report to the court on the progress of the investigative audit.

(g) the investigative audit shall be completed and a final report filed in this court within three (3) months from the date of this order; and

(h) the court-appointed auditors shall be deemed officers of the court.

(2) the two (2) approved company auditors shall comprise the following: (a) an approved company auditor nominated by the petitioner; and (b) an approved company auditor nominated by the board of directors of the 9th respondent.

2. The 1st, 5th, 6th, 8th and 9th respondents are represented by one firm of solicitors (hereinafter referred to as solicitors for the 1st group of respondents) and 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 7th respondents are represented by another firm of solicitors (hereinafter referred to as the solicitors for the 2nd group of respondents).

3. At the date of hearing of encl. 33, I specifically asked the petitioner's solicitors under what provision of the law the application has been made. The answer was "under the courts inherent jurisdiction"

(emphasise is mine}.

4. All the respondents are opposing the petitioner's application, inter alia, on the common ground that the court has no powers or jurisdiction to grant