Clement Skinner JC:

This is an application by the defendants under O. 19 r. 7(1), Rules of the High Court (RHC) for an order that, no defence to the counterclaim of the defendants having been filed and served by the plaintiff, judgment be entered against the plaintiff for:

(i) special damages of RM150,000

(ii) general damages

(iii) costs.

To fully appreciate why this application is being made reference must be made to the background facts.

The 1st, 2nd and 3rd defendants are the registered owners of various parcels of lands in their own right, all at Kampar, District of Kinta, Ipoh. On 18 February 1993, the plaintiff entered into an agreement (hereafter the said agreement) with all three defendants wherein the plaintiff was granted an exclusive licence to quarry for limestone on land belonging to the 1st defendant; granted a right of way over lands belonging to the 2nd defendant to remove the limestone extracted from the 1st defendant's land; and granted permission to build a crusher plant and related works on the 3rd defendant's land so that by the combined use of the defendants' lands the plaintiff could undertake the manufacturing of limestone products. In the event