Judgment

Avinder Singh Gill JC:

[1] This is a civil action filed in the High Court of Malaya at Kuala Lumpur under Civil Suit No: WA-22NCvC-432-08/2023 between Surendran a/l Thuraisingam ("plaintiff"), in his capacity as executor of the estate of the late Kumar a/l Thuraisingam ("the Deceased"), and Selvamanickaraja a/l Manohar ("the defendant"), who is sued both in his personal capacity and as litigation representative for Manogaran a/l Selvamanickaraja and Athyiyaman a/l Selvamanickaraja, his children.

[2] Dispute

The conflict concerns the distribution of insurance policy proceeds and trust assets under a Deed of Trust dated 7 March 2014, naming Rockwills Trustee Berhad as trustee. The Plaintiff argues that under Sch 10 of the Financial Services Act ("FSA") 2013, payments to nominees who are not family members must form part of the deceased's estate and be applied to settle debts. He claims the defendant and other beneficiaries lack blood ties to the Deceased and must return assets for debt settlement in accordance with the Deceased's Will dated 17 August 2021.

[3] The Defendant denies liability, arguing that the Deed of Trust and the Will are separate legal instruments, that the Wi