Low Hop Bing JCA

APPEAL

[1]On 22 July 2005, the Kota Kinabalu High Court held the appellant ('the defendant') liable for wrongful seizure of the respondent's ('the plaintiff's') logs and allowed the plaintiff's claim, with damages to be assessed: see Syarikat Raspand (suing as a firm) v Government of the State of Sabah

[2]Being dissatisfied, the defendant appealed against the decision of the High Court. By majority (Low Hop Bing and Clement Allan Skinner JJCA concurring; Mohd Hishamudin bin Mohd Yunus JCA dissenting), we allowed the defendant's appeal, with costs here and in the court below, and set aside the decision of the High Court. We now give our grounds for the majority judgment.

FACTS OF THE CASE

[3]The facts of the case consist of agreed facts as well as those established by way of evidence adduced at the trial.

[4]The agreed facts may be unfolded as follows:

(a)At the material time, the Ministry of Primary Industries Malaysia approved the plaintiff's application to import 100,000 cubic meters (m3) of logs for sale to local sawmills in Tawau; and to import 50,000 m3 logs for exporting sale.

(b)On 18 January 1997, the defendant seized a total of 3,056 logs, 980 of which were in the