JUDGMENT

Elizabeth M. Chapman JC:

The plaintiff in this summons in chambers application seeks further discovery of documents listed in the schedule to the summons in chambers. The grounds of the application are as contained in the affidavit of Wan Habib Syed Mahmud affirmed on 13 December 1995. Essentially, the documents that the plaintiff seeks to discover are:

(1) copies of licences terminated and/or revoked in 1987 including letters revoking or terminating such licences.

(2) all other licences granted or subsisting in 1987.

The affidavit of Wan Habib Syed Mahmud states that the revocation of the licence was motivated and/or precipitated by circumstances of the time, and not based on any precipitated breach of the licence and/or the Forest Ordinance and that the documents which the plaintiff now seeks to discover are relevant for the purpose of consideration against the fabric of the political climate in Sarawak at the material time - see para.7(c).

The plaintiff had in his statement of claim pleaded, inter alia, a breach of the rules of natural justice and that the revocation was in breach of the terms of the licence. There was however no plea that the plaintiff had his licence revoked because of the prevailing political climate at the material time. Moreover, there is the allegation in para.4 of the statement of claim that some timber licences had been frozen or cancelled as the proceeds from certain timber concessions had been used to fight the Government. According to the plaintiff's letter dated 29 December 1994 the facts as pleaded in the said para.4 were obtained from an extract of the Borneo Post dated 11 March 1987. It is submitted by learned Counsel for the defendants that this extract was not disclosed in the plaintiff's list of documents.

It is noted that what the plaintiff seeks in this application for discovery has not been pleaded and as the plaintiff is bound by its own pleadings he should not be allowed to ask for discovery to support a contention that was never pleaded. Hence the documents sought to be produced are, in my view, not relevant to the issues pleaded nor will it assist in disposing fairly the cause or matter or save costs. Furthermore, I find that to order discovery of all licences subsisting in 1987 is most unreasonable and irrelevant and to allow the plaintiff's application is to allow him to go on a fishing expedition so to speak.

For the above reasons this application is dismissed with costs.