Abdul Hamid J:

This is a claim brought by the plaintiff Choo Ah Pat against Chow Yee Wah the first defendant and Kwong Yik (Selangor) Banking Corp., Ltd. the second defendants.

The plaintiff is alleging -

(a) that cheque No. A043382 for $60,384.80 purported to be drawn on 18 July 1967 on the second defendants by her son Loke Yaik Hoe who died on the morning of 24 July 1967 was invalid and of no effect as the cheque -

(i) was never and is not the deceased's cheque, and/or

(ii) was obtained from the deceased by the first and/or second defendants their servants or agents by exercising undue influence on the deceased and/or when the deceased was of unsound mind, memory and understanding and/or was fraudulently raised by the first and/or the second defendants their servants or agents;

(b)that the documents purportedly executed by the deceased on 20 July 1967 whereby the deceased was alleged to have opened a joint account with the first defendant (Account No. 1-361) on 20 July 1967 at the second defendants' sub-branch No. 55, Jalan Pasar, Kuala Lumpur were invalid and of no effect for the said documents were -

(i) never and are not the documents of the deceased;

(ii) obtained from the deceased by the first and/ or second defendants their servants or agents by exerting undue influence on the deceased and/or when the deceased was of unsound mind, memory and understanding, and/or

(iii) forgeries or false documents and fraudulent documents concocted for fraud by the first defendant and/or the second defendants their servants or agents;

(c)Alternatively if the Court should hold that the said cheques and documents were validly and lawfully drawn and executed by the deceased that -

(i) the authority given to the second defendants to honour the said cheque and/or to open the said joint account was revoked by the subsequent mental condition and/or mental disorder of the deceased and/or by the deceased becoming unsound of mind, memory and understanding;

(ii) the rule of survivorship at law (if any) and/or the directions given in the said documents as regards the survivor of the deceased and the first defendant being entitled to the monies standing to the deceased's credit in the said joint account at the time of the deceased's death was and has been overridden by equity.

(d)that the deceased's signature (or thumbprint) on the alleged cheque No. A 043382 for $60,384.80 was a forgery and/or unauthorised signature within the meaning of s. 24 of the Bills of Exchange Ordinance, 1949;

(e)that the first and/or the second defendants were not holders in due course of the alleged cheque No A 043382 and/or had a defective title thereto at all material times.

The plaintiff is asking the first and/or the second defendants to refund the sum of $60,384.80, the value of the alleged cheque or the sum of $57,382.30 standing to the credit of the joint account at the time of the deceased's death on 24 July 1967 as having been unlawfully withdrawn by the first and/or the second defendants.

Alternatively the plaintiff is claiming a sum of $60,384.80 being the value of the alleged cheque No A 043382 against the first and/or the second defendants for having converted the sum for his and/or their own use and for wholly depriving the deceased and/or his estate of the same.

The plaintiff also claims against the second defendants for a sum of $60,384.80 for monies had and received for the use of the deceased and/or his estate.

Briefly the facts are as follows. The deceased Loke Yaik Hoe was the son of the late Loke Chow Kit and the plaintiff. When the late Loke Chow Kit took the plaintiff as his wife he was then already married to one Chan Yuen Lin with whom he had nine children. One of Chow Kit's daughters is the wife of the first defendant. Kwan Mun Koh representing the second defendants is a nephew of the deceased. He is an officer of the Kwong Yik Bank, Pasar Road.

Loke Yaik Hoe was admitted to the General Hospital, Kuala Lumpur on 13 Jul