JUDGMENT

Hashim Yeop A Sani J:

This is an application to dissolve the ex parte injunction granted on 24 November 1973 restraining the defendant from distributing screening or exhibiting within Malaysia the feature film "Singa Betina Dari Marunda" or any similar feature film carrying the same or identical title.

The evidence relied on in granting the injunction consisted of the affidavit of one K. Abu Bakar, the managing director of P T Golden Imperial Trading Coy, a limited company incorporated in Indonesia, and the affidavit of one Yusoff bin Majid, the managing director of the plaintiff company. In the affidavit of K Abu Bakar, it is stated that by an order of Court of the Pengadilan Negeri, Jakarta Pusat, Indonesia, made on 10 April 1973 one P T Sumandra Film Corporation, in the name of the director, Abdurahman Sutrisno Sudomo, became and was declared the rightful owner of all negatives and/or copies of the feature film concerned. According to the same affidavit, P T Sumandra Film Corporation of Indonesia by authorisation gave P T Golden Imperial Trading Coy the sole right to print features and trailers of the said film for distribution and use in the territories of Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei. By an agreement in writing between these two last mentioned companies, the sole right and licence to distribute and exhibit the film concerned was assigned to P T Golden Imperial Trading Coy. Finally, by another agreement dated 18 May 1973 made between the latter company and the plaintiff, the plaintiff was granted the sole right to distribute and exhibit the same feature film in Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei for five years commencing from 15 May 1973. In the affidavit of Yusoff bin Majid, he confirms that the plaintiff company has the sole right as described and further deposes that the defendant has obtained a copy of an identical feature film and has publicly caused to exhibit or exhibited the film in Jerantut during the period of 27 to 29 October 1973 and then in Alor Star from 4 November 1973 thereby infringing the sole right of the plaintiff company. Annexed to the affidavit of Yusoff bin Majid are two photostat copies of the alleged advertisement of the film appearing in the Utusan Melayu and the Sunday Star respectively.

In the application to dissolve the injunction, the defendant company is relying firstly, on their Statement of defence filed on 24 December 1973 and the affidavit of one Jaffar bin Abdullah, the general manager of the defendant company, affirmed on 11 December 1973 wherein they denied all allegations and that they had nothing to do with the advertisement. Also relied on by the defendant company is the affidavit of one Lee Keng Choon, who is the manager in Peninsular Malaysia of Messrs. Chop Lim Chee Siong of No. 9, Main Street, Limbang, Sarawak, who claims that by an agreement reached between Messrs. Chop Lim Chee Siong and one Andry Agus of Jalan Bungur Besar XV/6 Jakarta, Indonesia, the said Lim Chee Siong was granted the sole right to distribute and exhibit the film "Singa Betina Dari Marunda" in Singapore and Malaysia. The affidavit of Lee Keng Choon also annexes copies of the agreements. The affidavit also disputes the right of P T Sumandra Film Corporation to distribute or exhibit the said film "except in Jawa Tengah and Jogjakarta" as expressed in the copies of the agreements annexed. The affidavit also discloses that the Order of Court of Pengadilan Negeri Jakarta Pusat, Indonesia made on 10 April 1973 and referred to in the affidavit of K Abu Bakar, has been stayed by an order of the Ketua Pengadilan Tinggi, Jakarta on 30 August 1973. A copy of that Order is annexed to the affidavit.

Counsel for the defendant company cited Colt Industries, Inc v. Sarlie [1966] 3 All ER 85 and Berliner Industriebank v. Jost [1971] 2 All ER 1513 as authority for the proposition that since the Indonesian Court order in this case was not a conclusive one due to the appeal and Order of Stay, the legal right of the