JUDGMENT

Gopal Sri Ram JCA:

Preliminary

This case demonstrates the terrible harm that may be visited upon the litigant's head because of his solicitor's mistake. We hasten to add that the solicitor concerned is no longer on record in the proceedings before us.

Whenever possible; where there is no risk of sacrifice of principle in the name of justice or at the altar of convenience; we do our best to ensure that a lay client does not suffer because of the mistake of his legal advisers. We do so in the interests of justice. When we act, we always bear in mind what Lord Denning said in Doyle v. Olby Ltd [1969] 2 All ER 119, 121:

We never allow a client to suffer for the mistake of his counsel if we can possibly help it. We will always seek to rectify it as far we can. We will correct it whenever we are able to do so without injustice to the other side.

Sometimes the error has seriously affected the course of the evidence, in which case we can best order a new trial.

We have intervened where counsel makes an erroneous admission of law. See, Lee Hock Ning V. Government Of Malaysia [1972]. But it is not possible where our decision would be in defiance of established principle or where