SPRINGSPHERE SDN. BHD. v PENTADBIR TANAH DAERAH JOHOR BAHRU

Case Significance

Illustrates the High Court's role, sitting with assessors, in reviewing and adjusting a Land Administrator's award of compensation under the Land Acquisition Act 1960, including the determination of a fair market value and additional compensation for a compulsory acquisition.

This High Court decision at Johor Bahru is a land reference arising from the compulsory acquisition of part of the appellant's land under the Land Acquisition Act 1960 for a cross-border rapid transit rail project. The Land Administrator had acquired a portion of the appellant's lot and awarded compensation, and the appellant, dissatisfied with the amount, lodged an objection in the prescribed form, which was referred to the High Court and heard with the assistance of two assessors. Several questions arose: the correct date of acquisition — in particular, whether it fell at the time the land was gazetted under one section of the Act or another; whether the appellant's objection to the compensation could be entertained at all, given the contention that it raised no question of law; whether the market value adopted by the Land Administrator was a fair and proper market value; and whether the acquisition had caused injurious affection or severance affecting the remainder of the appellant's land. Having considered the parties' written and oral submissions and taken the advice of the assessors, the court adjusted the market value of the acquired land upward, fixing it at a rate of RM6,135 per square metre. It awarded additional compensation of RM2,141,535.46, to be paid within three months of receipt of the sealed order, failing which a late-payment charge of 5 percent per annum would run from the date of the relevant award form until full payment. The court also ordered the return of the appellant's deposit and dealt with the costs of the government and private assessors. In arriving at the revised figure the court was guided by the advice of the assessors on questions of valuation, reflecting the specialised, evidence-driven nature of a land reference in which the assessors' expertise on market value carries considerable weight. The judgment illustrates the High Court's role, sitting with assessors, in reviewing and adjusting a Land Administrator's award of compensation for a compulsory acquisition, including the determination of a fair market value.