Hubline Berhad v 1. ) INTAN WAZLIN BINTI AB WAHAB & 38 YANG LAIN 2. ) MAHKAMAH PERUSAHAAN MALAYSIA 3. ) Highline Shipping Sdn Bhd

w-01a-128-03-2021 Court of Appeal (Mahkamah Rayuan) 20 October 2025 • W-01(A)-128-03/2021 • 71 min read

40 cases cited (0 SG, 40 foreign)

Catchwords

Judicial Review - dismissal without just cause or excuse - representations were referred to the Industrial Court pursuant to s.20(3) of the Act. . - Whether s.29(a) can be used to substitute or join a non-employer entity. - Whether the Industrial Court can disregard separate legal personality to secure employee remedies. -Whether corporate group relationships justify joinder/substitution. -Limits of equitable jurisdiction under s.30(5) vis-à-vis Salomon principle. -Conflict between industrial justice and corporate law orthodoxy. -Permissibility of extending liability beyond the employer. -Effect of employer’s insolvency on employee rights.

Practice Areas

Judicial Review - Whether s.29(a) can be used to substitute or join a non-employer entity. - Whether the Industrial Court can disregard separate legal personality to secure employee remedies. -Whether corporate group relationships justify joinder/substitution. -Limits of equitable jurisdiction under s.30(5) vis-à-vis Salomon principle. -Conflict between industrial justice and corporate law orthodoxy. -Permissibility of extending liability beyond the employer. -Effect of employer’s insolvency on employee rights.

Judges (3)

Lim Chong Fong Coram Noorin binti Badaruddin Coram S. Nantha Balan a/l E.s. Moorthy Delivered

Counsel (10)

Louis Ambrose & Partners Firm Muhendaran Sri Firm Robert Low & Ooi Firm Alex De Silva Counsel Respondent Chong Wan Loo Counsel Respondent Jessica Chew Harn Hwei Counsel Respondent Khong Mei-Yan Counsel Appellant Muhendaran Suppiah Counsel Respondent Nathaniel Low Khern Ming Counsel Appellant Ryan Ng Chin Wern Counsel Appellant

Parties (4)

Highline Shipping Sdn Bhd Respondent Hubline Berhad Appellant MAHKAMAH PERUSAHAAN MALAYSIA Respondent Intan Wazlin binti Ab Wahab Respondent

Case Significance

Hubline Berhad v 1. ) INTAN WAZLIN BINTI AB WAHAB & 38 YANG LAIN 2. ) MAHKAMA... is a Court of Appeal (Mahkamah Rayuan) decision dated October 20, 2025 (citation: w-01a-128-03-2021). <p>Hubline Berhad challenged the Industrial Court's joinder of it as a party to unfair dismissal proceedings brought by 39 former employees of its subsidiary Hub Shipping Sdn Bhd, which had since gone into insolvency. The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal, quashing the joinder order and upholding the Salomon principle of separate legal personality, finding that s.29(a) of the Industrial Relations Act does not permit joining a non-employer affiliate entity.</p> The panel comprised Lim Chong Fong, Noorin binti Badaruddin and S. Nantha Balan a/l E.s. Moorthy, with S. Nantha Balan a/l E.s. Moorthy delivering the judgment.

Key issues: Judicial Review - dismissal without just cause or excuse - representations were referred to the Industrial Court pursuant to s.20(3) of the Act. ..

Summary

Hubline Berhad challenged the Industrial Court's joinder of it as a party to unfair dismissal proceedings brought by 39 former employees of its subsidiary Hub Shipping Sdn Bhd, which had since gone into insolvency. The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal, quashing the joinder order and upholding the Salomon principle of separate legal personality, finding that s.29(a) of the Industrial Relations Act does not permit joining a non-employer affiliate entity.

What was the outcome of Hubline Berhad v 1. ) INTAN WAZLIN BINTI AB WAHAB & 38 YANG LAIN 2. ) MAHKAMA...?

<p>Hubline Berhad challenged the Industrial Court's joinder of it as a party to unfair dismissal proceedings brought by 39 former employees of its sub...

Statutes Cited

Industrial Relations Act 1967 (Cap 177)

s 30(5)

Cases Cited (40)

UK (14)

[1897] AC 22 [1937] 2 All ER 227 [1937] 4 All ER 101 [1938] 4 All ER 115 [1938] 4 All ER 116 [1951] 2 KB 366 [1955] 1 All ER 725 [1955] 1 WLR 483 [1957] 1 WLR 464 [1962] 2 QB 173 [2007] EWHC 99 [2008] EWHC 2380 [2013] 2 AC 415 [2013] UKSC 34

MY (25)

[1980] 1 MLJ 109 [1981] 1 MLJ 304 [1983] 2 MLJ 49 [1986] 1 MLJ 382 [1988] 3 MLJ 332 [1995] 1 AMR 622 [1995] 1 MLJ 281 [1995] 2 MLJ 317 [1996] 4 CLJ 747 [2000] 1 CLJ 503 [2003] 4 MLRH 352 [2004] 1 CLJ 849 [2004] 1 MLJ 626 [2004] 2 AMR 104 [2005] 3 CLJ 355 [2005] 4 AMR 525 [2005] MLJU 225 [2014] 3 MLJ 785 [2015] 3 AMR 197 [2015] 3 CLJ 1053 [2015] 4 MLJ 613 [2020] 5 MLJ 58 [2021] 3 MLJ 622 [2022] AMEJ 0032 [2022] MLJU 80

IN (1)

AIR 1950 SC 304