Avinder Singh Gill a/l Ranjit Singh

On the judicial record

A guide to how a High Court judge handles drug trafficking under the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, criminal-procedure questions of remand, hostile witnesses and prosecution appeals, and financial-crime forfeiture under the anti-money-laundering and anti-corruption statutes.

Avinder Singh Gill a/l Ranjit Singh sits in the High Court, and this collection combines criminal work with a civil and commercial list, authored in English with precise catchwords. Drug prosecutions under section 39B(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 recur, including trafficking in substantial quantities of cannabis and methamphetamine alongside possession charges under section 6 of the same Act. Criminal procedure is a strong strand: criminal revision of a remand order and the mandatory duty of inquiry before such an order is made, a prosecution's appeal against an acquittal and the role of the appellate court in re-assessing the evidence, and an application to treat a prosecution witness as hostile under section 154 of the Evidence Act 1950. Financial crime features through civil forfeiture of property under sections 56 and 61 of the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act, and a charge of failing to report gratification under section 25(1) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Act 2009. Sexual offences appear through an appeal concerning rape under section 375(g) of the Penal Code and the requirement of penile penetration where the complainant was uncertain what had penetrated her. The civil side includes a landlord-and-tenant dispute over a sub-tenancy, redevelopment and vacant possession, and a trusts dispute over an irrevocable trust from which the settlor and spouse were expressly excluded. The judgments identify the governing provision and apply it closely to the facts. Accused persons and private litigants are referred to by role; corporate, governmental and statutory parties are named. A recurring theme is the court's attention to the precise statutory elements — of possession, of forfeiture, of the offence charged — and to the procedural safeguards that surround an arrest, a remand and a forfeiture. The collection is a clear guide to how a High Court judge handles drug crime, criminal procedure, financial-crime forfeiture and a varied civil list, and to the discipline with which each statutory element is tested against the evidence.