Harjinder Kaur A/P Ajaib Singh

On the court record

Harjinder Kaur A/P Ajaib Singh appears in the corpus in commercial litigation touching contract construction, the stay of proceedings and asset-preservation injunctions, argued in the High Court (Mahkamah Tinggi) and the Court of Appeal (Mahkamah Rayuan). One Court of Appeal matter, appearing for the appellant, concerned the early termination of a three-year tenancy for turf farming and turned on the construction of a 'Notwithstanding' clause: the court held that an early-termination clause operated independently of the default clause, permitting termination on three months' notice without the need to assign reasons or obtain mutual consent, gave the word 'notwithstanding' its plain meaning, held the termination valid notwithstanding the surrounding investigative context, found the doctrine of legitimate expectation inapplicable to a private-law dispute and section 29 of the Contracts Act 1950 not engaged, and allowed the appeal with costs. A second matter, in the High Court and appearing for the defendant, was an application to stay proceedings pending the determination of a related action and the outcome of a post-winding-up action, which required the court to consider whether the test of special circumstances or the rare-and-compelling-circumstances test applied, whether there was a risk of conflicting findings, and whether a temporary stay served the efficient and fair resolution of the dispute as a whole. A third matter, appearing for the intervener, concerned a Mareva injunction, and turned on whether the elements were satisfied — a good arguable case, assets within the jurisdiction, and a real risk of dissipation supported by allegations of dishonest conduct and non-performance — and whether a private caveat negated the risk of dissipation; the injunction was ordered. A common thread is the emphasis the courts place on the parties' bargain and on the strict tests that govern interlocutory intervention, whether the question is the plain meaning of a termination clause, the special circumstances required for a stay, or the real risk of dissipation needed for a freezing order. Across the appearances the practice combines close contractual construction with the interlocutory tools by which litigation is paused or by which assets are frozen pending judgment.