Oct 5 for LHDN appeal hearing against Najib's daughter in income tax case

The Court of Appeal has fixed Oct 5 to hear the Inland Revenue Board's (LHDN) appeal against a High Court's dismissal of its application for a summary judgment against former prime minister Najib Razak's daughter, Nooryana Najwa, over allegations of unpaid income tax.

Lawyer Wee Yeong Kang, representing Nooryana, confirmed the hearing date following case management before Court of Appeal deputy registrar Norshakinah Ahmad Kamarudin yesterday. 

On Aug 26, 2020, Shah Alam High Court judge Faizah Jamaludin dismissed LHDN's application to obtain a summary judgment against Nooryana to recover RM10.3 million in unpaid income tax.

On July 24, 2019, the government as the plaintiff filed a writ of summons through LHDN in the High Court, naming Nooryana as the defendant.

According to the statement of claim, LHDN alleged that Nooryana had failed to submit individual income tax return forms to the agency, under Section 77 of the Income Tax Act 1967, for the years of assessment from 2011 to 2017.

LHDN contended that to date, she had not paid income tax owed, including increases, worth a total of RM10,335,292.36. 

Meanwhile, the Federal Court set July 15 for another case management in the appeal of Najib and his son, Nazifuddin, over the summary judgment entered against them regarding the payment of income tax amounting to RM1.69 billion and RM37.6 million respectively, to LHDN.

They were given leave to proceed with their appeals in the Federal Court in May this year on nine questions of law for the Federal Court to decide.

Wee, who also represents Najib and Nazifuddin, confirmed the date following case management before Federal Court deputy registrar Norhafizah Zainal Abidin today.

Two separate High Courts had allowed LHDN's applications to enter the summary judgment for the recovery of tax arrears worth RM1.69 billion from Najib and RM37.6 million from Nazifuddin, for the period of between 2011 and 2017.

A summary judgment is obtained when the court decides on a case through written submissions, without a full trial or calling witnesses.

Najib and Nazifuddin lost their appeals to set aside the summary judgment in the Court of Appeal in September last year.