75-year-old risks jail over non-compliance in matrimonial dispute

A 75-year-old man faces imprisonment for an indefinite term if he fails to comply with court orders relating to the disclosure and division of his matrimonial assets.

The Court of Appeal upheld his conviction by the High Court for contempt but deferred his imprisonment to give him time to comply with the orders.

A three-member bench comprising Justices Azizul Azmi Adnan, Ong Chee Kwan and Radzi Harun said the man would be jailed until full compliance if he failed to meet the deadlines imposed.

Among the orders was a requirement that he disclose the whereabouts of 100kg of gold and 2,840kg of silver bullion.

The contempt proceedings arose from a High Court judgment on Nov 24, 2024, ordering the equal division of the couple’s matrimonial assets.

The wife, 74, estimated the couple’s movable and immovable assets at about RM60 million based on current values.

The parties were initially required to obtain a joint valuation of the assets.

When this was not done, the High Court issued a consequential order on Feb 25, 2025, allowing the wife to appoint the valuers, with the husband bearing their fees.

The wife then initiated contempt proceedings over his failure to comply.

In the High Court, Justice Sumathi Murugiah found beyond reasonable doubt that the husband had breached the post-trial and consequential orders.

She gave him 30 days to comply or face imprisonment, imposing a daily fine of RM20,000 pending full compliance.

The matrimonial dispute of the couple, who tied the knot in 1977, arose from allegations of adultery, leading to their separation.

According to the wife, the husband confessed to an affair in September 2022 – an allegation he denied on grounds that he suffered from erectile dysfunction.

In an earlier judgment, High Court judge Evrol Mariette Peters – now a Court of Appeal judge – found that adultery had taken place and dissolved the marriage.

She ordered the equal division of the couple’s matrimonial assets and directed the co-respondent, a 50‑year‑old woman anonymised as KAI, to pay the wife RM200,000 in damages.

The Court of Appeal upheld the adultery finding and dismissed KAI’s appeal, leaving the damages award intact.

The appellate court also agreed that the matrimonial assets should be divided equally, ruling that contempt and fault for the breakdown of the marriage were irrelevant considerations.

However, the husband’s appeal was partly allowed in relation to certain orders concerning the matrimonial properties.

The husband and KAI were ordered to pay the wife a total of RM150,000 in costs.

Goh Siu Lin, Denise Lim and Teoh Xin Ning represented the wife, while Latheefa Koya, Eric Paulsen, Thiruna Jaya Kumar and Wan Nabilah Dina acted for the husband.

Rajesh Nagarajan and Arjun Mohanakrishnan represented KAI.

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