Court of Appeal overturns RM50,000 defamation award to Guan Eng
The court also dismisses the ex-finance minister's cross-appeal, which seeks an increase in the damages awarded, and orders him to pay RM30,000 in costs.
The Court of Appeal has overturned a High Court ruling, reducing a defamation award from RM50,000 to RM30,000 against former housing and local government minister Zuraida Kamaruddin. The decision was made unanimously by Justices Firuz Jaffril, Ahmad Kamal Shahid, and Amarjeet Singh. The appellate panel dismissed Lim Guan Eng's cross-appeal seeking an increase in damages and ordered him to pay RM30,000 in costs.
The court found that the statements made by Zuraida in an article were not defamatory, stating that there were obvious errors in the High Court's judgment. The panel highlighted inconsistencies in the High Court's findings regarding the defence of justification and malice. The defamation case began in June 2024 when Lim filed a suit against Zuraida and MalaysiaNow's publisher and editor for allegedly defaming him regarding a housing project for former plantation workers in Bestari Jaya.
Written by urgent.news from Free Malaysia Today's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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