Funeral services firm wins legal battle against DBKL over licence revocation

A funeral services company, KL Funeral Services, has prevailed in its legal challenge against Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) following a High Court ruling that the council's revocation of its business license was unfair. The court found that DBKL had failed to inform the company of the revocation or provide an opportunity to defend itself.

KL Funeral Services held a valid licence to sell coffins and tombstones until December 10, 2024. The dispute began in January 2024 when DBKL issued a show-cause letter alleging that the company's activities were inconsistent with its licence. Despite producing its licence, DBKL informed KL Funeral Services that its business licence would be revoked with effect from February 6, 2024.

The crucial issue, according to Justice Alice Loke, was that the company had never been notified of the earlier revocation. DBKL had presented minutes of a meeting in which the decision was allegedly made, but did not provide evidence that the revocation had been communicated to the company. Loke also noted that KL Funeral Services was not given a show-cause notice before the August 14 revocation.

She allowed the judicial review application and granted an order of certiorari quashing DBKL's January 29 decision. However, she declined to award damages, stating that the alleged losses had not been proven. DBKL was ordered to pay RM5,000 in costs.