Justice Amarjeet Singh, delivering the appellate court’s judgment, said the High Court had correctly applied the law on binding precedents when striking out the buyers’ suit.
“There was no error of law committed,” Amarjeet said when delivering the unanimous decision of a three-member bench chaired by Justice Shahnaz Sulaiman.
Also on the panel hearing the appeal was Justice Nadzarin Wok Nordin.
The court also ordered the homebuyers to pay Symphony Hills RM60,000 in costs, jointly or severally.
Between 2017 and 2019, the homebuyers signed sale and purchase agreements with Symphony Hills to buy landed properties in Shah Alam, with vacant possession to be delivered within 24 months.
However, the Controller of Housing allowed the developer to extend the deadline for delivery to 36 months.
In 2021, the homebuyers sued the developer alleging that the extension of time granted by the controller was invalid as it was ultra vires of the Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Act 1966.
The matter was initially set for trial at the High Court.
However, before the commencement of trial, the homebuyers filed an application to have the dispute determined on points of law.
Today, the Court of Appeal held that only extensions of time given by the controller after Nov 26, 2019, were unlawful. Since the extension was granted to Symphony Hills before the cut-off date, the court held it to be valid.
The date corresponds with a landmark Federal Court decision in the case of Ang Ming Lee v Menteri Kesejahteraan Bandar, Perumahan dan Kerajaan Tempatan (2020).
In that case, the apex court struck down Regulation 11(3) of the Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Regulations 1989, holding that it was ultra vires the Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Act 1966.
Last year, in the case of Obata-Ambak Holdings Sdn Bhd v Prema Bonanza Sdn Bhd & Others, the Federal Court said the Ang Ming Lee ruling would only apply to extensions of time granted by the controller after the cut-off date.
The ruling is consistent with a long-established legal doctrine of prospective overruling which stipulates that a court ruling only applies to future, and not past, cases.
Lawyers Leonard Yeoh, Caleb Sio and Chen Mei Yan acted for the developer while Nashitoh Kassim, Nurin Ayuni Nazira Nazri, Armisya Nur Shafiqa Samsudin acted for the homebuyers.