Chew Eng Han v Public Prosecutor: Criminal Reference & Public Interest Law

1. Case Overview

2. Parties and Outcomes

3. Judges

4. Counsels

4. Facts

1. Chew Eng Han applied for leave to refer questions of law of public interest to the Court of Appeal.
2. The application arose from the prosecution of six leaders of City Harvest Church.
3. The High Court had previously heard and decided on the appeal from the District Court.
4. The Court of Appeal found that the questions raised were either questions of fact, settled questions of law, or questions that did not arise from the case before the High Court.
5. The Court of Appeal emphasized the principle of finality in the judicial process.
6. The questions posed by the Applicant touched only on the convictions of the accused persons and not on the factors taken into account in sentencing them.
7. The questions touching on the CBT charges only pertained to the High Court’s findings on the elements of misappropriation and dishonesty.

5. Formal Citations

1. Chew Eng Han v Public Prosecutor, Criminal Motion No 10 of 2017, [2017] SGCA 60
2. Public Prosecutor v Lam Leng Hung and others, , [2015] SGDC 326
3. Public Prosecutor v Lam Leng Hung and other appeals, , [2017] 4 SLR 474
4. Raffles Town Club Pte Ltd v Lim Eng Hock Peter and others (Tung Yu-Lien Margaret and others, third parties), , [2010] SGHC 163
5. Raffles Town Club Pte Ltd v Lim Eng Hock Peter and others and other appeals, , [2013] 1 SLR 374
6. Periasamy s/o Sinnappan and another v Public Prosecutor, , [1996] 2 MLJ 557
7. Lee Siew Boon Winston v Public Prosecutor, , [2015] SGCA 67
8. Huang Liping v Public Prosecutor, , [2016] 4 SLR 716
9. Public Prosecutor v Teo Chu Ha, , [2014] 4 SLR 600
10. Mohammad Faizal bin Sabtu and another v Public Prosecutor and another matter, , [2013] 2 SLR 141
11. Public Prosecutor v Li Weiming and others, , [2014] 2 SLR 393
12. TUC v TUD, , [2017] SGHCF 15
13. Mah Kah Yew v Public Prosecutor, , [1968-1970] SLR(R) 851
14. Tan Tze Chye v Public Prosecutor, , [1997] 1 SLR(R) 876
15. Phang Wah and others v Public Prosecutor, , [2012] 1 SLR 646
16. Yeow Fook Yuen v R, , [1965] 2 MLJ 80

6. Timeline

7. Legal Issues

1. Criminal Reference
   • Outcome: The Court of Appeal dismissed the application for leave to refer questions of law of public interest.
   • Category: Procedural
   • Sub-Issues:
     • Leave to refer question of law of public interest
2. Misappropriation
   • Outcome: The court held that misappropriation refers to setting apart or assigning to the wrong person or wrong use.
   • Category: Substantive
   • Sub-Issues:
     • Wrong use of money or property
     • Unauthorized use of money or property
3. Dishonesty
   • Outcome: The court held that dishonesty involves an intention to do an act that would cause wrongful gain or wrongful loss to another in circumstances where the accused knew that he was not legally entitled to do that act.
   • Category: Substantive
   • Sub-Issues:
     • Intention to cause wrongful loss
     • Knowledge of unauthorized use of funds
4. Account Falsification
   • Outcome: The court held that intent to defraud requires an intent to deceive, and through that deception, to gain a benefit or cause an injury.
   • Category: Substantive
   • Sub-Issues:
     • False entries in accounts
     • Intent to defraud

8. Remedies Sought

1. No remedies sought

9. Cause of Actions

• No cause of actions

10. Practice Areas

• Criminal Law

11. Industries

• Religious Organization

12. Cited Cases

13. Applicable Rules

14. Applicable Statutes

15. Key Terms and Keywords

17. Areas of Law

16. Subjects

• Criminal Law
• Criminal Procedure
• Sentencing