Orion-One v MCST: Construction Defects, Locus Standi, and Interpretation of 'Good and Workmanlike Manner'

In a dispute over construction defects at Northstar @ AMK, Management Corporation Strata Title Plan No 3556 (MCST) sued Orion-One Development Pte Ltd (in liquidation) and Sanchoon Builders Pte Ltd. The MCST alleged breaches of sale and purchase agreements (SPAs) and tortious negligence. The High Court found Orion-One and Sanchoon partly liable. Both Orion-One and the MCST appealed. The Court of Appeal addressed issues of locus standi, hearsay evidence, the definition of 'good and workmanlike manner,' and liability for design defects. The Court allowed Orion-One's appeal in part and the MCST's appeal in part.

1. Case Overview

1.1 Court

Court of Appeal of the Republic of Singapore

1.2 Outcome

Appeal allowed in part; Cross-appeal allowed in part.

1.3 Case Type

Civil

1.4 Judgment Type

Judgment

1.5 Jurisdiction

Singapore

1.6 Description

The Court of Appeal addressed construction defects in Northstar @ AMK, focusing on locus standi, hearsay evidence, and the interpretation of 'good and workmanlike manner'.

1.7 Decision Date

14 November 2019

2. Parties and Outcomes

Party Name	Role	Type	Outcome	Outcome Type	Counsels
Orion-One Development Pte Ltd (in liquidation)	Appellant, Respondent, Defendant	Corporation	Appeal allowed in part	Partial	Chuah Chee Kian Christopher of WongPartnership LLP Low Ching Wei Justin of WongPartnership LLP Mindy Yap of WongPartnership LLP
Management Corporation Strata Title Plan No 3556 (suing on behalf of itself and all subsidiary proprietors of Northstar @ AMK)	Respondent, Appellant, Plaintiff	Corporation	Appeal allowed in part	Partial	Lim Chee San of Tan Lim Partnership Edmond Pereira of Edmond Pereira Law Corporation Goh Chui Ling of Edmond Pereira Law Corporation Jessica Cheung of Edmond Pereira Law Corporation
Sanchoon Builders Pte Ltd	Defendant	Corporation	Judgment against Defendant	Lost

3. Judges

Judge Name	Title	Delivered Judgment
Andrew Phang Boon Leong	Judge of Appeal	Yes
Tay Yong Kwang	Judge of Appeal	No
Woo Bih Li	Judge	No

4. Counsels

Counsel Name	Organization
Chuah Chee Kian Christopher	WongPartnership LLP
Low Ching Wei Justin	WongPartnership LLP
Mindy Yap	WongPartnership LLP
Lim Chee San	Tan Lim Partnership
Edmond Pereira	Edmond Pereira Law Corporation
Goh Chui Ling	Edmond Pereira Law Corporation
Jessica Cheung	Edmond Pereira Law Corporation

4. Facts

The MCST sued Orion-One and Sanchoon for alleged defects in the Building.
The claim against Orion-One was for breaches of the SPAs.
The claim against Sanchoon was in tort and contract.
The Judge allowed the MCST to reopen its case to file affidavits from SPs.
The Judge allowed the MCST's claims against Orion-One and Sanchoon in part.
Orion-One and the MCST appealed the Judge's decision.
Sanchoon did not appeal.

5. Formal Citations

Orion-One Development Pte Ltd (in liquidation) v Management Corporation Strata Title Plan No 3556 (suing on behalf of itself and all subsidiary proprietors of Northstar @ AMK) and another appeal, Civil Appeal No 90 of 2019, [2019] SGCA 66
Management Corporation Strata Title Plan No 3556 (suing on behalf of itself and all subsidiary proprietors of Northstar @ AMK) v Orion-One Development Pte Ltd (in liquidation) and another, , [2019] SGHC 70

6. Timeline

Date	Event
2014-01-01	Suit No 652 of 2014 filed
2016-10-01	Trial commenced
2017-03-01	Trial concluded
2017-05-01	Written closing submissions exchanged
2017-07-31	Oral closing submissions heard
2017-08-07	Application to reopen case filed
2019-11-01	Judgment reserved
2019-11-15	Judgment delivered

7. Legal Issues

Locus Standi
- Outcome: The Court of Appeal held that the MCST validly represented the SPs who had signed the LOAs, the authenticity of which was not disputed.
- Category: Procedural
Hearsay Evidence
- Outcome: The Court of Appeal held that the LOAs were admissible because their authenticity was not disputed, and their contents coincided with their form.
- Category: Evidence
Interpretation of 'Good and Workmanlike Manner'
- Outcome: The Court of Appeal held that the standard of 'good and workmanlike manner' required that the common property be constructed with proper care and skill, according to the Specifications and approved plans.
- Category: Substantive
Liability for Design Defects
- Outcome: The Court of Appeal held that Orion-One was not liable for design omissions unless the Building was not constructed in a good and workmanlike manner according to the Specifications and approved plans.
- Category: Substantive
Mitigation of Losses
- Outcome: The Court of Appeal clarified that the Judge's findings on mitigation were not final and that the parties could adduce further evidence on this point during the assessment of damages.
- Category: Substantive
Definition of Common Property
- Outcome: The Court of Appeal held that the MCST failed to prove that the Corridor Walls were common property because it failed to adduce the strata title plans in evidence.
- Category: Substantive

8. Remedies Sought

Monetary Damages

9. Cause of Actions

Breach of Contract
Negligence

10. Practice Areas

Construction Law
Commercial Litigation

11. Industries

Construction

12. Cited Cases

Case Name	Court	Affirmed	Citation	Jurisdiction	Significance
Soon Peck Wah v Woon Che Chye	Court of Appeal	Yes	[1997] 3 SLR(R) 430	Singapore	Cited for the definition of hearsay evidence.
Jet Holding Ltd and others v Cooper Cameron (Singapore) Pte Ltd and another and other appeals	Court of Appeal	Yes	[2006] 3 SLR(R) 769	Singapore	Cited to distinguish between the authenticity of a document and the truth of its contents.
Prince Court Medical Centre Sdn Bhd v Germguard Technologies (M) Sdn Bhd	Malaysian Court of Appeal	Yes	[2016] 4 MLJ 1	Malaysia	Cited regarding the discretion to allow a party to reopen its case.
Management Corporation Strata Title Plan No 2297 v Seasons Park Ltd	N/A	Yes	[2005] 2 SLR(R) 613	Singapore	Cited regarding liability for design defects.
Tan Cheng Bock v Attorney-General	Court of Appeal	Yes	[2017] 2 SLR 850	Singapore	Cited for the principle that primacy should be accorded to the text of the provision and its statutory context over any extraneous material when interpreting legislation.
Sit Kwong Lam v Management Corporation Strata Title Plan No 2645	High Court	Yes	[2017] SGHC 57	Singapore	Cited for the proposition that common property must serve a common purpose.
Sit Kwong Lam v Management Corporation Strata Title Plan No 2645	N/A	Yes	[2018] 1 SLR 790	Singapore	Cited for the proposition that common property must serve a common purpose.
Sykes v Sykes	N/A	Yes	(1995) 6 BCLR (3d) 296	N/A	Cited regarding the discretion to allow a party to reopen its case.

13. Applicable Rules

Rule Name
No applicable rules

14. Applicable Statutes

Statute Name	Jurisdiction
Building Maintenance and Strata Management Act (Cap 30C, 2008 Rev Ed)	Singapore

15. Key Terms and Keywords

15.1 Key Terms

Letters of Authorisation
Sale and Purchase Agreements
Good and Workmanlike Manner
Common Property
Design Defects
Mitigation
Hearsay Evidence
Locus Standi

15.2 Keywords

construction defects
locus standi
hearsay
good and workmanlike manner
design defects
mitigation
common property

17. Areas of Law

Area Name	Relevance Score
Construction Law	90
Construction Torts	80
Breach of Contract	70
Contractors’ duties	70
Duty as to materials and workmanship	70
Duty to design	70
Contractual Interpretation	60
Negligence	60
Property Law	50
Evidence	40
Civil Procedure	30
Company Law	20

16. Subjects

Construction Dispute
Contract Law
Civil Procedure
Evidence Law