JTrust Asia v Group Lease: Striking Out Application for Conspiracy to Defraud

In JTrust Asia Pte Ltd v Group Lease Holdings Pte Ltd, the High Court of Singapore heard an application by the first and second defendants to strike out the plaintiff's action for conspiracy to defraud. The defendants argued that the plaintiff's acquisition of the third defendant constituted an abuse of process. Justice Choo Han Teck dismissed the application, finding that the evidence needed to be tested at trial to determine the truth of the allegations. Costs were reserved to the trial judge.

1. Case Overview

1.1 Court

High Court of Singapore

1.2 Outcome

Application to strike out the plaintiff’s action is dismissed with costs reserved to the trial judge.

1.3 Case Type

Civil

1.4 Judgment Type

Judgment

1.5 Jurisdiction

Singapore

1.6 Description

JTrust Asia's action against Group Lease for conspiracy to defraud faces a striking out application, which the court dismisses, pending a full trial.

1.7 Decision Date

2. Parties and Outcomes

Party NameRoleTypeOutcomeOutcome TypeCounsels
JTrust Asia Pte LtdPlaintiffCorporationApplication to strike out dismissedNeutral
Group Lease Holdings Pte LtdDefendant, ApplicantCorporationApplication to strike out dismissedLost
Mitsuji KonoshitaDefendant, ApplicantIndividualApplication to strike out dismissedLost
Adalene LimitedDefendantCorporationNo specific outcomeNeutral
Bellaven LimitedDefendantCorporationNo specific outcomeNeutral
Aref Holdings LimitedDefendantCorporationNo specific outcomeNeutral
Baguera LimitedDefendantCorporationNo specific outcomeNeutral
Cougar Pacific Pte LtdDefendantCorporationNo specific outcomeNeutral

3. Judges

Judge NameTitleDelivered Judgment
Choo Han TeckJudgeYes

4. Counsels

Counsel NameOrganization
Chan Leng SunWong & Leow LLC
Sheik Umar bin Mohamed BagushairWong & Leow LLC
Lee Ying-Ying MichelleWong & Leow LLC
Chia Huai YuanDentons Rodyk & Davidson LLP
Edric Pan XingzhengDentons Rodyk & Davidson LLP
Zheng HuaiceDentons Rodyk & Davidson LLP
Kenneth YapWithers KhattarWong LLP
Daniel Tan Shi MinWongPartnership LLP
Nigel TeoWongPartnership LLP

4. Facts

  1. Plaintiff invested money in Group Lease Public Company Limited in Thailand.
  2. Plaintiff initiated legal action against the defendants and Group Lease Public Company Limited in various jurisdictions.
  3. The plaintiff is suing the defendants for conspiracy to defraud.
  4. The third defendant was allegedly acquired by the plaintiff.
  5. The third defendant is allegedly acting against the interests of its co-defendants.
  6. Kuga claims to be the beneficial owner of the third defendant.

5. Formal Citations

  1. JTrust Asia Pte Ltd v Group Lease Holdings Pte Ltd and others, HC/Suit No 1212 of 2017, [2019] SGHC 21

6. Timeline

DateEvent
HC/Suit No 1212 of 2017 filed
HC/Summons No 5340 of 2018 filed
Third defendant allegedly acquired by the plaintiff
Third defendant allegedly acquired by the plaintiff
Hearing date
Judgment reserved

7. Legal Issues

  1. Abuse of Process
    • Outcome: The court found that the evidence did not satisfy the threshold for contumelious conduct at this stage and dismissed the application to strike out.
    • Category: Procedural
    • Sub-Issues:
      • Denial of fair trial
      • Contumelious conduct

8. Remedies Sought

  1. Striking out of action

9. Cause of Actions

  • Conspiracy to Defraud

10. Practice Areas

  • Commercial Litigation

11. Industries

  • No industries specified

12. Cited Cases

Case NameCourtAffirmedCitationJurisdictionSignificance
ANB v ANCHigh CourtYes[2015] 5 SLR 522SingaporeCited in support of the argument that the plaintiff and the third defendant had acted contumeliously.

13. Applicable Rules

Rule Name
No applicable rules

14. Applicable Statutes

Statute NameJurisdiction
No applicable statutes

15. Key Terms and Keywords

15.1 Key Terms

  • Striking out
  • Abuse of process
  • Conspiracy to defraud
  • Beneficial owner
  • Contumelious conduct

15.2 Keywords

  • striking out
  • conspiracy
  • fraud
  • civil procedure
  • singapore

17. Areas of Law

Area NameRelevance Score
Striking out80
Civil Practice75
Conspiracy by Unlawful Means65
Commercial Fraud60
Crossclaims50
Company Law40

16. Subjects

  • Civil Litigation
  • Abuse of Process