KUALA LUMPUR – The Federal Court today dismissed Semantan Estate (1952) Sdn Bhd’s application for leave to appeal the Court of Appeal’s decision, which held that the Federal Land Registrar is not required to transfer the title of the 263.272-acre Duta Enclave land to the company.
As a result, the Court of Appeal’s ruling in favour of the government stands, as the company is unable to proceed with its appeal to the apex court due to its failure to obtain leave.
Under the law, litigants in civil cases must first obtain leave before they can proceed with an appeal to the Federal Court.
On June 24 this year, the Court of Appeal ruled that Semantan Estate is not entitled to the land title. However, the court held that Semantan Estate is entitled to adequate compensation, to be assessed based on the land’s value in 1956, when the government took possession of the land.
According to Bernama, a three-member bench at the Federal Court today, led by the Chief Judge of Malaya, Tan Sri Hasnah Mohammed Hashim, ruled that the company had failed to meet the threshold requirement under Section 96 (a) and (b) of the Courts of Judicature Act 1964.
The two other judges on the bench were Federal Court judge Datuk Hanipah Farikullah and Court of Appeal judge Datuk Che Mohd Ruzima Ghazali,
The court dismissed the application for leave without costs.
Justice Hasnah then fixed Nov 17 for case management before High Court judge Roslan Mat Nor, who will set an early hearing date for the assessment of compensation.
The disputed land, located in the prime Jalan Duta area and known as the Duta Enclave, houses several government buildings, including the National Hockey Stadium, the Malaysian Institute of Integrity, the National Archives, the Kuala Lumpur Syariah Court, the Inland Revenue Board building, and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Academy.
Does not raise constitutional questions
In delivering her final judgment, Justice Hasnah, who is retiring tomorrow, said the application filed by Semantan Estate was fact-centric and did not raise any significant constitutional questions that required further resolution or argument before the Federal Court.
In her supporting judgment, Justice Hanipah emphasised that Semantan Estate’s contention that the land should be transferred and registered in its name is inconsistent with the established legal position affirmed by the 2009 High Court order. That order did not direct the transfer or registration of the land in the company’s name.
"It recognised only an equitable entitlement, not a registrable interest under the National Land Code," she said, adding that the issue raised in the leave application—whether the applicant possesses a registrable or beneficial interest- does not present any novel or unresolved legal principle.
Justice Hanipah clarified that the applicant’s case rests upon the 2009 High Court order, which was purely declaratory in nature. It recognised the applicant’s beneficial interest and entitlement against the government but did not issue an operative order for the transfer or registration of the land.
She noted that the issues raised in the current application sought to reopen findings that had already been settled in law.
Following the delivery of the court’s decision, senior federal counsel Shamsul Bolhassan, representing several respondents, including the government, and Semantan Estate's lawyer Datuk Dr Cyrus V. Das, along with lawyer Datuk Malik Imtiaz Sarwar, who appeared for the Malaysian Bar as amicus curiae, extended their well wishes to Justices Hasnah and Hanipah on their retirement. Justice Hanipah is also scheduled to retire later this month.
Shamsul, who represented the government, also acted on behalf of the Commissioner of Federal Lands, the minister responsible for land matters in the Federal Territories, the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, the Director-General of Lands and Mines, the Director of Lands and Mines (Federal Territory), and the Registrar of Titles (Federal Territory).
Long-standing battle
Semantan Estate’s legal battle began in 2003, when it sued the government, claiming that the land had been unlawfully acquired. In 2009, Judicial Commissioner Zura Yahya ruled in favour of Semantan Estate, determining that the government had unlawfully acquired the land and that the company held a beneficial interest in it.
The government’s subsequent appeals to the Court of Appeal and Federal Court were unsuccessful. In February 2017, Semantan Estate filed a lawsuit against the Federal Land Registrar to enforce the 2009 High Court judgment.
In August last year, the High Court directed the Federal Land Registrar to effect the transfer of the land within three months of the court order. This order was overturned by the Court of Appeal.
On June 24 of this year, a three-member panel of the Court of Appeal, led by Justice Datuk Lee Swee Seng (now a Federal Court judge), ordered that the compensation sum previously decided by the High Court be reduced by RM1.325 million, which had been paid by the government in 1956.
The appellate court also ruled that Semantan Estate was entitled to mesne profits for the land, the amount of which was to be assessed by the High Court.
The Court of Appeal further instructed that both the government and Semantan Estate engage their respective valuation experts to assess the 263.272 acres of land within 90 days from the date of the judgment.
On Aug 28 of this year, the Federal Court granted Semantan Estate a stay of the Court of Appeal’s decision, pending the outcome of its leave to appeal application.
Alexie Ng, another lawyer representing Semantan Estate, told Bernama that they would seek instructions from their client on whether to file a review of today’s Federal Court decision.– November 13, 2025
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