Court awards RM594,000 for dependent child not named as plaintiff

 Court of Appeal says there is no legal requirement for every dependant of a deceased person to be named as a plaintiff before damages can be awarded.

The Court of Appeal said denying compensation solely because a child is not named as a plaintiff will place undue emphasis on procedural requirements while overlooking the substantive rights of dependants.

PUTRAJAYA:

The Court of Appeal has awarded RM594,353 in childcare costs to the daughter of a woman who died due to medical negligence, ruling that a dependant child does not need to be named as a plaintiff in a suit to claim compensation for loss of support.

The additional award was granted on top of RM169,900.50 in damages previously awarded by the High Court, bringing the total compensation payable to the family to RM764,254.

Justices Choo Kah Sing, Nadzarin Wok Nordin and Ahmad Shahrir Salleh allowed an appeal brought by the woman’s husband, Foyaz Shamsul Alam, a Rohingya refugee who was later resettled in New Zealand with his infant daughter.

The case arose after his wife, a 26-year-old Indonesian immigrant, died following complications after childbirth at Ampang Hospital on April 26, 2019.

The woman suffered a massive post-partum haemorrhage after giving birth and died several hours later. The government had admitted liability for the medical negligence that caused her death.

In July 2024, the High Court awarded RM169,900 in damages and RM20,000 in costs. However, it declined to grant compensation for the loss of support suffered by the daughter on grounds that she was not named as a plaintiff in the action.

Foyaz appealed, arguing that his daughter was a dependant entitled to compensation and that her claim should not be rejected merely because she was not formally listed as a party to the proceedings.

Choo, who chaired the bench, held that there was no legal requirement for every dependant of a deceased person to be named as a plaintiff before damages could be awarded.

The judge said it was sufficient for the particulars of the dependants and the nature of their dependency to be clearly set out in the statement of claim.

He said the daughter’s entitlement to compensation arose from her status as a dependant who suffered a loss of support following her mother’s death, rather than from whether she was formally named as a party to the proceedings.

The appellate court held that denying compensation solely because the child was not named as a plaintiff would place undue emphasis on procedural requirements while overlooking the substantive rights of dependants.

It also allowed the widower’s claim for additional childcare expenses incurred after the family was resettled in New Zealand.

The bench found the expenses reasonable, noting that Foyaz was the sole surviving parent and could not leave his young daughter unattended while working to support the family.

The court took note that the New Zealand government had provided the family with 20 hours of free childcare each week after their resettlement in July 2022.

However, the claim before the court was limited to the additional paid childcare hours required to enable Foyaz to work and provide for his daughter until she reached adulthood.

The appellate court also enhanced the High Court’s costs award from RM20,000 to RM70,000. Foyaz was also awarded RM50,000 in costs for the appeal.

K Karthi and Abigail Sarah Kumar appeared for Foyaz, while senior federal counsel Zetty Zurina Kamarudin and federal counsel Fariza Amira represented the government. - FMT