Funeral services firm wins legal battle against DBKL over licence revocation

 Judge rules that City Hall's decision was tainted by procedural impropriety and irrationality.

DBKL produced minutes of a meeting at which the decision was allegedly made to cancel KL Funeral Services’s licence for body-management activities, but did not produce evidence showing that the revocation had been communicated to the company.

KUALA LUMPUR:

A funeral services company has won its legal battle against Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) after the High Court ruled that the council acted unfairly in revoking its business licence.

KL Funeral Services successfully challenged DBKL’s decision to revoke its licence with effect from Feb 6, 2024, with the court finding that the company had never been informed of its licence revocation or given an opportunity to defend itself.

Justice Alice Loke ruled that DBKL’s decision was tainted by procedural impropriety and irrationality.

Her grounds of judgment were read out by senior assistant registrar Nurliyana Jafri at the Kuala Lumpur High Court following Loke’s elevation to the Court of Appeal on Sept 10.

The company held a licence to sell coffins and tombstones, valid until Dec 10, 2024.

DBKL initially issued a compound notice on Dec 14, 2023, alleging that the company did not have a licence. The compound was later cancelled.

On Jan 8, 2024, DBKL issued a show-cause letter alleging that the company was conducting activities inconsistent with its licence.

KL Funeral Services responded by producing its licence.

However, on Jan 29 that year, DBKL informed the company its business licence would be revoked with effect from Feb 6.

DBKL later maintained that the company’s licence for body-management activities had actually been revoked on Aug 14, 2023.

Loke said the crucial issue was that the company had never been informed of the earlier revocation.

DBKL had produced minutes of a meeting at which the decision was allegedly made, but did not produce evidence showing that the revocation had been communicated to the company.

Loke also noted that KL Funeral Services had not been issued a show-cause notice before the Aug 14 revocation.

“If the applicant was given a right to be heard over the alleged breach of its coffin and tombstone licence, there was no reason why it should not have been given the same opportunity before the earlier licence was revoked,” she said.

Loke allowed the judicial review application and granted an order of certiorari quashing DBKL’s Jan 29 decision.

However, she declined to award damages sought by the company, saying the alleged losses had not been proved.

DBKL was ordered to pay RM5,000 in costs.

V Sivaparanjothi appeared for KL Funeral Services, while Zainol Aziz Mohamad represented DBKL. - FMT