The Court of Appeal has ruled in favour of the estate of late veteran engineer Chai Yen Chong in a long-running dispute over a parcel of land in Puchong valued at approximately RM2 million.
The appellate court overturned an earlier High Court decision, finding that the evidence clearly showed Yen Chong was the beneficial owner of the property despite it being registered under another family member’s name. The court also determined that the land had been held in trust on his behalf.
In delivering the judgment, the Court of Appeal noted that rental income from the property had consistently been paid to Yen Chong during his lifetime and that he had referred to the site as his own property in his will. The court further found that key evidence supported the estate’s claim regarding ownership of the land.
The case formed part of a broader family dispute involving property assets in both Malaysia and Australia. The court also upheld an earlier ruling that the estate was entitled to a two-thirds beneficial interest in a property in Brisbane, Australia, worth millions of ringgit.
The decision marks a significant legal victory for the estate and brings closure to a complex inheritance and trust dispute involving one of Malaysia’s most respected civil engineers, who played important roles in major infrastructure projects including the First Penang Bridge and the Jalan Kinabalu flyover in Kuala Lumpur.