What did Malaysia’s Court of Appeal decide on Najib’s attendance bid?

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Court of Appeal Dismisses Najib Razak's Bid to Attend 1MDB Lawsuit Proceedings

The Court of Appeal has dismissed Datuk Seri Najib Razak's appeal concerning his attendance at proceedings related to the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) US$681 million lawsuit. The court found that the specific proceedings Najib wished to attend, which involved a Mareva injunction hearing at the High Court, had already concluded on September 27. Any decision from the current appeal would therefore be rendered academic, as the Mareva injunction matter itself is now pending a separate appeal at the Court of Appeal.
Proceedings Focused on Concluded Mareva Injunction Hearing

The Court of Appeal, comprising Justices Datuk P. Ravinthran, Datuk Seri Mariana Yahya, and Datuk Lim Chong Fong, determined that the High Court proceedings Najib sought to attend were exclusively for the hearing of a Mareva injunction. This hearing had concluded on September 27. Consequently, the court agreed with 1MDB's counsel that any ruling on Najib's attendance for these concluded proceedings would have no practical effect.
Appeal Deemed Academic Due to Timing

The bench highlighted that the Mareva injunction matter is currently under appeal at the Court of Appeal. Given this context, the court found that allowing Najib to attend the now-concluded High Court hearing would be purely academic. The court also noted that Najib was not precluded from filing a fresh application to attend the hearing of his appeal at the Court of Appeal.
High Court Previously Rejected Najib's Application

This decision by the Court of Appeal follows a previous rejection of Najib's application by the High Court. On November 10 of the previous year, High Court Judge Atan Mustafa Yusoff Ahmad had dismissed Najib's request to attend the proceedings. Najib is presently serving a 12-year sentence at Kajang Prison.
1MDB's Civil Suit and Asset Freeze

The US$681 million lawsuit was initiated by 1MDB and four of its subsidiaries against Najib, along with several former company executives including Terrence Geh Choh Heng, Jasmine Loo Ai Swan, Casey Tang Keng Chee, Vincent Beng, and Radhi Mohamad. On September 27, the High Court had previously dismissed Najib's application to lift a Mareva injunction that was imposed to prevent him from dissipating assets amounting to US$681 million. This injunction, obtained last year, freezes Najib's assets in relation to the civil claim and limits his monthly withdrawals for living and legal expenses to RM100,000, requiring written permission for any amount exceeding this limit.

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What did Malaysia’s Court of Appeal decide on Najib’s attendance bid?

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