Court of Appeal Grants Najib and Nazifuddin Stay of Bankruptcy Proceedings Over RM1.7 Billion Tax Dispute

PUTRAJAYA, Sept 4 — The Court of Appeal today granted former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his son, Datuk Mohd Nazifuddin, a stay of bankruptcy proceedings pending the outcome of their tax assessment appeals.

A three-judge bench comprising Justices Datuk Dr Alwi Abdul Wahab, Datuk Dr Shahnaz Sulaiman, and Datuk Ong Chee Kwan unanimously allowed the duo’s appeal to set aside a High Court decision from Nov 17 last year, which had previously dismissed their applications for a stay.

Delivering the ruling, Justice Alwi stated that halting the bankruptcy proceedings was warranted as the appellants had raised specific legal and factual issues that must first be determined before the Special Commissioners of Income Tax (SCIT).

“The stay is warranted as the appellants have raised specific issues to be determined before the Special Commissioners of Income Tax, which constitutes sufficient grounds for granting the applications,” Justice Alwi held in the unanimous judgment.

Najib and Nazifuddin sought the stay to pause bankruptcy action initiated by the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) while their appeals against additional tax assessments remain pending before the SCIT.

The bankruptcy notices originated from separate High Court summary judgments awarded to the IRB concerning alleged unpaid tax arrears for the assessment years spanning 2011 to 2017. Under those judgments, the IRB is seeking to recover RM1.69 billion from Najib and RM37.6 million from Nazifuddin.

–NMT