Kuala Lampur:The Court of Appeal has dismissed Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor's request for an unconditional stay on a RM67.5 million payment to Lebanese jeweller Global Royalty Trading SAL. This decision follows her appeal against a High Court ruling concerning 43 missing pieces of jewellery.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the panel consisting of Justices Datuk Seri Mohd Firuz Jaffril, Datuk Amarjeet Singh, and Datuk Aliza Sulaiman found no exceptional grounds to justify an unconditional stay. Consequently, Rosmah, the wife of former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, must pay RM30,000 in costs.
Rosmah is appealing against the High Court's June 10 decision, which held her responsible for the jewellery's loss and ordered her to pay Global Royalty within a month. Her appeal is scheduled for March 25 next year.
Previously, on August 12, a conditional stay was granted by High Court Judicial Commissioner Marianne Antoinette Ghani, requiring Rosmah to deposit the judgment sum into a joint account managed by solicitors for both parties. During today's hearing, her lawyer, Mohamed Reza Abdul Rahim, requested a limited six-month stay to maintain the appeal's integrity, noting that Rosmah had not appealed the conditional stay nor complied with its terms.
Lawyer Datuk David Gurupatham opposed the application, arguing that Global Royalty would be denied its judgment benefits since Rosmah's assets are frozen due to a lawsuit by 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). He highlighted Rosmah's affidavit, where she claimed to have only RM20 in a dormant account. Senior Federal Counsel Siti Aishah Ramlan, representing third-party respondents, did not object to the request.
Global Royalty initiated the lawsuit on March 29, 2023, alleging Rosmah falsely claimed that 44 pieces of jewellery were seized by Malaysian authorities, with only one piece retained by the police. The jeweller contends that Rosmah wrongly attributed the loss to the government and claims the jewellery went missing.
Rosmah's legal team, including Mohamed Reza Abdul Rahim and Rajivan Nambiar, stated they would resist any enforcement of the High Court's order by Global Royalty. They maintain that the jeweller's claim lacks factual and legal basis and are considering further legal actions to protect their client's rights during the appeal process.