The Court of Appeal has reduced the defamation damages awarded to DAP adviser Lim Guan Eng against former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin from RM1.05 million to RM450,000 over statements linked to the revocation of tax exemptions for Yayasan Albukhary.
A three-member bench comprising Justices Azhahari Kamal Ramli, Ahmad Kamal Md Shahid and Latifah Mohd Tahar unanimously allowed part of Muhyiddin’s appeal against the High Court’s earlier ruling.
Delivering the judgment, Justice Azhahari said the appellate court agreed with the High Court’s finding that three statements made by Muhyiddin on March 9, 11 and 12, 2023, were defamatory and saw no reason to disturb that conclusion.
However, the court ruled that the RM1.05 million in general damages awarded by the High Court was excessive. The panel reduced the amount to RM150,000 for each of the three statements, bringing the total to RM450,000.
The court also set aside the High Court’s awards of RM150,000 each for aggravated and exemplary damages.
At the same time, the court allowed Guan Eng’s cross-appeal on interest, ordering that interest at a rate of five per cent per annum be paid from the date of judgment until full settlement.
The panel further ordered Muhyiddin to pay RM5,000 in costs to Guan Eng, while Guan Eng was ordered to pay RM30,000 in costs to Muhyiddin.
Guan Eng filed the defamation suit in March 2023, alleging that Muhyiddin had published three defamatory statements on Facebook linking him to issues surrounding tax exemptions granted to Yayasan Albukhary. The statements were subsequently reported by several newspapers and news portals.
In November 2024, the High Court ruled in Guan Eng’s favour and awarded RM1.05 million in general damages, along with RM300,000 in aggravated and exemplary damages.
