PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal has dismissed the Malaysian Competition Commission’s appeal to reinstate its RM86.77mil proposed fine against Grab Inc. and its two subsidiaries over the ride-hailing firm's anti-competitive practice.
A three-judge panel, comprising Justices Datuk S. Nantha Balan, Datuk Lim Chong Fong and Datuk Ahmad Kamal Md Shahid, delivered the unanimous decision on Wednesday (March 19).
They also ordered the commission to pay RM50,000 in legal costs.
Justice Lim, in reading the court's decision, said that there were no merits in the commission’s appeal.
The judge said that there was no internal remedial procedural available to Grab Inc., Grabcar Sdn Bhd, and Myteksi Sdn Bhd to appeal against the proposed decision.
He also said that the High Court judge did not make any error in his ruling that the investigation carried out by the commission against the companies was tainted with procedural impropriety.
Justice Lim said that the commission’s handling of the 2019 complaint was cavalier, constituting procedural impropriety.
He also said there was no evidence to show that companies had been notified by the commission of the investigation into the 2019 complaint, depriving them of the opportunity to understand the specific allegations against them.
On July 6, 2023, Grab Inc., Grabcar Sdn Bhd, and Myteksi Sdn Bhd successfully obtained a certiorari order from the High Court, quashing the proposed fine, leading the commission to appeal the decision.
The case began when the three companies filed a judicial review in December 2019 to challenge the RM86.77mil proposed fine for alleged violations of the Competition Act, specifically restrictive clauses imposed on their drivers.
In February 2020, the Kuala Lumpur High Court dismissed the trio's application as it deemed the move premature, given that the proposed decision was not final yet.
However, Grab appealed, and in April 2021, the Appellate Court allowed the appeal, granting leave for judicial review and remitting the case to the High Court for a full hearing on its merits.
In 2022, the Federal Court dismissed the commission’s application to obtain leave to appeal against the Appellate Court's decision, paving the way for the High Court to conduct a substantive hearing on the judicial review later that year.
In Wednesday’s proceedings, the commission was represented by lawyers Tan Sri Tommy Thomas and Mervyn Lai Wei Shiung, while a legal team led by Datuk Malik Imtiaz Sarwar represented the companies. - Bernama
