Horizon Tower En bloc Sale Court of Appeal Judgment is out today

The minority's appeal against High Court Judgment to allow Horizon Tower En bloc sales is granted today!.

After almost two years legal battles, the case is come to the end. To some happiness or to others' sorrow, the justice is done and be seen to be done. Praise be to the Lord.

Court of Appeal Nos 119 and 120 of 2008
Judge:

Chan Sek Keong CJ, Andrew Phang Boon Leong JA and VK Rajah JA on Feb 03, 2009; April 2, 2009

The judgment fills the gap of legislation of collective sales, which was first introduced in 1999. The intention of such legislation was intended to promote the rejuvenation of older estates as well as the optimal use of prime land to build more quality housing in land-scarce Singapore. However, in the last decade, periodic price surges in the property market have prompted some housing estates to carry out collective sales even in the absence of an immediate or urgent need for rejuvenation or upgrading. The lure of "windfall profits" has been a siren song for many (especially absent landlords and speculators), to the detriment of those who do not want to lose their homes at any price. As a result, bitter acrimony and strained relationships have often arisen between owners who want to sell and those who do not want to sell their units. The unedifying drama and intrigue that an en bloc sales can precipitate has been captured in vivid and unflattering detail in the press and even in a recent TV soap opera.

The present appeals' judgment however, makes clear many grey areas in collective sales legislation. That is why this judgment is called a landmark and benchmark to guide future collective sales. It has answered the critical questions such as: the duties of a Sale Committee (SC) to the subsidiary proprietors; what is meaning of "good faith"? etc

According to this judgment, the SC is the agent of the subsidiary proprietors collectively in relation to the collective sale of their strata units. The common law requirement of express or implied assent by the principal is not relevant in the context of a statutory scheme, the very purpose of which is to allow the sales of the strata development against the wishes of objecting subsidiary proprietors.

A fiduciary relationship between an SC and the subsidiary proprietors arises from the underlying agency relationship. Therefore, the duties of an SC include, not limited to:

a) the duty of loyalty or fidelity;
b) the duty of even-handedness;
c) the duty to avoid any conflict of interest;
d) the duty to make full disclosure of relevant information; and
e) the duty to obtain the best price for the properties of the subsidiary proprietors.