KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 19 — The Federal Court yesterday reportedly handed down a unanimous ruling that an illegitimate non-Muslim child is entitled to a share in the estate of a parent who died without a will.
The ruling was based on the definition of the word “issue” in the Distribution Act 1958 which must include a blood relationship to a deceased parent regardless of the child’s legitimacy, Federal Court Judge Datuk Mary Lim said while delivering the ruling, according to a report by online news portal Free Malaysia Today.
The focus of the appeal was whether the terms “child” and “issue” used in the Act should be read in an unbiased way because of Article 8 in the Federal Constitution, she reportedly said.
Article 8 states that all are equal before the law and are entitled to equal protection.
The court also reportedly awarded costs of RM50,000 to the 21-year-old woman.
The report said that her deceased biological father was a wealthy businessman who was not legally married to her mother.
She was reportedly represented by Cyrus Das and AG Kalidas.
The other judges who heard the appeal were Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Abdul Datuk Rahman Sebli and Datuk Seri Hasnah Mohammed Hashim.
The woman reportedly attempted to claim her share of her deceased father’s estate in 2010 but was rejected by his lawful wife.
She then reportedly filed a suit in 2015 to claim her inheritance under the Distribution Act but the widow pursued a declaration that the woman was illegitimate; thus, having no claim to the estate.
The declaration was reportedly granted by the High Court in 2018 and the Court of Appeal upheld it in 2019.
The widow was reportedly represented by Loh Chang Woo.
