Chip Hup Hup Kee Construction v Lim Lian Choon: Employee Breach of Duty & Amendment of Pleadings

Chip Hup Hup Kee Construction Pte Ltd sued Lim Lian Choon, a former employee, in the High Court of Singapore, alleging breach of duty for misappropriating charges, failing to keep records, and failing to account for monies from disposal of plant and machinery. The defendant counterclaimed wrongful termination. The plaintiff applied to amend its pleadings to include a specific incident of the defendant's alleged wrongful disposal of equipment. The court granted the plaintiff's application to amend the pleadings.

1. Case Overview

1.1 Court

High Court

1.2 Outcome

Plaintiff's application to amend pleadings granted.

1.3 Case Type

Civil

1.4 Judgment Type

Grounds of Decision

1.5 Jurisdiction

Singapore

1.6 Description

Construction company Chip Hup Hup Kee sued former employee Lim Lian Choon for breach of duty. The court allowed the plaintiff to amend pleadings.

1.7 Decision Date

2. Parties and Outcomes

Party NameRoleTypeOutcomeOutcome TypeCounsels
Chip Hup Hup Kee Construction Pte LtdPlaintiffCorporationApplication to amend pleadings grantedWon
Lim Lian ChoonDefendantIndividualApplication to amend pleadings grantedLost

3. Judges

Judge NameTitleDelivered Judgment
Kan Ting ChiuJudgeYes

4. Counsels

Counsel NameOrganization
Ling Daw Hoang PhilipWong Tan & Molly Lim LLC
Hwa Hoon LuanWong Tan & Molly Lim LLC
Khoo Boo Teck RandolphDrew & Napier LLC
Chew Ching LiDrew & Napier LLC
Loo Teck Lee JohnsonDrew & Napier LLC

4. Facts

  1. Chip Hup Hup Kee Construction sued its former employee, Lim Lian Choon, for breach of duty.
  2. Lim Lian Choon was employed as Site Foreman and Plant and Machinery Manager.
  3. Chip Hup Hup Kee Construction alleged Lim Lian Choon misappropriated charges, failed to keep records, and failed to account for monies.
  4. Lim Lian Choon denied the claims and counterclaimed for wrongful termination.
  5. Chip Hup Hup Kee Construction sought to amend its pleadings to include a specific incident of wrongful disposal of equipment.
  6. The disposal of equipment was discovered after the Reply and Defence to Counterclaim was filed.
  7. Criminal proceedings were instituted against Lim Lian Choon for the disposal of the equipment.

5. Formal Citations

  1. Chip Hup Hup Kee Construction Pte Ltd v Lim Lian Choon, Suit 165/2007, SUM 2204/2008, [2008] SGHC 227

6. Timeline

DateEvent
Employment of Lim Lian Choon terminated
Lim Lian Choon allegedly removed equipment from worksite
Chip Hup Hup Kee Construction filed Reply and Defence to Counterclaim
Police report filed against Lim Lian Choon
Solicitors for Chip Hup Hup Kee Construction informed Lim Lian Choon's solicitors of discovery
Evidence of criminal proceedings against Lim Lian Choon came out during re-examination of Neo Kok Eng
First tranche of hearing ended
Application to amend pleadings filed
Hearing on application to amend pleadings
Criminal case fixed for hearing
Second tranche of hearing commenced
Judgment delivered

7. Legal Issues

  1. Amendment of Pleadings
    • Outcome: The court granted the plaintiff's application to amend its Reply and Defence to Counterclaim, finding that it was not made too late and was permissible under the Rules of Court.
    • Category: Procedural
    • Sub-Issues:
      • Late amendment of pleadings
      • Admissibility of new evidence
    • Related Cases:
      • [1996] 2 SLR 109
      • [2002] SGHC 236
      • [2002] SGDC 343
  2. Breach of Employee's Duties
    • Outcome: The court did not make a final determination on the breach of duty claim, as the judgment concerned an application to amend pleadings.
    • Category: Substantive
    • Sub-Issues:
      • Misappropriation of charges
      • Failure to keep records
      • Failure to account for monies

8. Remedies Sought

  1. Damages
  2. Account of Profits

9. Cause of Actions

  • Breach of Duty
  • Wrongful Termination

10. Practice Areas

  • Commercial Litigation
  • Construction Litigation

11. Industries

  • Construction

12. Cited Cases

Case NameCourtAffirmedCitationJurisdictionSignificance
Goh Kim Hai Edward v Pacific Can Investment Holdings LtdHigh CourtYes[1996] 2 SLR 109SingaporeCited regarding the principle that a party must be held strictly to their pleaded case and cannot rely on matters not expressly pleaded.
Abdul Razak Valibhoy v Keppel Investment Management LtdHigh CourtYes[2002] SGHC 236SingaporeCited regarding the principle that amendments should not be allowed at a late stage of trial if the matters were apparent a long time ago.
Mohammed Anuar Bin Abdul Jalil v Chin Choon Company (Pte) LimitedDistrict CourtYes[2002] SGDC 343SingaporeCited regarding the importance of pleadings in notifying the court of the issues to be adjudicated upon.
Multi-Pak Singapore Pte Ltd (in receivership) v Intraco Ltd & OrsN/AYes[1992] 2 SLR 793SingaporeCited for the proposition that the court may not make a finding or give a decision based on facts not pleaded.
Multi-Pak Singapore Pte Ltd (in receivership) v Intraco Ltd & OrsCourt of AppealYes[1993] 2 SLR 113SingaporeCited for affirming the principle that the court may not make a finding or give a decision based on facts not pleaded.
Hong Leong Finance Ltd v Famco (S) Pte LtdN/AYes[1992] 2 SLR 1108SingaporeCited regarding the principle that amendments should not be allowed at a late stage of trial if the matters were apparent a long time ago.

13. Applicable Rules

Rule Name
O 20 r 5

14. Applicable Statutes

Statute NameJurisdiction
Section 381 of the Penal Code (Chapter 224)Singapore

15. Key Terms and Keywords

15.1 Key Terms

  • Amendment of Pleadings
  • Breach of Duty
  • Wrongful Termination
  • Misappropriation
  • Fiduciary Duty
  • Reply and Defence to Counterclaim
  • Disposal of Equipment

15.2 Keywords

  • amendment
  • pleadings
  • breach of duty
  • construction
  • employment
  • wrongful termination

17. Areas of Law

Area NameRelevance Score
Civil Practice75
Amendment of Pleadings60
Employment Law50
Wrongful Termination40
Breach of Contract30
Criminal Law20

16. Subjects

  • Civil Procedure
  • Employment Law
  • Construction Law