PUTRAJAYA – The Malaysia Competition Commission (MyCC) today failed in its bid to obtain leave to appeal in its final attempt to reinstate the proposed RM86.77 million fine against Grab Inc and its two subsidiaries, Grabcar Sdn Bhd and Myteksi Sdn Bhd.
The unanimous decision was delivered by a three-member Federal Court panel led by Justice Datuk Abu Bakar Jais, who sat with Chief Justice Tan Sri Ahmad Terrirudin Mohd Salleh and Justice Datuk Lee Swee Seng.
The court dismissed MyCC’s application to appeal against the Court of Appeal’s earlier ruling.
Justice Abu Bakar said MyCC did not meet the threshold required to bring the case before the highest court in the country under Section 96 of the Courts of Judicature Act, The Edge reported.
Reading the judgment, Justice Abu Bakar noted that the decisions of the High Court and the Court of Appeal were substantive in nature and fell within judicial jurisdiction.
“Although it could be said that there is no final decision, the court is of the view that a substantive decision has already been made and must be adhered to, even at this stage.
“Therefore, the court finds that the applicant has failed to meet the requirements under Section 96 of the Courts of Judicature Act 1964.
“In my view, the applicant did not fulfil the necessary criteria under Section 96. Hence, this application is dismissed with costs of RM50,000 awarded to the respondents,” he said.
Datuk Malik Imtiaz Sarwar, Yvonne Lim, Shanthi Kandiah, Angela Hii and Azyan Ibrahim represented Grab, while MyCC was represented by Datuk V Sithambaram.
On July 6, 2023, Grab Inc, Grabcar Sdn Bhd and Myteksi Sdn Bhd succeeded in obtaining a certiorari order from the High Court to quash MyCC’s proposed fine, prompting the commission to appeal to the Court of Appeal.
The case originated when the three companies filed a judicial review in Dec 2019 to challenge MyCC’s proposed penalty for alleged violations of the Competition Act, specifically involving restrictive clauses imposed on their drivers.
In February 2020, the High Court dismissed the companies’ applications, ruling that the move was premature as the proposed decision was not yet final.
However, Grab appealed, and in April 2021, the Court of Appeal allowed the judicial review and referred the matter back to the High Court for a full hearing on its merits.
In 2022, the Federal Court dismissed MyCC’s earlier bid for leave to appeal the Court of Appeal’s decision, paving the way for the High Court to proceed with the substantive hearing of the judicial review that same year. – October 14, 2025