High Court Orders Developer to Pay Premiums and Complete Strata Titles Decades After Sale — Landmark Win for JMBs under the Strata Titles Act

In Badan Pengurusan Bersama Tasik Heights Apartment v ASM Development Sdn Bhd [2026] CLJU 280, the Joint Management Body (JMB) successfully obtained an order compelling the Developer to pay the outstanding land premiums and complete the long-stalled application for subdivision of the Tasik Puteri (Tasik Heights) Apartments into individual strata titles. It was ruled that the developer owes a statutory (not merely contractual) duty under the Strata Titles Act 1985, which the JMB has clear locus standi to enforce under the Strata Management Act 2013.

This decision serves as a timely reminder that a Developer’s statutory obligation under the Strata Titles Act 1985 to apply for subdivision and deliver individual strata titles to purchasers is not extinguished by the passage of time. Even though the apartments were sold more than three decades ago, the High Court has affirmed that the Developer remains duty-bound to complete the process, including payment of the requisite land premiums. The JMB’s proactive role in this case illustrates how purchasers’ interests continue to be robustly protected long after the original sale and the formation of the JMB. By recognising the JMB’s clear locus standi to enforce these statutory duties, the Court has reinforced a powerful safeguard for parcel owners and sent a clear message to developers that indefinite delays in perfecting strata titles will not be tolerated.

Background of the Case

• The Defendant (the Developer) is the registered owner-developer who sold the apartments in or around 1992 under the Housing Developers (Control and Licensing) Regulations 1989, Schedule H Sale and Purchase Agreements.
• The Plaintiff (the JMB) was formed on 17 May 2008 to take over management of the completed project.
• After taking over, the JMB discovered that the Developer had never obtained separate strata titles for the purchasers.
• In July 2020, the Land Office approved the amendment of the express condition on the land and required the Developer to pay further premiums within six months before a subdivision application could proceed.
• The Land Office granted multiple extensions of time (including COVID-related extensions), with the final deadline falling in December 2022.
• Despite repeated reminders and a formal demand by the JMB on 31 December 2022, the Developer failed to pay the premiums. The JMB filed the Originating Summons in October 2023.

Court Rulings

High Court

• The Developer is under a statutory obligation pursuant to sections 8(1), 8A(1), 8(3) and 9(1) of the Strata Titles Act 1985 to apply for subdivision, pay the required premiums and procure issuance of separate strata titles.
• The JMB’s claim is founded on breach of statutory duty, not breach of the Sale and Purchase Agreements; therefore the Developer’s privity-of-contract defence fails.
• The JMB has locus standi under Sections 21 and 143 of the Strata Management Act 2013 to institute proceedings concerning common property. Subdivision is essential for the JMB to properly maintain and manage the building and common property, impose charges, and maintain a register of parcel owners.
• The court granted both prayers of the Originating Summons and ordered the Developer to (i) pay the required premiums and (ii) complete and settle the subdivision application.
• Costs of RM7,000 were awarded to the Plaintiff.

Key Takeaways

1. Developers remain statutorily liable for decades: Developers remain statutorily liable to complete strata title applications even decades after the original sales.
2. JMBs/JMCs have strong standing: JMBs/JMCs have strong standing to enforce a Developer’s statutory obligations relating to strata titles and common property management — independent of any direct contractual relationship.
3. Privity-of-contract arguments fail: Privity-of-contract arguments will not defeat claims based on clear statutory duties under the Strata Titles Act 1985.
4. Land Office extensions provide no protection: Multiple extensions of time granted by the Land Office do not shield a Developer from court-ordered compliance.
5. Decision strengthens JMBs’ proactive role: This decision reinforces the proactive role of JMBs in protecting purchasers’ interests and provides a useful precedent for using Originating Summons proceedings to resolve long-outstanding strata title issues.