KUALA LUMPUR (Bernama): The mediation process to resolve the amount of damages to be paid by textile supplier D'Haja (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd to celebrity couple Awal Ashaari and Scha Al-Yahya has been set for Jan 17 at the High Court here.

       On Sept 8 last year, the High Court proposed that the parties discussed settling the amount of damages amicably through mediation without going through an appeal process.

       D’Haja filed an appeal to set aside the decision by the Sessions Court here, which ordered the company to pay RM345,305 in damages to Awal, whose real name is Ahmad Awaluddin Ashaari, and his wife Scha, or Sharifah Nor Azean Syed Mahadzir.

       The Sessions Court made the ruling after allowing the suit filed by the couple against D’Haja for alleged breach of contract over exclusive distribution rights for branded perfumes.

       Lawyer Muzzammil Merican Hasnal Rezua Merican, who represented D'Haja, said the mediation process would take place before Judge Datuk Seri Mohd Firuz Jaffril.

       "If both parties fail to reach a settlement, case management will be on Jan 19 when the court will set another date for the appeal hearing to set aside the Sessions Court decision," he said when contacted on Thursday (Sept 23).

       D’Haja had on April 3, 2019 filed an appeal on the grounds that the Sessions Court had erred in allowing the celebrity couple’s suit on March 27, 2019.

       The Sessions Court also allowed a counterclaim filed by D'Haja and ordered Awal and Scha to pay RM55,000 after finding that the couple had breached the agreement by selling the perfumes to Brunei themselves.

       In the suit filed on April 30, 2018, Awal and Scha claimed they had entered into a contract with D’Haja for the exclusive distribution of Bleu and Maroon perfumes on Oct 11, 2016, for two years.

       However, they claimed that D'Haja failed to fulfill its responsibilities in accordance with the basic terms of the agreement, apart from failing to return 3,215 bottles of perfume which were allegedly spoiled.

       They also claimed the company failed to provide records of sales transactions and refused to pay for the losses. – Bernama