KUALA LUMPUR: Former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his son Datuk Mohd Nazifuddin have filed leave applications to appeal at the Federal Court in relation to tax suits where the two were ordered to pay RM1.69bil and RM37.6mil respectively to the Inland Revenue Board (LHDN) in tax arrears.

       Lawyer Muhammad Farhan Muhammad Shafee confirmed that the leave applications were filed on Monday (Sept 13).

       In the notice of motion for Najib, the appellants seek to raise nine questions of law to be brought before the apex court.

       One of the questions was on whether Section 106(3) of the Income Tax Act 1967 contravenes Article 121 of the Federal Constitution.

       Last Thursday (Sept 9), the Court of Appeal dismissed appeals by the father and son who sought to overturn two separate High Court rulings that granted summary judgments applied by the LHDN.

       In the unanimous decision, a three-man panel chaired by Justice Abdul Karim Abdul Jalil said they found no merit in the appeals and that the two High Court judges did not make any errors that needed to be rectified by the appellate court.

       Other judges on the bench were Justices Vazeer Alam Mydin Meera and Supang Lian.

       The Court of Appeal also allowed for an interim stay on the effect of the decision pending appeal to the Federal Court.

       On July 22, last year, High Court judge Justice Ahmad Bache ordered Najib to pay RM1,692,872,924.83 in tax arrears between 2011 and 2017.

       In granting the summary judgment, the judge said there were no triable issues to warrant a full trial.

       On July 6, 2020, High Court judge Justice Ahmad Zaidi Ibrahim allowed the summary judgment against Mohd Nazifuddin where the latter was ordered to pay RM37,644,810.73 in unpaid taxes to the LHDN for tax arrears between 2011 and 2017.

       A summary judgment is when a court makes its decision without going to a full trial.