RM31 million spent on Sulu legal dispute, says Azalina

The government spent about RM31 million on the handling of court cases in four countries in relation to the legal dispute filed by the Sulu group against Malaysia, from Nov 20, 2019 to Jan 20 this year.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Legal and Institutional Reforms) Azalina Othman Said said this included the cost of international legal services, court proceedings and translations, as well as historical and legal research.

"Specifically, legal fees and payments alone amounted to RM36,000 in 2019, RM167,000 in 2020, RM8.2 million in 2021, RM13.5 million in 2022 and RM5.4 million in 2023, in relation to court cases across four countries, namely Spain, France, Luxembourg and the Netherlands," she said in a written reply on the Parliament website. 

She was responding to a question from Lim Lip Eng (PH-Kepong) on the legal costs of the Sulu group's claims against Malaysia.

Azalina also said that the decision on the government's appeal against the French court order, dated Sept 29, 2022, is expected to be delivered in June, with the hearing of the appeal having taken place on Feb 6 at the French Court of Appeal.

The Sulu group was reported to have taken legal action in a Spanish court to seek compensation for land in Sabah that was allegedly leased by their ancestors to a British trading company in 1878.

On Feb 28, 2022, the purported arbitrator, Dr Gonzalo Stampa, was reported to have obtained a final award amounting to US$14.92 billion for the claimants – the Sulu group – from a Paris arbitration court.

However, the French court granted Malaysia a stay order on the award issued by Stampa pending the judicial decision of its action to set it aside on the basis that its enforcement might threaten Malaysia's sovereignty over the Sabah region.