Woman who caused death
of maid fails to overturn
order to pay damages
The High Court finds R Jayavartiny had deliberately delayed proceedings and was trying to move assets to avoid paying damages.
In dismissing her application, the court said R Jayavartiny had deliberately delayed proceedings and was trying to move assets to avoid paying damages.
Jayavartiny, along with her now-deceased mother S Ambika, had been ordered to pay RM750,000 in damages to the family of Adelina Lisao, a young Indonesian maid who died in Bukit Mertajam in 2018 after suffering horrific abuse.
But in a last-ditch effort, Jayavartiny filed a legal application to set aside the default judgment, claiming her previous lawyer was sick and that she needed more time to respond.
She also told the court that she planned to sue the agent who had brought Adelina to her and claim compensation, saying the maid did not have a proper visa.
However, Justice Anand Ponnudurai rejected her appeal, saying that her explanation was “absolutely insufficient” and that she had only filed the request months after the deadline had passed.
He said it was clear that Jayavartiny was trying to move her assets to avoid paying compensation.
Evidence tendered showed that she transferred a property on Feb 15, 2024, after the default judgment had been entered against her.
“The facts clearly support the contention that the defendant was attempting to dissipate assets to frustrate the judgment,” Anand said.
The court also took note that Jayavartiny had been involved in separate legal proceedings regarding her finances before suddenly attempting to challenge the ruling against her. Anand said such a move was made in bad faith.
He said her claim that she was filing a suit against the maid’s agent was irrelevant to the case.
The latest court ruling also acknowledged the death of the second defendant, Ambika, who passed away on Nov 22, 2023.
Anand then left it to Adelina’s mother, Yohana Banunaek, the administrator of her estate, to decide how best to proceed against Ambika’s estate following her death.
The High Court had in February last year ruled that Adelina had been treated like a slave, subjected to cruel abuse, forced to sleep outside with a Rottweiler, and left without medical care until she collapsed and died in hospital.
The RM750,000 in damages was meant to compensate her family for the violation of her rights, with the judge calling the case a “clear example of modern slavery”.
Anand further ordered RM5,000 in costs to be paid.
Lawyers Karin Lim, Nishantel Kaur and Nicholas Lim appeared for Yohana, while S Raveentharan, R Asmeeta, and Nur Adilla Zaharuddin appeared for Jayavartiny.
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