Ng Lai Kuen Priscilla Elizabeth & 4 Ors v Ng Choong Keong Steven

Q: Which legislation does [2023] SGHC 343 consider?

The judgment refers to Evidence Act (Cap 97). The statutes cited are listed in full on this page, each linking to its primary text.

[2023] SGHC 343 High Court (General Division) 5 December 2023 HC/S 169/2020 55 min read

12 cases cited (8 SG, 4 foreign) Cited by 2 cases

Key facts

Court	High Court (General Division)
Decided	5 December 2023
Judge	Vinodh Coomaraswamy
Charges / claim	Civil Procedure, Trusts
Counsel	CNPLaw LLP, D'Bi An LLC, Hin Tat Augustine & Partners, Christine Chuah, Edwin Chia, Gong Chin Nam, Rachel Boey

Source: [2023] SGHC 343, High Court (General Division), decided 5 December 2023 — eLitigation. Updated 10 July 2026.

Catchwords

Civil Procedure - Costs - Principles Trusts - Resulting trusts - Presumed resulting trusts Trusts - Constructive trusts - Ambulatory constructive trusts Trusts - Constructive trusts - Common intention constructive trusts

Practice Areas

Civil Procedure Trusts

Judges (1)

Vinodh Coomaraswamy Delivered

Counsel (7)

CNPLaw LLP Firm D'Bi An LLC Firm Hin Tat Augustine & Partners Firm Christine Chuah Counsel Defendant Edwin Chia Counsel Plaintiff Gong Chin Nam Counsel Defendant Rachel Boey Counsel Plaintiff

Parties (6)

Ng Choong Keong Steven Defendant Ng Lai Fong Charmaine Plaintiff Ng Lai Har Plaintiff Ng Lai Kuen Priscilla Elizabeth Plaintiff Ng Lai Kuen Priscilla Elizabeth (The Administratrix of the Estate of Ng Kah Weng, Deceased) Plaintiff Ng Lai Kuen Priscilla Elizabeth (The Executrix of the Estate of Chan Wai Ching, Deceased) Plaintiff

Case Significance

Ng Lai Kuen Priscilla Elizabeth and others v Ng Choong Keong Steven [2023] SGHC 343 was a decision of the General Division of the High Court by Vinodh Coomaraswamy J in Suit No 169 of 2020, delivered on 5 December 2023. The action was brought by three older sisters against their younger brother over ownership of a commercial property in Veerasamy Road, which had been conveyed to their father and the defendant as joint tenants in November 1995 with the father paying the entire purchase price. The plaintiffs argued the defendant held his interest on a presumed resulting trust for the father, who died in December 2016; the judgment addressed presumed resulting trusts, ambulatory and common intention constructive trusts, and costs principles.

[2023] SGHC 343 explained

Ng Lai Kuen Priscilla Elizabeth & 4 Ors v Ng Choong Keong Steven ([2023] SGHC 343) is a Singapore judgment decided by the High Court (General Division) on 5 December 2023. It is categorised under Civil Procedure and Trusts. Within this corpus it has since been cited by 2 other reported Singapore judgments, a measure of how often later decisions have referred to it. This page summarises what the reported decision covers and links the primary sources — the full judgment, the statutes it cites, and the other cases it engages with — so the decision can be read in context. It is reference information, not legal advice, and it does not state the outcome or any holding beyond what the official judgment records.

What is [2023] SGHC 343 about?

Ng Lai Kuen Priscilla Elizabeth & 4 Ors v Ng Choong Keong Steven ([2023] SGHC 343) is a High Court (General Division) decision from 2023. Its published catchwords are “Civil Procedure - Costs - Principles”, “Trusts - Resulting trusts - Presumed resulting trusts”, “Trusts - Constructive trusts - Ambulatory constructive trusts”, and “Trusts - Constructive trusts - Common intention constructive trusts”, which indicate the subject matter the judgment addresses. The full reasoning and orders are in the judgment itself, linked below.

Which legislation does [2023] SGHC 343 consider?

The judgment refers to Evidence Act (Cap 97). The statutes cited are listed in full on this page, each linking to its primary text.

How influential is [2023] SGHC 343?

Within this corpus, [2023] SGHC 343 has been cited by 2 later reported Singapore judgments. That count reflects references from other decisions held in this corpus only and is a conservative lower bound on how often the case has actually been cited.

Summary

Three older sisters (and related estate representatives) sued their younger brother over ownership of a commercial property in Veerasamy Road conveyed to their late father and the brother as joint tenants, with the father having paid the entire purchase price. The plaintiffs argued the brother held his interest on a presumed resulting trust or constructive trust for the father, while the brother claimed to be sole surviving owner. Vinodh Coomaraswamy J accepted the plaintiffs' primary case, found a resulting trust, declared the property held in equal shares, dismissed the counterclaim, and awarded the plaintiffs $149,000 in costs.

What was Ng Lai Kuen Priscilla Elizabeth v Ng Choong Keong Steven [2023] SGHC 343 about?

It was a family property dispute in the General Division of the High Court where three sisters claimed their brother held his interest in a Veerasamy Road commercial property on trust for their late father, decided by Vinodh Coomaraswamy J on 5 December 2023.

How was the Veerasamy Road property held in Ng Lai Kuen v Ng Choong Keong Steven ([2023] SGHC 343)?

The commercial property was conveyed to the siblings' father and the defendant as joint tenants in November 1995, with the father paying the entire purchase price. The father died in December 2016 and the mother in August 2017.