This case shows that issues can arise when a person authorised to act on behalf of someone with mental incapacity passes away and was not automatically replaced, the judge said.
The High Court has rejected a man’s bid to obtain legal ownership of an HDB resale flat that was bought from the representative of a man with dementia, reported The Straits Times.
In September 2010, 55-year-old Peter Nathan purchased the flat for $270,000 from Arthur De Silva Petiyaga, 75, via his daughter Millicent, who had acted on his behalf. Although she asked the court for the right to manage his affairs, she did not actually have the authority to dispose the flat.
However, Nathan only found out about this in 2014, two years after the daughter died. His relationship with the flat owner also turned cold, even though his father and Mr De Silva had been childhood friends.
In addition, Nathan, an oil surveyor, had been paying the unit’s annual property tax since the sale in 2010, as well as the monthly town council conservancy charges since 2012.
But when he wanted to take possession of the flat, the Singapore Land Authority refused to acknowledge the transfer of ownership and The High Court threw out his case in April 2016.
In his judgment, Judicial Commissioner Aedit Abdullah said the case shows that issues can arise when a person authorised to act on behalf of someone with mental incapacity passes away and was not automatically replaced.
Nathan, who is currently living in his sister’s flat in Yishun, is appealing against the verdict.
Meanwhile, De Silva’s grandson Jordan Christopher claimed that his grandfather, who has been living alone in the flat since his daughter’s death, did not receive a single cent from the purported sale.
He alleged that Nathan’s application to obtain legal ownership was done in bad faith to take away the home of a mentally-incapacitated man. He added that De Silva’s relatives are applying for a court order to grant them the authority to manage his grandfather’s affairs.
Romesh Navaratnarajah, Senior Editor at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact him about this or other stories, email romesh@propertyguru.com.sg
