KUALA LUMPUR (June 24): The High court set July 27 for an e-review on the stay of a discovery application by former de-facto law minister Datuk Mohd Zaid Ibrahim against his old law firm Zaid Ibrahim & Co (ZICO) and two former partners.

The High Court set the date as affidavits are still in the process of being exchanged by both parties yesterday. 

A discovery application is when parties want to obtain documents held by their opponent which are relevant to their case. 

Tan Sri Tommy Thomas appeared for ZICO executive chairman Datuk Seri Nik Norzrul Thani Nik Hassan Thani, its former managing partner Chew Seng Kok and the firm, while Datuk Malik Imtiaz Sarwar appeared for Zaid.

Last month, Thomas had sought a stay order against the discovery application. 

However, when presiding judge Datuk Akhtar Tahir asked for a formal application to be made, Thomas then sought an interim stay, pending the filing of the formal application.

Now that the formal application has been filed, the stay application will proceed. 

Akhtar had allowed the discovery application, surmising that the documents sought by Zaid are relevant and he had met all principles of the law to obtain them.

The judge ordered the law firm to hand over the said documents to Zaid within seven days from today, and awarded RM3,000 in costs to Zaid.

Zaid, 69, filed the discovery application last December. 

He is seeking documents from the law firm concerning payments to him, after he relinquished his 57% equity share in the law firm in 2008 for RM25.65 million.

The amount was to be paid via 20 annual instalments of RM1.2 million, with a final payment of RM1.65 million.

He claimed that in 2014, the annual payment stopped, while his 5% stake in the law firm was changed to a purported 10% stake in Zico Holdings, which was based in Singapore.

Zaid claimed the three defendants would have all the necessary documents from the law firm and Zico Holdings, and that the discovery of the documents is relevant to his suit.

Nik Norzrul and Chew, in opposing the discovery application, claimed that the agreement drawn up in 2014 was not executed and is not legally binding.

Zaid filed the suit against his former law firm in November, seeking an injunction against the defendants, barring it from using his name "Zaid Ibrahim" in any form or style by the firm, and an order of delivery of materials such as letterheads, brochures, notepaper, invoices and other items used by the defendant in print that forms his name.

In addition, Zaid is also seeking an assessment of damages for the wrongful use of his name, costs of the action and other reliefs deemed fit by the court. 

He also claimed that the law firm is legally wrong for continuously using his name and that he is entitled to the tort of “passing off” for allegedly an unregistered trademark.