THE Court of Appeal has set aside a High Court judgment ordering Energy Fiji Ltd (EFL) to pay nearly $300,000 in damages and penalties over land clearance for a rural electrification scheme in Serua.
A three-judge appellate panel comprising Justice of Appeal Chandana Prematilaka, Justice Walton Morgan, and Justice Pamela Andrews allowed EFL’s appeal after finding that the plaintiff, Semi Malainasiga, lacked legal standing to bring the lawsuit.
The lawsuit stemmed from a 2017–2018 government-sponsored rural electrification project to supply power to Tubarua Settlement and the Fiji Hardwood Corporation Galoa Station. EFL cleared trees and vegetation along the route to install power lines.
Mr Malainasiga subsequently sued EFL in a representative capacity on behalf of “Mataqali Korowaiwai”, claiming over $1million for alleged unlawful felling of reforested timber and environmental damage.
In July 2025, the High Court ordered EFL to pay $246,383.69 in general damages, $50,000 in punitive damages, and costs.
EFL appealed the decision, arguing that Mr Malainasiga failed to prove the existence of Mataqali Korowaiwai, failed to show he was a registered member or Turaga ni Mataqali, and failed to show the entity owned any land along the project route according to iTaukei Land Trust Board (TLTB) records.
In its judgment delivered on September 25, the Court of Appeal ruled that Mr Malainasiga failed to adduce official evidence such as extracts from the Vola ni Kawa Bula register to prove his membership, title, or the landowning entity’s ownership of the land mapped for the power lines.
Describing the failure to establish standing as a “fundamental and fatal flaw in the claim as pleaded”, the court set aside the High Court judgment in its entirety and made no order as to costs.
