The High Court in Suva has ordered the Mara siblings to pay $2000 for failing to comply with court orders.
Lawyers representing Adi Koila Mara Nailatikau and Ratu Tevita Uluilakeba Mara, who are suing former Chief Magistrate Sekove Naqiolevu, Na Hina Limited, and Na Hina Trust, have yet to file and serve the plaintiff’s Summons of Direction.
The siblings are suing the defendants in a civil matter related to a breach of trust regarding the establishment and management of the Na Hina Trust.
Adi Koila appeared with her new lawyer, Ulamila Fa, before Acting Master Liyanage Kashyapa Wickramasekara at the High Court in Suva yesterday.
In the last proceeding, Acting Master Wickramasekara ruled against the defendants’ Strike Out application on February 24, 2023.
The defendants were given until March 14, 2023, to file and serve their statement of defence, while the plaintiff was given an additional 14 days to file and serve their reply.
The plaintiff was also ordered to file and serve its Summons of Direction by April 11, 2023, which they failed to do.
During yesterday’s proceedings, Ms Fa sought the court’s permission to file and serve the plaintiff’s Summons of Direction, stating that she had attempted to do so previously without success.
She told the court that when she approached the High Court Registry to file the Summons of Direction, she was advised that consent from the defendants was required due to missing the deadline.
Ms Fa explained that as the new legal representative, she had only received instructions regarding the Summons from the previous lawyers and was unaware of any associated costs.
Acting Master Wickramasekera reminded her that these requirements were clearly outlined in the court’s ruling and that they had not been followed. Master Wickramasekera adjourned the matter to September 17 for mention.
Background
The Mara siblings’ claim stems from a trust originally created on July 5, 1930, known as the ‘Yanuca Trust.’
They assert that their late mother, Ro Adi Lady Lalabalavu Litia Kaloafutoga Mara, was a beneficiary of this trust as the heir and successor to her mother, Adi Asenaca Vosailagi, one of the 28 original beneficiaries.
Ro Adi Lady Lala Mara was appointed as the sole trustee of the Yanuca Trust through a Deed of Trust in October 1969. Following a court proceeding in 1991, Ro Adi Lady Lala Mara was voluntarily removed as sole trustee, leading to the establishment of the Na Hina Trust in 2002.
According to the siblings’ claim, the establishment of the Na Hina Trust did not adhere to the objectives of the original Yanuca Trust, raising questions about whether their mother’s removal as sole trustee was conducted under duress.