Litigation partner at TSMP Law Corporation Ong Pei Ching was quoted in a Straits Times article published on 3 September 2020 on the relevant liability laws that apply in the case of the ventilation duct that fell on cinemagoers at Shaw Theatres in Nex mall last Sunday.

She told ST that a business has a duty to prevent customers from being hurt by unusual dangers on the premises.

“It doesn’t matter if the business is itself a tenant of the premises. So long as the business has control over the premises, the business is responsible for the safety of its customers,” she said.

“But if the customers are injured by something that is under the control of the landlord, not the tenant, then the landlord may be the one who is legally liable.”

She added: “In general, if you want your customers to patronise your premises, then you must be responsible for their safety.”

She said: “If a customer patronises a business premises, and is injured by something in the premises, then the customer can sue the business.”