The Finance Company PLC v. Agampodi Mahapedige Priyantha Chandana et al – SC APPEAL NO. 105A/2008-2010

In the case between The Finance Company PLC (appellant) and Agampodi Mahapedige Priyantha Chandana and others (respondents), the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka addressed the issue of whether a vehicle could be confiscated under the Forest Ordinance when the appellant, as its owner and lessor, failed to prove either a lack of knowledge or the taking of reasonable precautions to prevent the vehicle’s use in committing a timber transport offence. It was held that where the statutory burden is not discharged by the owner, confiscation may be ordered, reaffirming the principle that a registered owner must affirmatively demonstrate both non-participation in the offence and the exercise of every possible precaution. The judgment relied on section 40 of the Forest Ordinance, section 433A of the Code o