Courts of Malaysia

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Sultan Abdul Samad Building houses the High Court of Malaya at Kuala Lumpur as well as the Trade Court.

Malaysia is a federation of thirteen states, but judicial power in the Federation is almost exclusively vested in a federal court system.

Contents

1 History

1.1 Formation of Malaysia
1.2 Privy Council appeals
1.3 1994 reforms
1.4 Trial by jury

2 Superior Courts

2.1 The High Courts
2.2 The Court of Appeal
2.3 The Federal Court

3 Subordinate courts

3.1 Sessions Courts
3.2 Magistrates' Courts
3.3 Other courts

4 Syariah Courts
5 List of Chief Justices of the Federal Court
6 See also

History

The court system in Malaysia has its origins in the 1807 charter known as the First Charter of Justice whereby the British East India Company obtained from the British Crown the right to establish a permanent Court of Judicature in the settlement of Penang.

Prior to the formation of Malaysia in 1963, there were three Supreme Courts of Judicature in Commonwealth South-east Asia:

The Supreme Court of the Federation of Malaya
The Supreme Court of Singapore
The Supreme Court of Sarawak, North Borneo and Brunei

Each Supreme Court consisted of a High Court and a Court of Appeal, and was headed by a Chief Justice.

Formation of Malaysia

In 1963 the remaining British territories in Southeast Asia, save Brunei, were incorporated into an enlarged federation of Malaysia. The 1963 Federal Constitution replaced the various Courts of Appeal with a single Federal Court of Malaysia, headed by a Lord President of the Federal Court, with three High Courts, each headed by a Chief Justice, below it:

The High Court of Malaya
The High Court of Singapore
The High Court of Borneo

A separate Supreme Court of Judicature was established in Brunei.

The High Court of Singapore ceased to be part of the Malaysian judicial system when Singapore left the Federation on 9 August 1965.

Privy Council appeals

Even after the independence of Malaya and the subsequent formation of Malaysia, by an Agreement between Her Majesty The Queen and His Majesty The Yang di-Pertuan Agong, and by Article 131 of the Federal Constitution, decisions of the Federal Court could be taken on appeal to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London.

Privy Council appeals on criminal and constitutional matters were abolished on 1 January 1978. Civil appeals were abolished on 1 January 1985, whereupon the Federal Court was renamed the "Supreme Court of Malaysia".

1994 reforms

In 1994, in order to restore a second tier in the appellate system which was lost when Privy Council appeals were abolished, the Constitution was amended to establish a Court of Appeal of Malaysia (headed by a President of the Court of Appeal) under the Supreme Court, which once again was renamed the "Federal Court of Malaysia".

As part of the reforms, the High Court of Borneo was renamed the "High Court of Sabah and Sarawak". The office of Lord President of the Supreme Court was replaced by that of "Chief Justice of Malaysia", while the Chief Justices of Malaya and Borneo were re-titled "Chief Judge of Malaya" and "Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak" respectively. These changes were seen by many in the Opposition as an attempt to downgrade the prestige of the judiciary.

Trial by jury

Until 1995, there was a right to trial by jury - usually by a jury of seven men and women - in all capital cases.

Trial by jury was available in all cases on indictment in the former British settlements of Penang and Malacca until they were restricted to capital cases in 1978. In the Malay states, trial by jury had not been available under colonial rule, with capital cases being tried by a judge sitting with two assessors, but was introduced for capital cases after independence in 1957 by the first prime minister of Malaya, Tunku Abdul Rahman. In Sabah and Sarawak, capital trials continued to be tried by a judge sitting with two assessors, as they had been before independence.

From 1 January 1995, jury trials and trials with assessors were abolished throughout Malaysia.

Superior Courts

The High Courts

The High Courts have general supervisory and revisionary jurisdiction over all the Subordinate Courts, and jurisdiction to hear appeals from the Subordinate Courts in civil and criminal matters.

The High Courts have unlimited civil jurisdiction, and generally hear actions where the claim exceeds 250,000 Malaysian ringgit (RM), other than actions involving motor vehicle accidents, landlord and tenant disputes and distress. The High Courts hear all matters relating to:

the validity or dissolution of marriage (divorce) and matrimonial causes,
bankruptcy and matters relating to the winding-up of companies,
guardianship or custody of children,
grants of probate, wills and letters of administration of estates,
injunctions, specific performance or rescissions of contracts,
legitimacy of persons.

The High Courts have unlimited jurisdiction in all criminal matters other than matters involving Islamic law.

Cases are heard by a single judge in the High Court, or by a judicial commissioner. While High Court judges enjoy security of tenure, judicial commissioners are appointed for a term of two years, and do not enjoy similar protection under the Constitution.

The Court of Appeal

The Court of Appeal generally hears all civil appeals against decisions of the High Courts except where against judgment or orders made by consent. In cases where:

the claim is less than RM250,000,
the judgment or order relates to costs only,
the appeal is against a decision of a judge in chambers on an interpleader summons on undisputed facts,

the leave of the Court of Appeal must first be obtained.

The Court of Appeal also hears appeals of criminal decisions of the High Court.

The Federal Court

The Federal Court may hear appeals of civil decisions of the Court of Appeal where the Federal Court grants leave to do so.

The Federal Court also hears criminal appeals from the Court of Appeal, but only in respect of matters heard by the High Court in its original jurisdiction (i.e. where the case has not been appealed from the Subordinate Courts).

Subordinate courts

The Magistrates' Courts and Sessions Courts in Malaysia have jurisdiction in both criminal and civil matters.

Sessions Courts

Somewhat like the former Quarter Sessions in England, the Sessions Courts have jurisdiction to try offences which are not punishable by death. They are presided over by Sessions Court judges (formerly Sessions Court Presidents).

The Sessions Courts also hear all civil matters of which the claim exceeds RM25,000 but does not exceed RM250,000, except in matters relating to motor vehicle accidents, landlord and tenant and distress, where the Sessions Courts have unlimited jurisdiction.

Magistrates' Courts

Magistrates are divided into First Class and Second Class Magistrates, the former being legally qualified and having greater powers. Second Class Magistrates are now not normally appointed.

The Magistrates' Courts hear all civil matters of which the claim does not exceed RM25,000.

In criminal matters, First Class Magistrates' Courts generally have power to try all offences of which the maximum term of imprisonment does not exceed 10 years or which are punishable with fine only, but may pass sentences of not more than five years imprisonment, a fine of up to RM10,000, and/or up to twelve strokes of the cane.

The Magistrates' Courts also hear appeals from the Penghulu's Courts.

Other courts

The court of a penghulu, or Malay village head, has the power to hear civil matters of which the claim does not exceed RM50, where the parties are of an Asian race and speak and understand the Malay language.

The Penghulu's Court's criminal jurisdiction is limited to offences of a minor nature charged against a person of Asian race which is specially enumerated in his warrant, which can be punished with a fine not exceeding RM25.

In Sabah and Sarawak, there are no Penghulus' Courts, but there are instead Native Courts having jurisdiction on matters of native law and custom.

There exist also Juvenile Courts for cases involving minors.

Syariah Courts

There is a parallel system of state Syariah Courts which has limited jurisdiction over matters of state Islamic (shariah) law. The Syariah Courts have jurisdiction only over matters involving Muslims, and can generally only pass sentences of not more than three years imprisonment, a fine of up to RM5,000, and/or up to six strokes of the cane.

List of Chief Justices of the Federal Court

For a list of Lord Presidents, see Lord President of the Federal Court.

Tun Abdul Hamid Omar 1994, previously Lord President
Tun Mohamed Eusoff Chin 1994 - 2000
Tun Mohamed Dzaiddin Abdullah 2000 - 2003
Tun Ahmad Fairuz Abdul Halim 2003 -