The Malaysian Bar - Corporate and Commercial Law Committee 2010/2011 Interim Report

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Corporate and Commercial Law Committee 2010/2011 Interim Report

Friday, 01 October 2010 02:27pm

The Corporate and Commercial Law Committee (“Committee”) began the 2010/2011 term by accepting new members as well as establishing two new subcommittees - the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and Tax Subcommittee, and the Competition Act Subcommittee. The Committee also mapped out its projects for the term to ensure maximum impact. At the time of writing this report, the Committee has had three meetings.

The following are the projects outlined by the Committee:

(1) Jabatan Insolvensi Malaysia

(a) The Bank Negara Subcommittee is overseeing this project. The Committee had noted that some private liquidators are not following the requirements laid down in the Akta Perumahan (Pelesenan dan Kawalan) 1966. As such, there is a need to meet with the Director-General of Insolvency on this issue. The Subcommittee is in the midst of arranging the meeting.

(b) The Kuala Lumpur High Court dismissed the application by the Director-General of Insolvency against Ler Cheng Chye under section 229(2) of the Companies Act 1965 on 27 July 2010. Bar Council has appointed Tan Kim Soon to hold a watching brief in respect of the appeal.

(2) Bank Negara Malaysia and Association of Banks Malaysia

The Bank Negara Subcommittee is arranging for a meeting with Bank Negara Malaysia and the Association of Banks Malaysia.

(3) The Limited Liability Partnerships (LLP) Bill

Suruhanjaya Syarikat Malaysia (SSM) has informed Bar Council that the LLP Bill is currently being reviewed by the Ministry of Domestic Trade, Co-operatives and Consumerism. SSM hopes to table the LLP Bill before the Dewan Rakyat and Dewan Negara by the end of 2010. The LLP Task Force is seeking the latest copy of the LLP Bill from SSM as to enable Bar Council to be up-to-date on any recommendation and amendment therein.

(4) Seminars for Members of the Bar

The Committee is arranging for seminars on topics of interest to Members of the Bar. The first seminar for the term, entitled “An Overview of the ACE Market and ACE Listing Requirements”, was held on 24 Sept 2010. The successful seminar featured a speaker from Bursa Malaysia.

(5) GST Bill and Tax Matters

The Government’s proposed GST Bill has generated much interest, as it will have a tremendous impact on the pocket of the average Malaysian.

The GST and Tax Subcommittee was formed to give relevant feedback to the Government on the clauses of the proposed Bill. Apart from keeping tabs on the GST Bill, the Subcommittee will oversee matters involving taxation law in Malaysia.

The objectives of the Subcommittee are to:

(a)   prepare a comprehensive submission on the GST Bill to the Ministry of Finance;
(b)   prepare a general questionnaire to gain feedback and insights from Members of the Bar on matters to raise with the Inland Revenue Board and the Royal Malaysian Customs Department;
(c)   liaise with the Royal Malaysian Customs Department on the procedure for claiming GST input tax for law firms;
(d)   arrange regular tax seminars for Members of the Bar;
(e)   ensure that Bar Council is consulted on the country’s Annual Budget;
(f)   foster good relationships with the Professional Services Development Corporation, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, and the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation; and
(g)   consider the tax implications of, and to make recommendations with respect to, the LLP Bill and other proposed legislation.

With these projects, it is hoped that the Committee will contribute towards the growth of corporate and commercial law in Malaysia.

K Mohan K Kumaran
Chairperson
Corporate and Commercial Law Committee

Dated 28 Sept 2010

__________________________________________________

(1)    K Mohan K Kumaran (Chairperson)
(2)    Cheong Kee Fong (Deputy Chairperson)

Members:
(3)    Abdul Shukor Mohd Yusof
(4)    Abdul Syaheed Ismail
(5)    Agnes Chow Wai Hing
(6)    David Lee Lai Huat
(7)    Devinia Loganathan
(8)    Grace Yeoh Cheng Geok
(9)    Heng Hiang Swee
(10)    Isaac Tho Kah Yaw
(11)    Ira Biswas
(12)    Jennifer Cheong Ngei Faan
(13)    Kenny Poon How Kun
(14)    Mas Ayu Mohd Yusof
(15)    Phua Pao Yii
(16)    Tan Kim Soon
(17)    Tan Wooi Hong
(18)    Teoh Pek Wei
(19)    Wong Tat Chung

Officer-in-charge: Chiam Ter Ping

The Subcommittees are:

No	Subcommittee	Chairperson	Member
1	LLP Task Force	Wong Tat Chung	Agnes Chow Grace Yeoh K Mohan K Kumaran
2	Companies Act	Wong Tat Chung	Cheong Kee Fong Grace Yeoh Heng Hiang Swee Ira Biswas Jennifer Cheong K Mohan K Kumaran
3	Bursa Malaysia	Kenny Poon	Abdul Syaheed Ismail Devinia Loganathan Mas Ayu Mohd Yusof Tan Wooi Hong
4	Bank Negara	Tan Kim Soon	Heng Hiang Swee Mas Ayu Mohd Yusof
5	SSM	Jennifer Cheong	Devinia Loganathan Grace Yeoh Heng Hiang Swee Lee Swee Seng Wong Tat Chung
6	Securities Commission	Cheong Kee Fong	Cheong Kee Fong Abdul Syaheed Ismail Grace Yeoh Isaac Tho Kah Yaw Kenny Poon Wong Tat Chung
7	Takeovers and Mergers	Grace Yeoh	Cheong Kee Fong Isaac Tho Kah Yaw Wong Tat Chung
8	GST and Tax	Anand Raj	Vijey Krishnan (Deputy Chairperson) Andrew Raj Davis Francis Tan Leh Kiah Irene Yong Maniam Kuppusamy Nik Saghir Mohd Noor Saravana Kumar Segaran Subramaniam Arjunan Sudharsanan Thillainathan Wong Tat Chung
9	Competition Act	Wong Tat Chung	Abdul Syaheed Ismail Agnes Chow Anand Raj Ira Biswas Phua Pao Yii