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Contributed by Chiam Ter Ping, Officer, with photos by Adi Irman, Administrative Assistant, Bar Council

One of the objectives of the Bar Council Corporate and Commercial Law Committee (“CCLC”) for the 2011/2012 term is to organise seminars on topics that are of interest to lawyers in the area of corporate and commercial law.  Thus, the first event organised by CCLC for the 2011/2012 term was a seminar on “Why Consumers Need Protection”.


The purpose of the seminar was to educate lawyers and the public about the latest laws pertaining to consumer protection, in addition to explaining the role of the Tribunal for Consumer Claims Malaysia (“Tribunal”) with respect to consumer protection.  The seminar, jointly organised by CCLC and the Tribunal, began at 4:10 pm at the Bar Council Auditorium on 22 Apr 2011 (Friday), and was attended by 27 participants.  

The panel for the seminar consisted of Tuan Pretam Singh s/o Darshan Singh, Chairman of the Tribunal, and Cheong Kee Fong and Tan Kim Soon, Deputy Chairperson and member of CCLC, respectively.  Tuan Pretam Singh, the main speaker, has been Chairman of the Tribunal since 1 July 2010.  In his eventful career, he has served the nation as legal advisor to the Ministry of Housing and Local Government, Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment, and the Malaysian Highway Authority.  He was also Head of Enforcement and Execution Unit of the Civil Division, Attorney General’s Chambers, and Vice-Chairman, Tribunal for Homebuyers Claims.

The seminar began with Tuan Pretam Singh giving a brief description of the philosophy and politics of consumerism.  He reminded participants of the term caveat emptor – “let the buyer beware” – and of its relevance today, in the age of trained professional businessmen.  He touched on the Consumer Protection Act 1999 (“Act”) by describing its scope, in addition to defining familiar terms such as “consumer”, “goods” and “supply”. 

Tuan Pretam Singh then elaborated on how consumers are protected under the Act.  For example, according to the Act, any other law that imposes a stricter duty on the supplier will take precedence over the Act itself, thus ensuring that the stricter punishment is meted out on errant suppliers.  He noted that it was also an offence for suppliers to contract out of the Act. 

Tuan Pretam Singh mentioned that although the Act shields consumers from misleading conduct with regards to the description, standard and quality of a product sold, it does not apply to housing-accommodation issues as matters that fall under this area are provided for by the Housing Developers (Control and Licensing) Act 1966. 

Tuan Pretam Singh continued by pointing out that bait advertising – such as free gifts that do not fit the description of the product advertised – is not allowed under the Act.  He added that consumers also have the right to cancel payment and be exempted from having to make payment of the full contract price for products or services that fall under contracts for future services, such as slimming programmes and tuition classes.

Tuan Pretam Singh concluded his presentation by giving a brief overview of the Tribunal, which was established under the Act.  He gave useful tips by not only providing an explanation of the forms that had to be completed by consumers, but also discussing evidentiary requirements during proceedings at the Tribunal.  He also reiterated the Tribunal’s aim of ensuring that awards are given to consumers within 60 days from the first day of the hearing.

The seminar was followed by a lively question-and-answer session that enabled participants to enquire about consumer rights, as well as the Tribunal.  Several issues were fielded back and forth between the panel and participants, resulting in an interesting discussion overall.  The event ended at approximately 6:20 pm, after a token of appreciation had been presented to Tuan Pretam Singh, by Cheong Kee Fong, for his contribution to the seminar.