Article contributed by Najwa Hamid, Officer, Bar Council Law Reform & Special Areas Committee; and photos by Satha Selvan Subramaniam, Senior Administrative Assistant, Bar Council
The Bar Council Law Reform & Special Areas Committee (“LRSAC”) organised a public forum entitled “Creating a Law Reform Commission of Malaysia”. The forum was held at the Raja Aziz Auditorium, Straits Trading Building on 3 Dec 2016 (Saturday).
The objectives of the forum were to highlight the importance of establishing an independent law reform commission that would accept suggestions for reform and revision to statutes from interested parties, legislators, members of the legal community and the public, as well as draft legislation for consideration; and consider the constitution and structure of a permanent law reform commission.
The forum was attended by Members of the Bar, pupils in chambers, representatives of non–governmental organisations and members of the public.
The event commenced with the opening remarks by the Co–Chairperson of the LRSAC, R Jayabalan, who also introduced the panellists:
(1) Dato’ Mohd Hishamudin Yunus, Consultant, Messrs Lee, Hishammuddin Allen & Gledhill; Judge, Court of Appeal (Rtd);(2) Emeritus Professor Datuk Dr Shad Saleem Faruqi, Legal Advisor, Universiti Teknologi MARA (“UiTM”); and(3) Dato’ Sri Ramachelvam Manimuthu, Member, Bar Council; Member, LRSAC.
The panellists presented their views with R Jayabalan as the moderator.
Emeritus Professor Datuk Dr Shad Saleem Faruqi, who was the first to take the stage said that there are multiple ways to reform the law. Amongst them are, reform by Parliament; judicial technique; by the executive, statutory bodies and constitutional institutions; and lastly by the creation of law reform commission or institute. He opined that the law reform commission must be independent of the executive so that it can operate outside the political agenda of the government of the day and as an independent voice in the community.
Dato’ Mohd Hishamudin Yunus was next to take his place at the podium. He believed that the setting up of an independent law reform commission will be a huge step forward in the development of the law and legal system in Malaysia. He postulated that the law reform commission must be an independent body that is credible and will command public trust and respect. He said that the establishment of a law reform commission is meant to be a permanent body as it will help in productivity and provides a better opportunity to establish a sound reputation.
The final speaker at the forum, Dato’ Sri Ramachelvam Manimuthu presented on the proposed Law Commission of Malaysia Act (“proposed Act”) prepared by the LRSAC. The proposed Act serves as a starting point to create a permanent and dynamic law commission.
The proposed Act has been drafted with six parts and the main parts are as follows:
(1) Part II which establishes the Commission and sets out its functions, powers and duties;(2) Part III which provides for and sets out the structure and organisation of the Commission;(3) Part IV which regulates meetings and appointment of staff to the Commission;(4) Part V which establishes the Advisory Council; and(5) Part VI which regulates the Commission’s finances and the production of an Annual Report.
After the panel discussion, R Jayabalan opened the floor for a question–and–answer session.
Dato’ Rajpal Singh Mukhtiar Singh, Co–Chairperson of LRSAC, presented the panellists with a token of appreciation at the end of the forum.