Annual Report 2019 Judicial Appointments Commission

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Annual Report 2019 Judicial Appointments Commission JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS COMMISSION ANNUAL REPORT 2019 JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS COMMISSION CONTENT CHAIRMAN'S PREFACE 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3 BACKGROUND 5 MEETINGS 9 APPOINTMENT OF JUDGES 13 JUDICIAL ACADEMY 21 SECRETARIAT TO THE COMMISSION 46 CHAIRMAN'S PREFACE JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS COMMISSION CHAIRMAN'S PREFACE Bismillahirrahmanirrahim. Assalamualaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh. Judicial independence is the cornerstone of every legal system in the world, including Malaysia. Hence, the process by which judges are appointed must necessarily be clean, transparent and accountable. This is amongst the main reasons why the Judicial Appointments Commission (the Commission) was established; that is, to strengthen and enhance the integrity of the judiciary and to fulfill the wishes and aspirations of the people that transparency and accountability in the Malaysian judicial system is observed. The presentation of the Annual Reports of the Commission is not merely to comply with the requirements of section 31 of the Judicial Appointments Commission Act (Act 695) but to show that in the exercise of its statutory functions, the Commission upholds the continued independence of the judiciary and by extension, the principle of the rule of law. As such, I am pleased to welcome the presentation of the Judicial Appointments Commission's (JAC) Annual Report 2019. All stakeholders including judges, judicial and legal officers, law practitioners and the public can see from the 2019 Annual Report that the Commission is committed to serve its purpose. Since its establishment in 2009, various initiatives have been executed by the Commission to foster transparency and to improve the integrity and accountablity of the judiciary. One of the initiatives is to review and revise the content of judicial training programmes of superior court judges. The initiative is in line with the growing current legal issues which are more complex due to the development and advancement of technology. Another initiative taken by the Commission is to publish the Journal of the Malaysian Judiciary (JMJ). The publication of JMJ has created the opportunity for others to have an insight into current judicial thinking or jurisprudence via articles written by superior court judges on various areas of law. The publication of these articles had in turn, strengthened the culture of writing and learning among the superior court judges. JMJ has been distributed to various institutions such as local and foreign universities and foreign judicial institutions as reference material. These continuous initiatives are important to enhance judicial skills of superior court judges and to increase public confidence in the judiciary, leading ultimately to the strengthening of the rule of law in Malaysia. 01 / ANNUAL REPORT 2019 JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS COMMISSION I would like to take this opportunity to thank YBhg. Tan Sri Datuk Sri Panglima Richard Malanjum, the former Chairman of the Commission, YBhg. Tan Sri Dato' Sri Ahmad bin Haji Maarop and YBhg. Tan Sri Zaharah binti Ibrahim, former members of the Commission for their distinction service to the Commission. I would also like to thank YBhg. Datuk Wan Khairilanwar bin Wan Muhammad and YBhg. Dato' Indera Noridah binti Abdul Rahim, the former Secretaries to the Commission for the smooth administration of the Commission during their terms. Congratulations are also in order to The Rt. Hon. Dato' Rohana binti Yusuf, President of the Court of Appeal, The Rt. Hon. Tan Sri Dato' Sri Azahar bin Mohammed, Chief Judge of the High Court in Malaya; and The Hon. Datuk Seri Mohd Zawawi bin Salleh, Federal Court Judge, on their appointments as new members of the Commission. Lastly, I wish to place on record my appreciation to all officers and staff of the Commission led by YBrs. Encik Qalam Zainuddin bin Sani who have displayed commitment in planning, implementing and evaluating the effectiveness of the Commission's programmes. TAN SRI TENGKU MAIMUN BINTI TUAN MAT Chief Justice of Federal Court, Malaysia cum Chairman of Judicial Appointments Commission 02 / ANNUAL REPORT 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS COMMISSION EXECUTIVE SUMMARY EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Pursuant to section 31 of the Judicial Appointments Act 2009 (Act 695), the Commission is required to prepare an annual report of its activities for submission to Parliament. This Judicial Appointments Commission's (hereinafter “the Commission”) Annual Report 2019 is prepared pursuant to the aforementioned provision. This report is divided into five (5) main chapters: 1. Background - explains the history of the Commission's establishment, its role and introduces the Commission members. 2. Meetings - reporting on the meetings of the Commission as required by Act 695 namely the Judicial Appointments Commission Meeting and the Selection Meeting. 3. Selection and Appointment of Superior Court Judge - expounds the process of selection and appointment of superior court judges at the various tiers namely the Federal Court, the Court of Appeal and the High Court, based on the criteria set out in Act 695. 4. Judicial Academy - reports on local and international training programmes in 2019 as well as the publication of the Journal of the Malaysian Judiciary. 5. The Secretariat of the Commission - spells out the roles and functions of the Secretariat to the Commission and includes a report on the approved financial allocation in 2019. 03 / ANNUAL REPORT 2019 JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS COMMISSION 2019 EVENTS u Meetings = 12 Judicial Appointments Commission Meetings = 5 Selection Meetings u Appointments of Judges and Judicial Commissioners = Chief Justice = President of the Court of Appeal = Chief Judge of the High Court in Malaya = 5 Federal Court Judges = 7 Judges of the Court of Appeal = 19 High Court Judges = 24 Judicial Commissioners u Local Training Programmes = Courses by Senior Judges ] Principles of Contractual Interpretation ] Appellate Judgment Writing ] How to Read Statutes Course ] Induction Programme for Judicial Commissioners 1/2019 ] Criminal Law: Evidence & Procedures ] Quantification of Damages ] Principles of Contractual Interpretation ] Law Reform & the Judiciary ] Induction Programme for Judicial Commissioners 2/2019 = Inter-Agency Collaboration Programme ] Quantification of Damages = International Invited Speakers ] The Hon. Lord Justice Nicholas Green, Chair of the Law Commission, United Kingdom ] The Hon. Lord Justice Malcolm John David Wallis, Judge of the Supreme Court of Appeal, South Africa. ] The Hon. Justice Judith Prakash, Judge of the Supreme Court of Singapore; and ] The Hon. Justice Chao Hick Tin, Judge of the Court of Appeal of Singapore u Publication = Journal of the Malaysian Judiciary January and July 2019 Edition 04 / ANNUAL REPORT 2019 BACKGROUND JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS COMMISSION BACKGROUND History of Establishment The Judicial Appointments Commission (Commission) was established with the coming into force of the Judicial Appointments Commission Act 2009 (Act 695) which was gazetted on 8 January 2009. The establishment of the Commission was an initiative to empower and strengthen the judiciary and enhance its integrity through a more transparent and fair process of nomination, election, and promotion of superior court judges. Since its establishment, the Commission has successfully fulfilled its responsibilities as an independent judicial appointments body guided by the constitution. The Roles of the Commission The roles of the Commission is to receive and consider applications from qualified persons to the position of superior court judge as provided for in section 21 of Act 695. In addition, to perform its primary function of selecting suitably qualified persons who merit appointment as a superior court judge, various programmes were organized by the Commission to improve the judicial system in the country including training programs for superior court judges and publishing judiciary journals. Constitution of the Commission The Commission consists of nine (9) members including the Chairman. The membership of the Commission is based on the provisions set forth under Act 695. Four (4) members are appointed based on tenure in the judiciary in accordance with the provisions of subsections 5 (1) (a), (b), (c) and (d) of Act 695, while five (5) members are appointed by the Prime Minister pursuant to the provisions of subsections 5 (1) (e) and (f) of the Act 695. They consist of a Federal Court Judge and four (4) prominent persons who are not members of the executive or other public service. These Commissioners are appointed by the Prime Minister after consultation with the Bar Council of Malaysia, the Sabah Law Association, the Advocates Association of Sarawak and the Attorney General of the Federation. 05 / ANNUAL REPORT 2019 JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS COMMISSION APPOINTMENT BY TENURE The Rt. Hon. Tan Sri Tengku Maimun binti Tuan Mat Chief Justice of Malaysia The Rt. Hon. Dato' Rohana binti Yusuf President of the Court of Appeal The Rt. Hon. Tan Sri Dato' Sri Azahar bin Mohamed Chief Judge of the High Court in Malaya The Rt. Hon. Tan Sri Datuk Seri Panglima David Wong Dak Wah Chief Judge of the High Court in Sabah and Sarawak 06 / ANNUAL REPORT 2019 JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS COMMISSION APPOINMENT BY THE PRIME MINISTER The Hon. Datuk Seri YBhg. Dato' Seri Haji Mohd Zawawi bin Salleh Mohd. Hishamudin bin Md. Yunus Federal Court Judge Former Judge of the Court of Appeal YBhg. Datuk Linton Albert YBhg. Dato' Mah Weng Kwai Former Judge of the Court of Appeal Former Judge of the Court of Appeal YBhg. Prof.
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