Litigation Series

A Brief Overview of the Malaysian Legal System

By Colin Andrew Pereira

One of the first issues that confront a litigant is which court an action should be commenced in. The jurisdiction of the Malaysian courts is determined by the Courts of Judicature Act and the Surbodinate Courts Act 1948.

The Magistrates Court is empowered to deal with all claims up to the value of RM25,000. Within the Magistrates Court, there is a small claims procedure to deal with claims that do not exceed RM5,000. For these small claims, the procedure is less formal and  legal representation is not permitted (unless the party is a company). There is a Magistrates Court in most towns in the country.

The Sessions Court is empowered to deal with all claims up to the value of RM250,000. It also has unlimited jurisdiction to hear matters involving accidents, landlord and tenant  and distress proceedings. There is a Sessions Court in most major towns.

There are two High Courts in Malaysia known as The High Court of Malaya (that sits in every state in Peninsular Malaysia) and The High Court of Sabah and Sarawak ( that sits in the two states and was previously known as The High Court of Borneo).

The High Court has jurisdiction to hear all claims and, in practice, hears claims exceeding RM250,000. However, there are certain  cases that can only be heard by the High Court even where the amount claimed is less than RM250,000. Such a situation may arise where the plaintiff claims for certain orders such as an injunction, specific performance or declarations. It is only the High Court that can adjudicate a person bankrupt and grant a winding up order against a company irrespective of the amount owed.  The High Court also possesses an appellate jurisdiction and hears appeals from the Magistrates Court and Sessions Court.

The Court of Appeal hears appeals from the High Court. Where the claim is less than RM250,000, an application for leave must first be filed. It is only when leave to appeal is obtained may a party proceed with the appeal.

The Federal Court hears appeals from the Court of Appeal. Leave to appeal must always be obtained prior to proceeding with the appeal

Nb:      The above overview relates only to civil cases and not to criminal cases. There are also separate provisions to deal with employment disputes which are heard in the Labour Court or the Industrial Court.