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JUDICIARY

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How does the court system of Malaysia work?

The hierarchy of courts of Malaysia starts with the Magistrates Court as the rst level
followed by the Sessions Court, High Court, Court of Appeal and the Federal Court of
Malaysia, which is the highest level.

The High Court, Court of Appeal and the Federal Court are superior courts, while the
Magistrates Court, the Court for Children and the Sessions Court are subordinate courts. A
Magistrate's Court and a Court for Children are presided by magistrates.

There are also various other courts outside of the hierarchy. There are the Penghulu's
Courts, the Syariah Courts and the Native Courts. A court, which is paralleled in
jurisdiction with the Magistrates' Court, is the Juvenile Court.

Penghulu's Court has been abolished by Subordinate Courts (Amendment) Act 2010 (Act A1382), which came
into force in March 2013.

Generally, there are two types of trials, namely criminal and civil.

(a) The Federal Court

The Federal Court hears appeals from the Court of Appeal.
|
(b) The Court of Appeal
The Court of Appeal hears appeals from the High Court relating to both civil and criminal
matters.
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(c) The High Court

A) CIVIL JURISDICTION B) CRIMINAL C) APPELLATE

The High Court has
jurisdiction to try all civil
matters but generally
con nes itself to matters
on which the Magistrates
and Sessions Courts have
no jurisdiction. These
include matters relating to
divorce and matrimonial
cases, appointment of
guardians of infants, the
granting of probate of
wills and testaments and
letters of administration
https://www.lawyerment.com/s/tools/print/kb/?id=1002
JURISDICTION
The High Court may hear
all matters but generally
con nes itself to offences
on which the Magistrates
and Sessions Courts have
no jurisdiction, for
instance, offences which
carry the death penalty.
JURISDICTION
The High Court may hear
appeals from the
Magistrates and Sessions
Courts in both civil and
criminal matters.
Amount in dispute in any
civil matters must exceed
RM10,000 except where it
involves a question of law.
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3/13/2018 How does the court system of Malaysia work? - Lawyerment.com

of the estate of deceased

persons, bankruptcy and
other civil claims where
the amount in dispute
exceeds RM1,000,000.

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(d) The Sessions Court

(A) CIVIL JURISDICTION (B) CRIMINAL JURISDICTION

A Sessions Court may hear any civil A Sessions Court has jurisdiction to try
matter involving motor vehicle all criminal offences EXCEPT those
accidents, disputes between landlord and punishable by death.
tenant, and distress actions. The
Sessions Court may also hear other
matters where the amount in dispute
does not exceed RM1,000,000.

The civil jurisdiction limit of the Sessions Court has been increased signi cantly under Subordinate
Courts (Amendment) Act 2010 (Act A1382) from the previous RM250,000.

The Amendment Act also conferred the Sessions Court with jurisdiction to try all actions and suits of a
civil nature for the speci c performance or rescission of contracts or for cancellation or recti cation of
instruments.

Further, the Amendment Act empowers the Sessions Court to grant an injunction and to make a
declaration, whether or not any other relief, redress or remedy is or could be claimed.

Knowledge Base ID : 1002

Last Review : December 26, 2015

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