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  1. AB v. ILHAM FITRI MURAD & ORS [2026] 8 CLJ 594

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CASE SPOTLIGHTS

AB v. ILHAM FITRI MURAD & ORS [2026] 8 CLJ 594
HIGH COURT MALAYA, ALOR SETAR
JOHAN LEE KIEN HOW J
[CIVIL SUIT NO: KA-23NCVC-1-01-2023]
6 JULY 2026

TORT: Negligence - Medical negligence - Circumcision procedure - Minor claimant suffered persistent bleeding, delayed healing and fibrous layer obstructing urinary outlet - Claim against medical assistants, registered medical practitioner, and clinic - Failure of claimant to call independent expert medical witness - Alleged tortfeasors submitted no case to answer - Whether expert medical evidence mandatory to establish breach of standard of care and clinical conclusions - Whether lay testimonies and non-contemporaneous photographs legally sufficient - Whether medical negligence established

TORT: Negligence - Res ipsa loquitur - Application of - Circumcision procedure - Minor claimant suffered persistent bleeding, delayed healing, and fibrous layer obstructing urinary outlet - Claim against medical assistants, registered medical practitioner, and clinic - Allegations of unsterile physical environment and contaminated surgical instruments - Identical procedures performed successfully on others at same premises with same facilities - Whether res ipsa loquitur shifted legal burden of proof under s. 101 of Evidence Act 1950 - Whether mere occurrence of adverse medical outcome or mishap sufficient to invoke res ipsa loquitur

TORT: Negligence - Causation - Chain of causation - Novus actus interveniens - Circumcision procedure - Minor suffered persistent bleeding, delayed healing, and fibrous layer obstructing urinary outlet - Claim against medical assistants, registered medical practitioner, and clinic - Medical practitioner recommended specialist referral - Delay of 44 days in acting upon referral - Whether protracted inaction by patient broke chain of causation - Whether legal nexus between practitioner's diagnosis and alleged injury dispelled

EVIDENCE: Burden of proof - Medical negligence - Standard of care - Circumcision procedure - Minor claimant suffered persistent bleeding, delayed healing, and fibrous layer obstructing urinary outlet - Claim against medical assistants, registered medical practitioner, and clinic - Failure of claimant to call independent medical expert witness - Whether adverse inference under s. 114(g) of Evidence Act 1950 triggered

APPEAL UPDATES

1. Muralikrishna Nokiah v. PP & Other Appeals [2026] CLJU 610 overruling in part the High Court case of Muralikrishna Nokiah & Ors & Another Case [2022] CLJU 219

2. Chan Kean Hin v. Dato' Sri Dr Lee Ville & Ors [2026] CLJU 808 overruling the High Court case of Chan Kean Hin v. Lee Ville & Ors [2024] CLJU 3180

LATEST CASES

Legal Network Series

CLJ 2026 Volume 8 (Part 3)

(i) Administrative timelines for submitting a draft arbitral award for technical review are directory rather than mandatory, unless the rules expressly stipulate invalidity or a sanction for non-compliance; (ii) A party's failure to promptly raise a contemporaneous objection to procedural non-compliance during ongoing proceedings constitutes a waiver of that objection, particularly in the absence of demonstrated substantial prejudice; (iii) A party cannot challenge an arbitral award on the basis of a 'new difference' or a lack of natural justice if the issue fell within the general mandate of the reference and the party merely failed to exhaust all available legal arguments at the material time.
Bellworth Developments Sdn Bhd v. Setiakon Builders Sdn Bhd & Another Appeal [2026] 8 CLJ 319 [CA]

• SUBJECT
• CORAM
• COUNSEL

(i) The failure to provide a Bahasa Malaysia translation of verbatim English defamatory words in a statement of claim does not constitute an automatic or incurable nullity. While pleadings should strictly be in the national language, the proviso to s. 8 of the National Language Acts 1963/67 preserves judicial discretion. Non-compliance is curable where the words are understood, fully contested, and cause no prejudice to the opposing party, thereby prioritising the interests of justice over mere procedural technicalities; (ii) While a court cannot compel an unwilling defendant to issue an apology - as true contrition must be voluntary - it possesses the equitable discretion to order a mandatory retraction of defamatory statements to correct the public record and vindicate the plaintiff's reputation.
Jason Jonathan Lo v. Star Media Group Bhd & Ors And Another Appeal [2026] 8 CLJ 354 [CA]

• SUBJECT
• CORAM
• COUNSEL

(i) A liquidator, as an officer of the court, cannot abdicate personal responsibilities or effect a wholesale delegation of core liquidation duties to third-party entities. Granting third parties such powers constitutes a breach of statutory duties, under s. 236(2)(i) of the Companies Act 1965 and r. 171 of the Companies (Winding-up) Rules 1972, rendering the liquidator's position untenable and justifying removal; (ii) A liquidator's subsequent gross misconduct, unauthorised delegation or defiance of court orders does not automatically disentitle them to all remuneration for the entire term of appointment. A clear demarcation exists between the period prior to the impugned unlawful delegation, during which lawful work was performed, and the period of abdication. Remuneration for work performed prior to the culpable acts remains permissible, subject to proper assessment or taxation by the court.
Lim Aik v. Goh Siew Koon & Ors And Other Appeals [2026] 8 CLJ 413 [CA]

• SUBJECT
• CORAM
• COUNSEL

Under s. 137(3) of the Local Government Act 1976 ('Act'), a local authority has no jurisdiction or statutory authority to amend a valuation list, pursuant to s. 144 of the Act, once that valuation list has expired, unless a new valuation list has been prepared or a valid extension has been granted by the State Authority. Upon the expiry of a valuation list, holdings cease to be 'rateable holdings' within the meaning of the Act. Consequently, no assessment rates can be lawfully imposed on properties on the basis of an invalid and expired valuation list.
Pengerang Refining Company Sdn Bhd v. Majlis Perbandaran Pengerang & Another Appeals [2026] 8 CLJ 451 [CA]

• SUBJECT
• CORAM
• COUNSEL

(i) The phrase 'finally decided by arbitration or the court' in s. 13(c) of the Construction Industry Payment and Adjudication Act 2012 ('CIPAA') describes the character of the decision itself - namely, a final decision on the merits, as opposed to an interim or interlocutory order - rather than a procedural state where all avenues of appeal have been exhausted. An adjudication decision ceases to be binding under s. 13(c) from the moment the court of first instance or the arbitral tribunal delivers its final judgment or award on the underlying dispute, regardless of any pending or subsequent appeals; (ii) An enforcement order under s. 28 of the CIPAA merely enforces the adjudication decision; its legal status as a judgment is parasitic upon and coextensive with the binding force of the underlying adjudication decision under s. 13. Once the underlying adjudication decision loses its binding effect via s. 13(c), the statutory predicate for the s. 28 enforcement order falls away, thereby extinguishing its effect as a judgment and leaving no subsisting debt.
YS Chong Enterprise Sdn Bhd (In Liquidation) v. Perkasa Jauhari Sdn Bhd (In Liquidation) & Another Appeal [2026] 8 CLJ 473 [CA]

• SUBJECT
• CORAM
• COUNSEL

ARTICLES

LNS Article(s)

1. A CASE STUDY OF M SHAHOOL HAMEED – NEGLIGENCE OF THE REGISTRAR ^{[Read excerpt]}
   by Khadijah binti Azmi^[i] Dr Nur Atheefa Sufeena binti M Suaree^[ii] [2026] CLJU(A) lxxxvi

[2026] CLJU(A) lxxxvi

MALAYSIA

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A CASE STUDY OF M SHAHOOL HAMEED – NEGLIGENCE OF THE REGISTRAR

by
Khadijah binti Azmi^[i]
Dr Nur Atheefa Sufeena binti M Suaree^[ii]

ABSTRACT

This case study explores the legal limits of a Land Registrar's responsibility and State immunity in the Malaysian Torrens system, focusing on the court decision in M Shahool Hameed Mohamed Meerah v. Pengarah Tanah Dan Galian Negeri Selangor & Ors [2025] 3 CLJ 343. The dispute emerged when a buyer obtained a piece of land that the Government had forcibly taken decades earlier, by relying on incorrect registry records and official land searches produced by the Computerised Land Registration System ('CLRS'). The Court of Appeal held that misinformation within the registry does not ipso facto establish actionable negligence, requiring claimants to provide specific evidence of a negligent act or omission to displace statutory protection under section 22 of the National Land Code ('NLC'). Further, the decision highlights the importance of commercial due diligence, demonstrating that official land searches cannot substitute essential physical site inspections or formal valuations, while also emphasising principles against double recovery. Moreover, this study ultimately scrutinises how the decision clarifies the operational bounds of the Torrens "mirror principle" in digital repositories, reaffirming that the Land Registrar functions as an administrative gatekeeper instead of a definitive guarantor of title history or the actual existence of land.

. . .

[i] Undergraduate Student, Faculty of Law, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia.

[ii] Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Law, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia.

2. BEYOND ABSOLUTE ASSENT: MODERNISING CONTRACT FORMATION UNDER SECTION 7(a) OF THE MALAYSIAN CONTRACTS ACT OF 1950 AND CISG ARTICLE 19 ^{[Read excerpt]}
   by Tun Heang Ong* [2026] CLJU(A) lxxxvii

[2026] CLJU(A) lxxxvii

MALAYSIA

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BEYOND ABSOLUTE ASSENT: MODERNISING CONTRACT FORMATION UNDER SECTION 7(a) OF THE MALAYSIAN CONTRACTS ACT OF 1950 AND CISG ARTICLE 19

by
Tun Heang Ong*

INTRODUCTION: THE RIGID PILLAR OF SECTION 7(a)

The Malaysian legal framework addresses the formation of binding agreements with a degree of precision that does not always accommodate the evolving demands of modern global commerce. At the core of this framework is section 7(a) of the Contracts Act 1950, which stipulates that acceptance of a proposal must be absolute and unqualified for it to constitute a promise. This statutory provision reflects the Mirror Image Rule, a traditional common law doctrine that dictates any deviation from the original terms, regardless of its significance, does not amount to acceptance. Instead, such a response is classified as a counteroffer, which immediately rejects and nullifies the original proposal.

While this rule offers Malaysian practitioners a high degree of technical certainty, it increasingly serves as a significant barrier in international trade. In the fast-paced environment of global procurement, parties seldom wait for perfect alignment of standard terms before commencing performance. This dynamic leads to the "battle of the forms", where each party seeks to impose its own conditions through a sequence of purchase orders, acknowledgements, and invoices. Although section 7(a) remains a foundational principle in domestic litigation, the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG) provides a more pragmatic alternative through Article 19. The distinction in the CISG between material and non-material alterations is crucial for shielding commercial entities from the technical pitfalls of the Mirror Image Rule, thereby offering a more robust framework for contemporary trade. Transitioning from a rigid mirror image approach to a materiality model is a necessary development for the Malaysian Bar to align with global commercial standards.

. . .

* Mr Ong is an advocate and solicitor (non-practising). He holds a Master of Laws from Nottingham Trent University and a Master of Corporate Law and Governance from Veritas University College.

3. 'BACK TO THE FUTURE: THE GROWING RELEVANCE OF ICCS IN RESOLVING DISPUTES'
   KEYNOTE ADDRESS AT THE INDIA INTERNATIONAL DISPUTES WEEK 2026^{+ [Read excerpt]}
   by Justice Arjan Kumar Sikri [2026] CLJU(A) lxxxviii

[2026] CLJU(A) lxxxviii

SINGAPORE

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'BACK TO THE FUTURE: THE GROWING RELEVANCE OF ICCS IN RESOLVING DISPUTES'

KEYNOTE ADDRESS AT THE INDIA INTERNATIONAL DISPUTES WEEK 2026⁺

by
Justice Arjan Kumar Sikri

Introduction

It is a matter of common knowledge that arbitration has emerged as one of the prominent Alternate Dispute Resolution ("ADR") mechanisms to resolve the various kinds of disputes, particularly commercial disputes. When it comes to international commercial disputes, international arbitration has been a preferred choice. The corporations and business community departed from the resolution of disputes through courts and started preferring arbitration for various reasons. Some of its features, like party autonomy, confidentiality, cost effectiveness and speedy resolution of disputes, choice of those persons as arbitrators who have special domain knowledge/expertise, led disputants to go away from courts and adopt arbitration as a more preferred mode.

In recent years, arbitration has come under some criticism because of, inter alia, the mode and methodologies of arbitration and impartiality/independence of arbitrators. Above all, it is becoming more adversarial, time-consuming and prohibitively expensive. Some of these and other reasons have led the commercial world to rethink a more appropriate mechanism for dispute resolution. They want to go back to the courts, at least under certain circumstances, but feel that traditional national courts may not serve that purpose. This situation has led to the emergence of International Commercial Courts ("ICCs"), and in the past two decades, they have proliferated worldwide, transforming the landscape of cross-border commercial dispute resolution.^[1]

. . .

+Reproduced with permission of the Singapore Courts: https://www.judiciary.gov.sg/news-and-resources/news/news-details/keynote-address-by-justice-arjan-kumar-sikri-at-the-india-international-disputes-week-2026.

4. THE RIGHTS OF INTERESTED PERSONS IN INQUEST PROCEEDINGS: A COMPARATIVE STUDY IN MALAYSIA AND THE UNITED KINGDOM ^{[Read excerpt]}
   by Nurul 'Ain Abdul Rahim* [2026] CLJU(A) lxxxix

[2026] CLJU(A) lxxxix

MALAYSIA

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THE RIGHTS OF INTERESTED PERSONS IN INQUEST PROCEEDINGS:
A COMPARATIVE STUDY IN MALAYSIA AND THE UNITED KINGDOM

by
Nurul 'Ain Abdul Rahim*

ABSTRACT

The country has witnessed an increase in awareness of the rights of interested persons in inquiry proceedings. The interested persons, together with the coroner and conducting officers, work to find and determine the cause and circumstances of the deceased's death, ensuring the inquest is conducted transparently and with accountability in the interest of justice. In Malaysia, the participation of interested persons, especially the deceased's family members or the next of kin, remains inadequately monitored under Chapter XXXII of the Criminal Procedure Code, resulting in uncertainty about their rights to access information, examine witnesses, present evidence and take an effective part in proceedings. Conversely, the United Kingdom has developed a comprehensive legislative framework through the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 and regulations that clearly identify interested persons and provide clear procedural rights to ensure effective participation. This article examines the rights and challenges of interested persons in inquest proceedings in Malaysia and the United Kingdom through doctrinal and comparative legal analysis. This study analyses the statutes, regulations, practice directions, procedural rules and literature to identify gaps in the Malaysian framework and assess the effectiveness of the UK model. These findings indicate that the absence of clear legal provisions in Malaysia has led to inconsistent practices and limited participation of interested persons, potentially undermining procedural fairness and public trust in the inquest. This study argues that Malaysia should adopt and adapt the relevant parts of the United Kingdom legislative framework as a more structured model to clearly determine the status, rights and inclusion of interested persons. Such reforms will strengthen the effectiveness of inquest proceedings, increase accountability and promote greater compliance with the principles of procedural justice.

. . .

*Senior Legal Officer at the Attorney General's Chambers, Putrajaya; PhD Candidate, Faculty of Law, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Shah Alam, Selangor. Email: 2024551983@uitm.edu.my.d

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