A BRIEF OVERVIEW ON THE INQUISITORIAL METHOD IN MALAYSIAN SHARIAH COURTS
Keywords:
inquisitorial method, Shariah Courts, Shariah Judicial Department of MalaysiaAbstract
For decades, the Shariah Courts in Malaysia have adopted the adversarial system as a formal procedural legal system to solve family cases in court trials. Malaysian Shariah Courts have gone through developments and changes to improve the courts’ external and internal legal structures. In December 2019, the Shariah Judicial Department of Malaysia had introduced a new practice direction where Shariah judges may execute the inquisitorial approach in trials if deemed necessary. Based on qualitative research of interviews and library research, this article aims to identify the benefits of applying the inquisitorial approach in Shariah courts. This study reported that not only does the inquisitorial system provide a broader jurisdiction for the Shariah judges, but it also allows the judges to practice judge-led mediation in trials. While the formal legal system remains adversarial, this study also confirmed that the Malaysian Shariah legal system practices an adquisitorial approach which is a hybrid of both the adversarial and inquisitorial approaches. Some judges may use the inquisitorial approach while most apply the adversarial method.
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Siti Fadhilah Ahmad (Sulh Officer, Muar Shariah Court, Johor), in interview with author on 17 March 2020.
