Malaysian Court finds that non-payment of arbitration fees alone will not render arbitration agreement inoperable

07 July, 2023
Refusing to pay arbitration deposits is a common strategy employed by parties to delay or make proceedings difficult for the counterparty. The recent case of JKP Sdn Bhd v Anas Construction Sdn Bhd clarifies that the effects of non-payment of arbitration fees are fact sensitive, and finds that non-payment alone will not always result in the arbitration agreement becoming inoperable. Read more

Fraudulent Trading and an Expectation that Counterparties do not commit Fraud in an Acquisition Transaction

03 July, 2023
In the recent Malaysian Federal Court case of Lai Fee & Anor v. Wong Yu Vee & Ors, the Courts reiterates the need for parties to have good faith in carrying through with their contracts and has shown that it will not hesitate to find a company's shareholders or directors liable under Section 540 of the Companies Act 2016 when a company dishonestly conducts the contract in a way to avoid liability for their side of the bargain. Read more

2021/2022 Institutional Caseload Statistics: The AIAC and SIAC remain the preferred arbitration institutions by Malaysian parties

12 June, 2023
Following on from our previous updates in 2019, 2020, and 2021, we analyse the publicly available caseload statistics for the usage of various arbitral institutions by Malaysian parties. Our analysis of the numbers indicates that for 2021 and 2022, the AIAC and SIAC continue to remain the preferred arbitral institutions by Malaysian parties, while on the other hand, there has been a decrease in the use of the HKIAC. Read more

Malaysian High Court implies additional duties for experts

22 May, 2023
For the first time, the Malaysian High Court has found that party-appointed experts owe implied duties to the court.  It is well-established that expert witnesses owe a duty to assist courts and arbitrators, but this is typically understood as requiring experts to provide their evidence independently and impartially. Read more

Sanctions and Material Adverse Change Provisions

11 August, 2022
Craig Shepherd and Arnold Hoong have recently published an article in the Global Arbitration Review's Asia-Pacific Arbitration Review 2023. This article explores the effect of sanctions on contractual obligations within projects in the Asia-Pacific region as well as globally, and discusses what project owners and contractors should look out for. Read more