Media Arbitration Schemes: Addressing the Backlog of Defamation Cases in Malaysia

The rise in defamation claims in Malaysia has placed an onerous workload on the courts to deal with such matters. Against this backdrop, Hamid Sultan Abu Backer JC (as his Lordship then was) suggested in two separate High Court decisions that to alleviate the courts’ burden, matters pertaining to libel and slander ought to be constrained to the criminal courts through appropriate statutory amendments, including to the Criminal Procedure Code (Malaysia). In this paper, the author cautions against the learned Hamid Sultan JC’s recommendations and proffers an alternative proposal in the form of media arbitration schemes to handle the growing influx of defamation claims. In particular, the salient features of the IMPRESS and IPSO Schemes from the United Kingdom are scrutinised in detail and measured in terms of suitability for a potential arbitration scheme in the Malaysian jurisdiction.

by IMADUDDIN SUHAIMI

This article may be cited as Suhaimi, I. (2021). Media Arbitration Schemes: Addressing the Backlog of Defamation Cases in Malaysia. Asian Journal of Comparative Law, 1-22. doi:10.1017/asjcl.2021.11

The rise in defamation claims in Malaysia has placed an onerous workload on the courts to deal with such matters. Against this backdrop, Hamid Sultan Abu Backer JC (as his Lordship then was) suggested in two separate High Court decisions that to alleviate the courts’ burden, matters pertaining to libel and slander ought to be constrained to the criminal courts through appropriate statutory amendments, including to the Criminal Procedure Code (Malaysia). In this paper, the author cautions against the learned Hamid Sultan JC’s recommendations and proffers an alternative proposal in the form of media arbitration schemes to handle the growing influx of defamation claims. In particular, the salient features of the IMPRESS and IPSO Schemes from the United Kingdom are scrutinised in detail and measured in terms of suitability for a potential arbitration scheme in the Malaysian jurisdiction.

To read the full article, please see:
https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/asian-journal-of-comparative-law/article/abs/media-arbitration-schemes-addressing-the-backlog-of-defamation-cases-in-malaysia/B4AAD8E87EB53D0C593352C5D073DC8F