ForLaw Me

  Imagine a courtroom showdown in Malaysia's marital drama. Meet Adam and Eve, a couple facing a cross  road of separation. Adam is ready to sign the divorce papers, but Eve stands firm, creating a spicy legal deadlock.  Enter the "Contested Divorce Petition," (or sometimes known as Single Petition) a powerful legal move that gives Adam a chance to have his say, even if they don't see eye to eye. In order to file a Contested Divorce Petition, Adam has to rely on one or more of the Grounds and/or Proof of Breakdown provided under Section 54(1) of the Law Reform (Marriage & Divorce) Act 1976. WHAT ARE THE GROUNDS/PROOF OF BREAKDOWN ILLUSTRATED UNDER THE LAW? Here we go...... 1. Adultery: is a legal basis for divorce if one of the parties has engaged in it. When a spouse has a sexual relationship with someone other than their spouse, it is called adultery. For instance, Adam could apply for divorce on the grounds of adultery if he finds out Eve has been having an aff...

Stuck in an unhappy marriage? Here's the deal: you have to have been married for at least two years if you're in a bad marriage and ready to end it in Malaysia. There are exceptions, however, you will need EXCEPTIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES to qualify for a divorce before completing 2 years. Therefore, please hold your horses.  There are basically 2 types of divorces in Malaysia, a mutual consent and a contested divorce. While a mutual consent divorce can be time saving, fast and cost effective, it is quite the opposite for a contested divorce proceedings which can take anywhere between a year to 2 years to conclude and the process can be a costly affair. Why does it take long? this is because under a contested divorce proceedings there are many issues to be tried in which the Court will need to hear and make a decision. A divorce proceeding does not only involve issues pertaining to the cause of the breakdown of a marriage, a family court is empowered to make decisions inter alia in re...

Hey there, did you know that certain actions can totally mess up your last will and testament? Yep, turns out that your final wishes can get thrown out the window if you don't watch out for these tricky invalidators. So, if you want to make sure your heirs get what's coming to them, better pay attention to these potential will-wreckers! 1.     SPOUSE OF THE BENEFICIARY ACTS AS A WITNESS TO THE WILL The beneficiary's  spouse appointed as the witness will lose his/her entitlement in the Will. The validity of the Will can also be challenged. This is in line with Section 9 of the WILLS ACT 1959. 2.    GETTING MARRIED AFTER WRITING A WILL When you get married or remarry, your will is automatically revoked. A "contemplation of marriage" clause in your will that expressly calls for an anticipated marriage is an exception. A divorce has no bearing on a will's legality. In this case, a new will is required. 3.    BENEFICIARY IS ALSO A WITNESS A will can be witn...

Are you fed up with getting lost in a sea of legalese? But you're not sure where to begin, do you want to seem like a legal expert? Do not worry, my friend, since we will be decoding Malaysia's most used legal phrases in this blog post! Ah, " Bona Fide "—that elegant Latin phrase that gives you the air of a lawyer from a sitcom. What does it mean, though, exactly? Actually, it's a phrase that refers to something that is sincere or done in good faith. Need an example? here you go:- Let's imagine you decide to purchase a brand-new car from a dealership. The salesperson assures you that the vehicle is in immaculate shape and has never been in an accident. Although you're eager to sign on the dotted line, you first want to confirm that the salesperson's promise is legitimate. In order to confirm the vehicle's history, you request a  report. The salesperson's claim is genuine if the report demonstrates that the vehicle hasn't been in an accident...

 WELL YES! A republication of a defamatory statement is also considered to be defamatory. In the case of YB Hj Khalid bin Abdul Samad v Datuk Aziz bin Isham & Anor [2012] 7 MLJ 301, the High Court quoted Gatley on Libel and Slander (8th Ed), at p 117 which states that "every republication of a libel is a new libel and each publisher is answerable for his act to the same extent as if the calumny originated with him". Accordingly, every repost or share of a defamatory statement is considered a new publication because those who do so are deemed to have approved, endorsed or repeated the same. This position was reiterated in the recent Court of Appeal case of Raja Syahrir bin Abu Bakar & Anor v Manjeet Singh Dhillon and other appeals [2019] MLJU 75. Therefore please be careful with what you share in social media as this can land you in very expensive litigation.

         Answer is: YES Here is a write up on the important criteria to look out for in admitting WhatsApp communication as evidence in court: Firstly, the safest course of action would be to produce the original WhatsApp messages as they appear on the witness’ phone. Secondly, parties may choose to rely on a combination of both screenshots of the messages in question as well as the exported text versions of the conversation, for completeness. Thirdly, parties should make an effort to obtain corroboration of the evidence in the WhatsApp conversation. This may include producing the witness of the other party to the conversation and having them produce their end of the WhatsApp conversation as corroboration. Adducing other relevant and contemporaneous evidence of the matters referred to such WhatsApp conversations is, of course, trite and good practice. Ultimately, what is clear is that WhatsApp evidence should, ideally, not form the linchpin of any party’s case i...

FIRST THINGS FIRST, GET LEGAL ADVICE IMMEDIATELY! Whether you are a business owner and your business is being sued or an individual facing a personal legal dispute. Most important thing to do is to see a Lawyer and seek advise IMMEDIATELY. This is because many people do not know that you only have 14 days from the time you receive a court summons to file something called "appearance". Hence, it is not wise to ignore a court summons. "No the court will not throw out the case against you if you do not attend court or do the necessary" In fact, Judgment in default can be entered. Hence, act fast and please do not delay and wait till the return date to the court which will be stated in most documents. There are things to do even before that. As a lay person you may not know what you should do according to the given Rules and Regulations governing a Court Proceedings.  Seeking professional help will save you and your business from many other troubles which can be a costl...

  Hello All! Good evening!  Being a law practitioner for more than 12 years now, the above is the one of the most common question I am asked by clients. To answer the question, you need to first understand the terminology and ubderstand the difference between professional legal fees  and court awarded costs at the end of a case.  Legal Fees are what you pay your lawyer to carry out the work for you. Court Costs are what the court usually award you when you succeed with your claim or defence. The losing party pays the winning party. Court Costs are supposed to reimburse you for expenses incurred in your case in court. The idea is that you are entitled to be reimbursed since were successful in your claim or defence. However, Court Costs only cover expenses incurred related for court related matters only. You may have spent a great deal in investigating and preparing for the court proceedings, but not all the expenses incurred for preliminary work done can be claimed. G...