i7['-TNTNTRoDUCTI

v.,hich amou.rs ro a deprivation

de.,cloped-

Fir.

nat.avslAN LEGAL
r'rarr.

SYSTEIvI

of lifc, but that arsul,ent

was rrot iully

tl're adopting par

rhat a child has I

Son're forms

Chioes*.&l$f

&r,sarY.

Lad

in rnattcrs of marriage, Cl.rinesc cusromary laws were iudiciaily recogniz.cd 'a diror.., and inheriiancc, based on what Thompson CJ. callcd sort of common Yec Yeng Nam v Lce Fah Kooi larv affecdng persons of Chincse race' in Dorothl' (1956)ZZt*it257 atp-263- Cfiinese customary rnarriages were recognized as was cither monogamous polygarnour- A chir.r" could contracr a ilrarriage which '".

Chinese custom subsequent man Estate of Cban

iiugr*ous at its inception, and rhe type of marriage of ir.t to beproved to the court\ satisfactionwirh
rhe passing

t6at existed was a mattcr

,cognize subseq, other elders con in \West Malaysir

of the Law Reform (Ir4arriagc and Divorcc Act 1976) (Act However, the 164), achirle.oi,ld .,o longer enter into a polygar.ous unionCbeng status of customary *r.rirgl, before l Ir{arch 1982 rcmains- In loo 5ei-ustomiry Sttan, Sabri*a n Kh:oo Oon |in, Ergrn, [1995J I MLJ t I5, a e lrine intention' the upon court the ,rr..irg" contracted in 1982 was accePtcd by Estate of Re ia cohrbiiatiorr, and repute of marriage of .h" parties- Recently, MLJ 464 and ChongSu:ee Lin; Xo* Soh Keh v Cian Kok Lcong & Ors1199774 the in Lring Wee Sbing v Cbai Sie,t Yin [2000] 5 IyILJ 1(t2, the performance of customary a Chinese of and proof ,"" ."."I-rorr, *r, ok"., to be an integral part
marriage-

SSLR 178, and i the grounds that

FlinduQusteffi
As
a r-esult

ofr&

there is no singl, has its o..vn cultr In deciding the a the indian jurisi the developnrea

cusromarv nrarriage must be registered under tlre Sararvak chinese Marriage ordinance {Cap.7\ to be valid- Thus, in chieu' Boon Tongv Gob Ab Pei G"Anor [1956] scR 53 and in Pbiong Khon u 9br:! Chai FahltSlAlZMLJ 114 (FC), marriages not so registered were not valid- With regard ,o iivo..., th" ir-,p..*. Court in Sarawak, inWongCbw Mingv Kho Lie-ng Fl"iong[1952] SCR 1, recignized the practice of mutual divorce, but it had no effect without a declaration of the courtIn mafters of adoption, the Distribution Act 1958 (Act 300) (Revised 1983) only (Revised recognizes .r.rrr.rl.hildren adopted under the Adoption Act 1952 (Lct257) to an succeed cannot law cusromary I9g{; rhus, a child adopted ,rrd"r Chinese Bee v in KbooTiang acloptive fatheri intestate estate under the Act- This rvas upheld Toi BengGzr;atft|ll) 1 Ky- 413 and in the Prir,). Council case of Khoo Hooi Leong v Kboo tboog Yron gnOlAC 346 ar p- 355-56 However, in other maters such as conrracts, noi.-l,rdi.irl adoption may well be recognized- In Re Tan Soh Sim Deceased (1951) 17 MLJ 21, CA(FMS), the Court of Appeal accepted chinese adoption as legal and effective for the purpose of section 26{a} o{ the Contracts

I., Slrawak, however,

a Chinese

tion of Hindu Ia In the earlies [1883] 1Ky.622 right of a Hinde coverture. In lat
justice,ts reas0a: tional 1aw.5o Trar of marriage cusr

and property sy: In Re tlte Est Rep. 124 (SC) t the Strairs Settle

the sole owner at the time of th

famiiy which c Hindu family ai

Ordinance 1950ln Tan Kui Lirn k Anor v Lai Sin Fab l19BA] 1 MLJ 222,theFederal court held tlrat the proviso to section 5(3) of the Sarawak Adoption Ordinance fial (Cap' 91) ...og,rii", by necessary implication, if not expressly, the Chinese customary law ,r.r ,Ioption, provided it conforms with the procedure set out in the legislarionUr-,de.ihrt piooiro, registration of an adoption may be directed 'if it is satisfied
x
see a'!so Yeap Isong

chetriar firm- Tl by a male Hind property- The n the court.

tt Flooker, l'he Pqsoru

s'

t'Nagammalv Suppiat
@ 61

Karpen Tandil v K.4 SoundaraAchiv Kal.

Hin G Ors v

Lee Cbeng

Kin G Anorl197{.j 1 I4LJ

32 per ArunalandomJ

\n Rv Ratnamfl9l\
Karpen -[andiiv

dre colonies and

62

ws

a1

Ka1

.r--ai+:='it'{

(-US1'O|r'1ARY

l'A\\'

175

r.-.re

iir bclongs or bclongcd' ion rvcre recogniz-ed by rccoglllt subscquclll $1' ' - ,,f l.gi,i'nillitrtl lcgitinrattor r b)' Ogt1) li SSLR 120' ,ns. lrr the Srx\i''dottl'-i' Irr Sarawak ln TIce

,.. bcctr adoptcd irr accordarrcc

racc to u'hiclr witil the custottr oI the

p""-'*' of ..'ruent legitirnation"ii ti-r" f"th"t' 'ht ;:: o''' n' o i' t g " i n'..' ,,,' n, ., i . T n os c f ltl i':[ ; ;tj rl tYruJ :; i :i :t:' l '."11. I\\ "' et,A cbttilg ) I " .'iuln il,, o lloot Lcr,,ngt *1,u,, ssLl{ s0' cA(ss)' "n i irr R,' Kl'nn Tl*'l"it 'i:';;""' '""1'q2el coml'l-lotl la*'c'f llngl:rrrd' r.rt tl-icv t''"t" ttrt'*n"""t"f"
t t i

',"ifin*ii,"";;:::,i|ii;;i;;il:,;"..'l:':",1J'l::i.-" the iather' and

:ed in thc Straits

Stttl"'il"''"'

'

f, { -.:rirxar)' La\1' of In'liarrs in irlalaysia' ethno-lirrquistic.groupings of the tliversiti' l:'r..h gr('tI P ;;;'il': r" r li' l lrrrd''''""'-u"ir'' prevailtrrri l ('r ttt l'rrr' ;i':;

. t p' l' 1'*''' :1"' ;;:;i';; *,.:lll:::l;;;: ii ['iiHl?":ili ; a. ll'iiil I'; ;;'; ;'.; i,::'riilil,li;'; i.: :kl;, nom''
Pr:lLrIlces'
i': :rt'

.--itrlr:rl
:r

-l('

.r''"1

"

practicts u^ti"t1 oi rcligious nres ancl

u'

acl a

p'la-

"."

"

'

.iri::,1:r]:ljf

; |crs('ll'1ll\' . i.:i.lu rt llt't" lr"ld rt"rlt\''IllJ ctlurtv at't< I- natural oi grounds *"'
.

::,. 'l':r Po,r'tro r' \"r1ec L)ta raaett i ;t.tl,L li,,,r, l- * *". :; ; l' :: :1:l: i,::a:
later )'e:1rs, i

G Attttt sttb

$[;:'#*:i*
ecease
1

"ppli"tl,o. J" grounds of pri'atr: lnterna:,.sonablc,e" oi t.'tiJtt".,*'ii"t'a "1'o law were ln areas of tr-'"'ul;;;;;tit;Plication ' Traditi',au1', *-," Ilin'-1u io-r.t farnily to"ttttt'"'; '{i.du
r,

1"'"f;;''';

L',rokerage - ;6511-rr.rs."' ,r,arriage

'Lrt"'"' ril''1" it""t()' 1eit " 'c that itttlemcirts' 't firru' l-he execlltor ct',nrendcd chetri'rr t i; t1.,;;" of ti }'r:rlf ioint llindu '.-ncr ,,..,,',r1,.. il;:;.;;;, '"ai"ide'l "i'resr,lrLrr,s the ioint r1.rc tl-r-at' , .rf ttt" ""'' It meant -ich conrpri"tl U'o'"tl and liis of tht h'rlf share in the tt"''t]""o*']"t the -,ilv and lrot '"';;;;r-I;"*trr tnejoint o{ tne lolllL l'ttrrrr) feature ol - -.,. T1," rs an cestral T}r" esscntial leature *ra,dfathcr "'t. f'h';';;";Jf;h"''...,::1..11"t l.ris fr,,r Hindu Tiremalcheirsacqurre'aniirterestinitbvt';tttt'tt'';'to'asac-ceptedby

dr ta r D e'r ;ll;:'; i.};i l;"#;:;::ffi'1L n'as appiied in to ioi'."-Hi"du fai.ilies ;;i'il; i"; was l{ind. (SS), )C) will x''icir srated that

'"J

;:

10r e

MLr

t^**tJ^'l::ii:l::n:'l'*::T:i

. ' ''"t-r I r '' ul '11'r.':r 'ra ' ' '' Arrl r''' 1ls'ri' I \\l R r3'

'

rlte 1"''lirr" i'.r..,ri "',' i'rt' r' rur Jirrqtr' \ S\l H 1R' .,i uir,a, t. i l\''-'

',,'l;ll ',,,',r,i,,,". 1,,,: 'i[1i:-i\i',i'"1',:::;;::;l]l'1if :'t"' ;,-,:,,,,1 :;'::l')i:j ::: -rr't l'!rrr'

'rr;,i1

lqr

e+ l \11 I Hcr

'

-1

\Vas

not [ullr

CUS]'ON4ARY

I.AW

175

rhat a child has bccn adoptcd in accordancc rvitir rhc cusroln the aclopting parcnr bekrngs or lrelongcd,.

oi rhc r:icc ro q,liich

, ::rrrt of conlmon 1r;.'; i Lee Fab Kooi

--rs of

nrarriage,

r::i
1l :,-- r' ;-

reCogflized
mO IIO$aITIO

as
U,s

lr,.:.d was a mattcr

for*s of lcgitirnadon by subsequcnt rccognition wcre recogniz-ed by .S,ome clrirresc cusroms- In rhe Stx widou,s' Coi, (1911) rI ssln 120, lcgiti,,rtio., by 'subsequent rnarriagc ,v:r-s rccognized in the Straits Scttleilent. I1 Sarar.r,ak, In Tbe Estate of Chan Chtn Hee I)eceased u94Bl scR 6, rhe court was w.illing ro rccognizc subsequent legitirnation if thc father, rhe parents of the f"rher, and other elders consented. Those fonns of Iegitimation liad, ho*e'er, beer-r rejccted in $7est Malaysia in Kboo Llooi Leong v Kboo chong yeok L193olAC 346; [1928] ssI-R 178, and in Re Khoo The an Tek's scttlements f1929] -ssLR 50, GA(SS), on
the grounds thar thcy w.rrc repugnar.rr ro the common

{::- -Lct 1975) (Act

-. However, tl-rc
1:.;.

lr*, of Englancl-

Loo Cbeng

Flindu Customary Law

As a result of thc dive rsitr. of erhno,lihguiStic- grouping.s of indians in lMalaysii, thcre is no -singlc unifornr lau, tl.rat applies to thc Hi,rdu co.rl*,r,rir1.- Each g.oop has.its orvn cultrtral pracrices, and a variety of religious rircs ancl practices p."rrii. In rlecirling the applic:rblc lav*'s, tlre courrs had readily referreil r,, 1r."."d.rts frorn the Indiar-r jurisdictions. For sc)me rnatters, for instance, in tire t Iinclu ioir-rt fan-ril1,, tlre development of Hindr.r leu. in Malal.sia rvas but a continu:rtron and an ^,Jupt^tion of Hindu l;rrv from Indi.r-5' In tlre earliest reported casc of pootoo v valee Ltta laaen {, Anor swb.nom-, [1883] 1Ky.622, Hintlu larv *,as applicd rvitho.t quc.srion. The courr trp-,lield the right of a Hindu r^'ifc r. hold realti. and perso'altr, , separate p.op..,y cluring "., coverture. In iater 1/ears, i {indu larv was applied on grounds of equity .r"t,r.r-i "rrd justice,5s reasonabie ,ess of local custom,t' and ,l.o * grounds of p.iu u," international las'-60 Traditionally, the main areas of :pplicationtf Hindu la*i were in areas of rnarriage custonrs.o' r-nar riage brokerage .onrr".tr,r, and tl-re Hindu joint farnily and properr)' slrsrem, r,''hich is the most signrficarrt. In Re tbe Estate of 7'.n[.R.ll.\lengadasalam Cbettiar Deceasecl [1910] 9 MLJ Rep- 124 (sc) (ss), Hindu I"*' ,"l"Ii,rg to joint Hincru iamilies was applied in the Straits Settlements. t here, a IJindu tesraror left a will whiclr stated rhr.i h" *as the sole owncr of a half share in a chettiar 6rni- The execuror contended that at the tirle of thc resr;1ror's death, he was a membcr of an undividecl joint Hindu famil1' yhigh coniprised himself and liis rwo sons. k ,reant that rhe joint Hindu farniiy and not tl're tcstator himself u,as the owner of the half share in the chettiar firm- The esse ntial feature of the ioinr family is that all pr<-,perty inherited by a maie Hindu from his father, grandfather, and great-grrr-,jfr.h". is ancestral proPerty- Tire male heirs acquire an interest in it by birtlr. This n,as accepted by the court.
7 he Pqsonal Lao: oi llalaysu_ KorT,en'fandtl v Karpen ( I S95) I SSLR 58, t" Nagammalv Stuppiah [19401N{ iJ Rep,9a 6a Soundara Acbi v Kalyani Achi G Ors (195i)

.-.se auslOmar..-

: ihc

n'-- +NILJ4(r4an.i t,rri ,.mance of thc

,

ir-rtention. Re Estate oi

--

:..se customar\-

.:listered under . errs, in Cbie'; .t-itott v Cboni:

:::

:ir-rt

valid.

\\iith

.ii:':g Y Kho Lienr : -: it had no effecr

: ,.:d 1983) onl-'

\-:t )57) (Revisec

-:

succeed

to an

'.= .oTitng Bee,.' :-:. :,Hooi Leoi::

:
:.

ffim . . Izil

--fmers such ". Soh Sir.,

-:=:red Chinese - :iie Contracis

::r.i Cour-r helc ,-. .)11(Cap. 91 ". :::.tOman- 1a=

--

r,

--:

legislatit-,,i i: is satish:;

tt Hooker,

tr

6tlnRvRatnamll930lSSI-R2l8.aslongasrhccustoman:forrrof

19

MLJ t 4/.

the,colonies and was appropriate according to rhe locality, usre, anrl fanrilic-s cf rhe conrracrtng panres, " KL, p.,,.ltn,lti y Ka,f t, ( lt'iy5 r t S\l R s$

rnrrriage..'assuitablrroth.-circumstancescf it rvas valid-

176

AN IN-IR()I)UCI'ION TO THE [{ALAYSIAN LEC.IL SYS'r[]vl

To vrhat exrent is a Hindu familv govcrned bv this system? It appcrrrs tlrat a farnily may clroose to preserve and be governed by that system as personal law- In B v Comptroller of Inland Rcvenue {197412 MLJ 110 (FC), where that choice w,as madc, rhe Hindu joint farnily was assessed on the basis of the total assctsAzmi L.P- said atp.l12:
--- the law is settled beyond doubt tl'rat whcre a Hindu family ernigrates fronr <>ne part of India to anorher, the presumption is that it carries with it, its personal law, thar is laws and cusroms as to succession and family and that such personal law i.s part of rhe status of every farnily which is governed by ir This presumption is rebuttable- [t is also sertled law, settled by no less an authority than the Priv,v Council that a Hindu emigrating to a foreign country carries with him his personal law, unless he establishes that lre has adopted the law of the people among wlronr he is settled- The note is backed by a wealth of authoritp.-- On the law as settled I musr therefore hold rhat *here a Hirrdu shows the deliberate preservation of his personallaw, as here in thE matter of 1-oint familie=; he i-tounfby such personat 1aw despire the fact that he has now acquired a domicile of choice in the country of his adoption.

lrom evidence of c inrperfect, folmaliri Another type o{

arrity. In Re Lob

ToJ:

threc women accor Appeal heid that a

cvcn rvlrcre he had r

ol

ese;- Thomsor

ecuated Chinese wi
N"[arnages betwe

ln Martin v Umi I

Selangor between

was England. Thr Enactment even tho

a Muslim- Thornsor

held that the marri:

\4ore recently, ho*ever, in PL Naral,anan fi Anor v PL Swbrarnaniltm f, Ors [199S] 4 CLJ Suppl. 428, the I{igh Courr held that the observation that an emigranr Hindu carries with him his personal law and custorns is only true of a Hindu who emigrates from one part of India to another parr of India- It is also true of a Hindu migrating to a foreign country, but when he adopts the law of the people amongst whom he has settied, he ceases to carry his original personal law. The cGurt cautioned that the existence of this particular practice of the Hindu joint property was not a signal to apply Hindu customary law in every caselAus, for the purpose of the Income Tax Act 1967 (Act 53) (Revised 7971}, rt was held that the personal law of the Hindus domiciled in Malaysia shall be Malaysian lawHindu law has no force at all_

husband's domicile Barros {No. 2) (187'

+

the incapacity rn tha

law of celebrarion ol The quesrion o[ ( in the English case < Hindu man (the app embraced Islam anr

respondent 61ed {or 'unreasonable Leha English court that u

e*S+irrrsT,@,fu,{ffi5&effi,rt#.[W&EFBntr+

{o')u\ 1,.e1\'u

^*,too",

The application of customary Iaws as personal laprs within the Malaysian legal system had at times given rise to internal conflicts- For instance, among the Chinese, the threefold elements o[ irrlention, cohahitation, and repg-te had been 1, held to esmblish a valid customary m>ffi9-e-6j However, where tl6-epersonai lrws Si=!!S.fyg-p{.r!3dif!er9{16he courts looked at common law as a basis for the marriage- For instance,in fsaac Penhas v Tan Soo Eng [195i] AC 304 (?C), , marriage based on consensus between aJew and a Chinese was held valid at com.rron Ia*, even though there had been no formal ceremony- tkbro MwiNee v Palaniappan 1196711 MLJ 270 (FC), a Hindu man wenr through a ceremony according to Hindu custom with a Chinese Buddhist lady in Malaya without comaglying with all the formal requirements. The court relied upon a dictwm tn Carolis \?de Silaa v Tim Kim [1904] 9 SSLR 8 (SC) (FMS), where a Sinhalese married a Chinese womarr in an imperfecl 99reT9!I-,A conrract of marriage was presumed
"] See Re

of the appellanti co that the wife had ce sented the petitionstantiai justice'ese cases illu-s

personal law apply selective applicatior methods of dealing (Marriage and Divc force on 1 March 191

The Reform Act intr

the marriage and di

11"dx"d:ry custom, and uqage

hr

lee C6oor Guan Deceased(791\ a MLI/8; ln the Estate of

Yeo SengWhatt

(19a\15MrLlZal

"'See funhcr, R- H. Hici<Iing

th:1t . - ,:lal I Iarv. In

:-: :l:i.-It

(]US]'o,IVIAI{Y I-AW

-l
177

lr-orn eviderrce
i

choicc
asscts.

nrpt'rf c.r, for.nr.rli t i..s-

of coh:rbitation and repute or

'ratrinr().), w;rholrt any', or with

,:: :,ltal

Anotl'rcr type of co'flict involved-.Chincsc cusrolnary ,rarriage and christir11 Re Loh fob ,vet, Deceased (1961) 27 r\,iL-J L4 (a'A),rhc 6eccased rnarr_ied three rv.mc. accorcri.rg to Chinese cusrom. He was a Chrisda,The court of Appeal hcld that . ,rrr, of 'crrinese race ' could conrracr porygarnous marriages cvctr *'hcrc l-re had rnarricd undcr th"ch.i.tirn lri.rllg" o,ai,ance r956 (No.33 of t lse )- Thornson L-p- refusecr ro 'equare, Crr.isri"i,tv rvirh monogaml,, but :(i,?:l-t ecl Cl i ne.'c wir I r poh.ganrr,. _[{arriages between a N4uslirn and non JV1uslirn lra'c arso given rise ro conflict. rn Martin v Llrni Kersom (te'3) r, iG;r:'"';:;ase yu was cerebrated in Selangor berrveen a Musrim \l,onran domicired ,il;.. ;;;^, man whose d6,riiiil. u'as England- The ;narriage was cerebrar"d ,nd..-'J-," cr,;r.;an N{arriage Enacr*enr q'cn thorrgl, trrdJ, Muslim larv. rhe *rornan had c a Nlusiim-'Iho,.srn L 1., ,rrior;;;; r" pur an encl to,h" held that the marriag. ,r,.,r, be ,r.re,ni,red b1' Englisrr Iaw, being rhe rrw the hnsbarrd's ilomicire- IIe dccided ,h.'...r. ,, .r." ,".,i,r,r,r, Sottonztzl,gT of y ng I:tarros (No. 2) (1879) PD 94, -5 ..rr. *t,,i.irrr",iiir""'ijo "r ,ro application since tlie i.capacity rn rrr.rt casc was ...og,,i."a by rhe larv of ,1.,-i.;r., which is also the l.lw'-{:]:'I.'br.rr iun .l t h.' n,r..i.g.."'o The question .f conve*io., io Islam is another dif6cult quesrio,, as illustrateci in the Enerish casc of \/isu.'aIingam v S-.\/iswaringon, yrisol 1 MLJ 10 (cA). A ,L/ Hindri nr:r. (the apperant) r.ho *"., marrie.r ,. cii.irr;l.iro, (rhe responcrenr), ernbracecl Islarrr ancl rrrarried " ,..orrJ wife- Borh *,.." uri"ysian citizens. The responde,t fired {or divorce in"rhe Engrisl:or1, ;; '.nreaso,ab1e behaviour'. of ", *."""a, trre appeilantt rt was alr""q"d .,glisli courr that under Maraysian IrJ, by trr.rppJri.". r"a accepted by rhe ,r,-. *r-i.gj;;;ased ro exisr by virtue of the appelranr's con'errio.,i'h" court to recognize thar rhe wife ha. ceased to be ?f ,Ap,p.;j;;;',;;;"p"red rhe *rr. or t[," rrrrl,.od...f," date w]ren she pre.i,b_ j^,.},,::,'fi.}]::::'"" ()nrr.d J. felt rha*t,,, *o.,ra to
anitl'r

,f,ff::r;:;?ilY

[;;;.;

t1e.,.,.,.,t

hmru:r

"iil

rhe cou.s employ sclecri'e applicarion of .o,r*o,, la* .u1", ,u ;;;.r. One of the best methods of dealing with the internal conflicts is "ai..r, by legislation. T6e Law Reforrn (Marriage and l)iv^orce) Act 19t6 (Acr 16a) (the Red.n, Act), w6ic' carne inro fr-irce on I March 19g2, is o.,e sr.h l"*,

personal larv apply

I hese ca'ses illrrstrate the problems rhat can arise rvhe, differer-rt sysrems

n'it'in a pr.ticrla.,*"Jt.r,.r",;;il;

of

,i

Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act 1976 f'he Rel orm Act introduced significant changes to rqgulate o. ,.gr_lari43spects of th-e mg1$age and divor." of ,io.-rrrunrr. s".r;o"r"5 anc16-of the Refoin-Act introduccd m().og,1nl-]-,inro a lrrg. ,..r;o,, of ,lr. .,-r*,,i_rr,i,'*,,,.1-, b1, r.eligio., cisrirm' a.d usag- had arwavs prrltir.,r p"ii.sr"r.* ,r,;;;;;;:llhe new provisions
n'Sec fur rlrcr'

Il- H' Hickling anij $i/tr r4in Au

tt, ConfliLt

of

Lau's in ).rar,rysu,siugapore; .Butrero.orrrrs Asia, 1995.

178

ANtN't.R()tlUL-t'IoNToI-HhI\4Ar_A)SIAN

I.[:(;Al.Sys'fl:N{ 1. they elect to n1arrl- u

f,.rrbid ar\r person *'ho is already larvfull'i'l,:rr-rrc<l fr.nr contr:rcti,g a f.rthclnarriage during tire continuance of tlrc cxi.stirrg nrarrr;rgc. 'lb do so x,ould be l.c<-rrtrmit tlrc olTence t'f-ii.1$"r114x;,.".,;\t.
1-

2-

A rurnber of iil;ilit pornrs prrarn- ro cusromar-r,. nr:rrriagcs- Thc Acr:

10,"

Y';:'il"i;:lI

i"i""

in Sabah, thc1. ct''r Ordirrance t 919 (C.rg

lv{arriage Ordinance Witii the rcpeal of tir,

l. irr Sarawak, ther- c,

irv of any

does not operate retrospecriv ely; ='. ' rt.i n ucs 19 1e.j1,grrizc cus tonrary lnarri a gcs; l. rcquires registration of ali marriagcs; 4. docs rrot applv ro Muslims, narivcs of Sab,rh a,d Sarar.vak, and or-a.g Asli. T'he Itefonn Act does not operate retrospectivcly and docs not affecr thc valid2. cot

falling outside the Act, but within the common law. (See Carolis de S'ilvo v iinKim fi9a4) 9 SSLR B; I saac Pcruhas v Tan Soo Eng [ 195j1 AC J04; Cbua Mui l,lee -; Palaniappan lL961l I IULJ 220 (!C); {.o,t Q\SIU gyan, S4briry4 v Kf29o eon}n, Lugent: [199s] I I\,{LJ I 1s (HC).) 'fhe requir-ernent that all marriages must bc rcgistered rcmoves ar-rr. doubts' i,'grrdingthcstatusof c,rhabiteesandthcchil.lrcn.rir,.,.l,unions-IJ..[,,,elM.rrc]r
1982, there
s,ras

n'rarriagc cor.rductcd according to cu-sto,l prior to thc effcctive clare of 1 lVlarcli 1982. ScctionT2 of the Act pr-ovides ic,r tlre rccognition of marriagcs

governcd by the Reiori rathcr than in accordani The effect of the excl I'hau anU994] 1 I\1LJ nativc customary rites b tered under the Act. T Chincse custotnarr' lro basis of the Native Cc.u
rnan iagc n';ts valir-{. h.r-.

Prohlcms

stillcxi:r
te

riage or nrarriages-

Unt

vitlcs for voluntarv registration, under section 34, nothing in the Act shril L-,e iopstrued to render,,,alid or invalid any marriage. mcre]_1. [rv r cason of its having been or nr>t having lreen registered. This has the effect cif validaring all cusroman. marriages

no requirement ro regisrer such marriage-s- Alrhough secrion 33 pro-

marriage has conver convcrtcd to Islam

petit;on for divorce- IJ

t,r,'

spouse refuse to act-;' i:

th:lt wcrc nor regisrered before 1 March 1982, as long as rhe acr oi marriagc is uri]d. ln Le org \Yee Shingv Cbai Siew Yin [2000] 5 MIJ 162 {]Hrc),-.vhere r[-re issue was rvirethcr the plaintiff's rnarriage was void for non-regisrration ar rhe Registry of Marriages, it was held that section 34 of the Reform Act had been satisfied. Th... \\ras a proper tea ceremony, there was an act of marriage, it had been properly solemni1-!, a,d the non-regisrration did nor by itseif inv_alidate.thg marriage. 'T'hc Relorm Act does not affecr o, neilt! , Coupies mav continu. to *r.ry ,ccoidi.,g to cusrorrlary iitli, |rorid"d ,"I. " n.rarriage is qg_ls.mnry*ed_b:_g }gregfaf in accordance witl-r p".i ilt of the Act. ,".rio,,l4lErn" rJ.*nlrri;-.' or a religious or cusronrary marriage may ,u,,1:, Dc cl lected on t\l,o condrtrons: l - that rire person solemnizing the marriage musr be or a person " isllo!g9l!..r, appointed as arAssisELnt Begis_t_-. r; and 2- rhe coupie must submita stalulqry declqtgti_qn ro_rb_e Assisr.aag [ggirrrrar. lI"r practice, marriages are solemnized in a church or ternple or clan associarion premises, as may be permined by rhe religion or cusroms or usage of the partiesA Registrar rnay be appointed within these institutions to ,ol"*lrrir" the marriage ancl lre would issue a marriage certificate. otherwise, couples marry ,a ,h. Go'ernmenr Marriage Registry and go through another ."i.*ory folloo.ing cllstomarv rires- Customary rires alone, however recognizabl" r.rd ,...pt"ble tJ ti-re farnil1,, are nor sufficient to clothe a marriage with l"egal validity rft". i March
i 982.

religion other

thar-r

[sl:r

RrlevaNcE oF CL\

Customary law is oi iirr However, for the natii'

ant source of law, partir and in the administratio,

Irr Peninsular Iilal,i

Sembilan in some aspe,
t

radirional ruling chic[, in Negeri Sembilan ani customary law is eme rr Asli to claim propricta

title'claims based on t] the recognition of cusrc

Questions 1- What is customar,,'

tomary laurs?

2. 'The rccommo.lari,

and Sarawak, and rhe erang :!sli of -I rr l,{,ilIlistllei.I\1alrr,sla*l,*.Tryg",,,d@'natir'eCUstUm.

T)r

The

Act

law took place up,

65

.r.r' ll rv .. rbo.iginrl .urru-

ffii"I$
\-/

9 (,. .rj

,'

r'.'

Ahmad lbrahim,'Dissoluiiln '

rrlr''c

(I LIS-I ()

l\'1

I(Y l.Aw

7,)

-i.tinq a furthcr ',, \,ouid be trl

2-

thc;, c,>ntracrcd rhcir rnarriage trndcr the Christi.in Nlarriagc L)rdinancc t9l9 (CaP- )1).,>r l. in Sarawah, the1.- corrtracred tlrcir n-rarriage undcr tl.re Church and Ciwil

l.

they elect to marrv ttndcr this Acr;

in

Sabah,

ang Asli-

q ,ficct thc valid.iicctive ciate of r: of marriagcs k Silaa v Tim l:=a Mwi Nee v iihoo Oon Jtn, '.:i allY dtlubts 3:iore 1 March
:. s.ction 33 Pro-

N{arriage Ordinance (Cap' 92) (1958 edition)Witli the repeal of thcsc C)rdirrance s in Sabah and Sararvak, nativc rnarriegcs lrc governcd lry tl," Rcforn-, Act if arl)' native or Orang Asli elects to ITIarryr urlder it, rathcr than in accorclancc rvith customery law' The effect of tfic exclusion of a native under the Act is seerr tn Nancl' Kualw Ho 7'bau On [1994) 1 IvILj 545. A rnarriage was cor]tracted botir under Chincse ar-rd nativc custornary rites bets,ecn a Chinese man and a native lady, but was not regis tered under the Act. T[c Chinesc husbarld claimed the marriagc was a nullicy chincse cusiornar), laq. could no longer app1.y, but the court Pr()ceeded <in tl.le la'r'- The basis of the Native Courts E nactrnent 1992 and applied native custonlary
rnar.ri,rge s,as Yalid, 1-ra-,ing corTiplicd $.rrhthe iau,sof thc coul1trv.

-\,:i sirall be con-

."rp,".t of ccinverts to Islarn and the status of thcir n.rarto i1 riage or nrarrt,rges. Under section 5l(l) o{ the Reform Act, rvhere one part} marriage 1.,r, .o,]"..ted ro lslam, thc orher parr1, ry]1o ha; no1 so converted nlal' right of the party who has pe titi<rl for divorcc. I Irtwe r.er, the Act is silent on tlie
problems still exist i,', converred to Islam to ol,rair.r
,r

-- h:rr.ing been or i.- ilarv marrlages

:

:r..
;:
-

=:rriagc

is valid-

clivrirce. I-Iis status n.ray be left uncertain should tlre to a spousc refuse to acr.6s It n-rust be notet'l that tlrcre is r.ro nlention o{ conversion religion other than Isla,rl ft,r tlle pur p115s oi divorce-

the isstie was

rire Registry

of

Relev,\Nctt oF CusroNlAI(Y Lanr Tooav

Customary lat^,, is of little relevance to the Chinese and Indian comrnunities today-' I{o-euer; for the natives of Sabah and Sarawak, customary law remains an importanr -source of law, particularly as a means of social control in remote communities, land riglrts' ar-rcl in the administration of estates, family law, propert)', and customarv in Negeri mainl1, In Peninsular Maiaysia, N{alay cusromary iaw is applied o[ sen-rbilan in some .rp".rs^ c,f fa,-rriiy law and inheritance as well as rhe election traditional ruling chiefs. Malal' ..rrrn,r",".,r, land is recognized under adat perpatib

sads6ed- There

properly solem-

;:r-rr.ided such a r ill of the Act.

i!-. marrlage may

or
a

Person

F.eg!.g.trar

in Negeri Se,rbilan and to li*ited extent in Melaka. In recent times, aboriginai " .r.roi*ry law is emcrging as a recognized body of customs,,allowing the Orang Asii to .lri- p.op.ietary tigh,t to traditional and ancestral lands' These 'native have introduced another facet to title' claims b"t.J on their customary
Practices the recognition of customary Iaws in Malaysia.

:r ilan association : tf the parties. A rze the marrtage k: marrv at the folloq'ing
=;i-'ony ;-r,d acceptable to

Questions

l. Wlrlt
lar.r,

is cu.stomrrl' law?
125,,5!

How do you differentiate between customs and cus-

ir

after 1 March

2. 'The accommodation betwecn thcse personai laws and thc received English
,.iAhmadlbrahim,'I)issoluriononGroundofConversionrolslam"lla[tysianltuNet,s,Mxchl99):29
31

tomarl,

took place upon a nuruber of grounds specified by English larv itself

rhe Ora

f
custotn-