Malaysia faces judicial void as Chief Justice Tengku Maimun set to retire without successor

Name: Asean leaders sign Kuala Lumpur Declaration as Malaysian PM warns of ‘unsettled’ international order
Uploaded: 2025-07-01T07:00:13.000Z
Duration: 1 min 45 s
Description: Asean leaders sign Kuala Lumpur Declaration as Malaysian PM warns of ‘unsettled’ international order

Legal experts warn that the leadership vacuum could erode judicial independence and public trust

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Malaysia’s Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat. Photo: Facebook/Kehakiman

Hadi Azmi

Published: 3:00pm, 1 Jul 2025Updated: 3:29pm, 1 Jul 2025

Malaysia’s judiciary faces a leadership vacuum as Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat prepares to step down on Wednesday without a successor named – a gap lawyers warn could undermine judicial independence and public trust.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s administration has opted not to extend the tenure of Tengku Maimun or Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim, the president of the Court of Appeal, both of whom reach the mandatory retirement age of 66 this week. The constitution allows for a six-month extension, but none has been granted.

Five other senior judges are also set to retire by the end of the year, raising concerns that a judicial leadership void may disrupt the handling of high-profile cases and damage perceptions of institutional impartiality.

The Malaysian Bar on Monday described the situation as “indefensible”, with its president Ezri Abdul Wahab saying the uncertainty “reflects a failure of institutional responsibility”.

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Asean leaders sign Kuala Lumpur Declaration as Malaysian PM warns of ‘unsettled’ international order

“A breakdown in governance risks damaging public confidence in the judiciary and opens the door to speculation and unhealthy conjecture,” Ezri said.

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