Originally from: Baker & McKenzie International Arbitration Yearbook: 2012-2013

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A. LEGISLATION, TRENDS AND TENDENCIES

A.1 Legislative Framework

The law and practice of arbitration in Malaysia is governed by the Arbitration Act 2005 (“AA”), which came into force on 15 March 2006. The AA repealed the outdated Arbitration Act 1952, which can be traced historically to the equivalent legislation in England in 1972. In a significant departure from this original framework, the AA is modeled closely on the UNCITRAL Model Law. The main body of the AA can be found in Part II, which follows Articles 3 to 36 of the Model Law almost word for word.

Malaysia has also been a signatory to the New York Convention since 1985. The New York Convention was passed into domestic law in Malaysia through the Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards Act 1985. It should be noted, however, that this Act was repealed by the AA as of 15 March 2006. The AA now sets out a uniform procedure for the recognition and enforcement of both local and foreign arbitral awards within the same legislation.