KUALA LUMPUR: The Arbitration (Amendment) Bill 2024, which seeks to enhance Malaysia's standing amongst the global international arbitration community, has been tabled for the first reading at the Dewan Rakyat sitting, today.
The bill was tabled by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said.
"The second reading of the bill will also be presented in the same session (of Dewan Rakyat)," she said.
According to the blue book circulated in Parliament, the bill also seeks to improve the organisational structure of the Asian International Arbitration Centre, in line with the execution of the Supplementary Agreement between the government of Malaysia and the Asian-African Legal Consultative Organisation relating to the Asian International Arbitration Centre in Kuala Lumpur dated Feb 20.
It is by harmonising the provisions in Act 646 with the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration (UNCITRAL Model Law) and by introducing the provisions on third-party funding.
Among the amendments included the act will see an amendment to Section 9, in relation to the form of arbitration agreement.
"With this amendment, an arbitration agreement is in writing if it is contained in an exchange of any other documents and not just in an exchange of statement of claim and statement of defence.
"The amendment also seeks to introduce a new Section 9a into the act, which provides that if the parties to the arbitration fail to agree on the law applicable to their arbitration agreement, the law applicable to the arbitration agreement shall be the law of the seat of the arbitration.
"The new Section 46g seeks to provide for the disclosure of a third-party funding agreement by the funded party to the other party to the arbitration, the arbitral tribunal and court."
Azalina then tabled the Construction Industry Payment and Adjudication (Amendment) Bill for the first reading.
"The second reading of the bill will also be presented in the same session (of Dewan Rakyat)," she said.