IRP 39 – The Legal Implications of Rules of Court 2012 on the Islamic Finance Industry: An Analysis

The Rules of Court 2012 (hereafter referred to as RC 2012) is essentially a combination of Rules of the High Court 1980 (hereafter referred to as the repealed RHC 1980) and Subordinate Courts Rules 1980 (hereafter referred to as the repealed SCR 1980). It is intended to facilitate and standardise the civil case procedures in both high court and subordinate courts and, thus, improve the quality of the judicial system in the country. RC 2012 substantially imports the provisions in the repealed RHC 1980 with some modifications, taken from the repealed SCR 1980, to accommodate procedures for subordinate courts. As legal suits involving Islamic financial matters are still under the jurisdiction of the civil courts, certain provisions relating to the courts’ procedure, as provided in RC 2012, could affect the Islamic finance industry. Thus, the study analyses the related provisions of RC 2012 that could impact legal claims involving Islamic financial matters. Even though the related provisions are procedural in nature, the study highlights potential problems that could affect the robust growth of the Islamic finance industry. In conclusion, the study makes recommendations that could help the regulator to provide a stronger and more viable regulatory framework for the Islamic finance industry and address its current needs.

Keywords: legal implications, procedural law, court rules, RC 2012, and Islamic finance.