“To the ordinary citizen, the quality of justice is what happens in the subordinate courts. Regrettably, most of the safeguards for judicial independence are unavailable to the hundreds of judges of our Sessions and Magistrates Courts.”

COMMENT | These words by Emeritus Professor Shad Saleem Faruqi, delivered at the 5th Raja Aziz Addruse Memorial Lecture during the International Malaysia Law Conference in 2018, remain a timely reminder that the justice most Malaysians experience is in the subordinate courts.

Thus, safeguarding the independence of judicial officers at this level is essential in upholding public confidence in the justice system.

Under Article 138 of the Federal Constitution, judicial and legal services are combined into one structure overseen by the Judicial and Legal Service Commission (JLSC).

From the standpoint of judicial independence, this framework presents challenges that warrant careful consideration in ensuring that independence is defended at every level of the judiciary.