Chief Justice Arifin Zakaria confirmed today that he and two other top judges have been given a six-month extension to continue with their service in the judiciary.

The two other judges are Court of Appeal president Justice Md Raus Sharif and Chief Judge of Malaya Justice Zulkefli Ahmad Makinudin. They are ranked No 2 and No 3 in the judicial system.

Judges have a mandatory retirement age of 66 but at times their terms can be extended by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.

Justice Arifin will turn 66 on Oct 1 and with the six-month extension, his last day will now be on March 30, 2017.

The chief justice said he would use the extension to build a succession plan for his replacement.

“I will continue to serve but I cannot reveal who is the successor as it is confidential. It would also have to depend on the Judiciary Appointment Commission,” he told reporters at the launching of the International Malaysian Law Conference 2016 today.

“I will sit on the bench until the last day,” Justice Arifin added.

The JAC, formed in 2009 under the JAC Act, oversees the appointment of judges to the High Court, Court of Appeal and the Federal Court.

Justice Raus will turn 66 on Feb 4 next year, while Justice Zulkefli will attain that age on March 28.

“The Court of Appeal president and Justice Zulkefli will also get their extension after me,” Justice Arifin said.

Asked to comment on the appointment of former Federal Court judge, Jeffrey Tan Kok Wha, as an additional judge at the apex court, the chief justice said it is provided under the constitution.

“This is provided for under Article 122(1A) of the Federal Constitution, and has been done 50 years ago, with Justice McIntyre,” Justice Arifin said.

Justice Tan retired last November after attaining the age of 66, and was reappointed to sit in the Federal Court in July.

Article 121(1A) states that "notwithstanding anything in this constitution contained, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong acting on the advice of the chief justice of the Federal Court may appoint for such purposes or for such period of time as he may specify any person who has held high judicial office in Malaysia to be an additional judge of the Federal Court".

Justice Ariffin said: “Now there is a need for it, as sometimes, we sit in five and sometimes in seven. That is the reason why we need the additional judge as there is a necessity."

Asked why not just appoint the judges from the Court of Appeal to the Federal Court, he said Justice Tan was appointed due to his experience and if the present appellate court judges are appointed, they will add up to the present 15 judges.

“But these are additional and it will not deprive the Court of Appeal judges from promotion in the not-so-distant future.

"We need time to write (judgments), and time to read. It is not as easy as before, you know. The court work is more complicated and our system is more transparent than before as people read the Internet."

Unlike the old days, Justice Arifin added, the writing of judgments cannot be rushed through due to the challenges brought by the Internet.

A search on the official 'Kehakiman' website revealed that without counting Justice Tan, there are 10 Federal Court judges, and with the inclusion of the top four judges, the total number at Federal Court is 14. This leaves a space for an additional one spot, and a judge from the Court of Appeal can be selected to fill the vacancy.