A prominent Muslim lawyer has described the Court of Appeal's landmark decision that children conceived out of wedlock can be registered with their father's name, as "simplistic" and could potentially destroy the Muslim family institution.

In a statement, Muslim Lawyers Association president Zainul Rijal Abu Bakar said this was based on his study of the judgement by Justice Abdul Rahman Sebli, that jurisdiction of the National Registration Department (NRD) director-general is a civil one and is confined to determine whether the father had fulfilled the requirements of Section 13A(2) of the Act.

"The simplistic approach to only consider powers under the Act could trigger various polemics and destroy a Muslim family institution.

“The Act cannot be read separately with other laws, including the Federal Constitution and other existing Islamic laws,” he stressed.

Among others, Zainul cited definitions of a child’s legitimate status under Section 110 to Section 119 of the Islamic Family Law (Federal Territory) Act 1984 as provisions that should serve as a guide for other related laws...