Hasnah Hashim, 66, secured a six-month extension to her judicial tenure recently, and will retire on Nov 14. (File pic)

PUTRAJAYA: Chief Judge of Malaya Hasnah Hashim, currently the highest ranked judge in the judiciary, creates history today by occupying the top three positions in the judiciary simultaneously.

Hasnah, whose office ranks third in the judicial hierarchy, will also assume the judiciary’s top two posts in an acting capacity following the mandatory retirement of their erstwhile holders.

Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat

Former chief justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat retired mandatorily on Monday. She was followed by Court of Appeal president Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim, whose judicial tenure ended yesterday.

Both vacated their office on the eve of their 66th birthday, the mandatory retirement age for judges.

Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim.

Hasnah herself reached the mandatory retirement age on May 13 but secured a six-month extension, allowing her to remain in office until Nov 14.

Lawyer A Srimurugan said Hasnah’s assumption of the top two posts in an acting capacity arises due to the effect of Sections 8 and 9 of the Courts of Judicature Act 1964. He said the situation was “unprecedented”.

Hasnah will perform the duties and functions of both offices until they are permanently filled.

“In the past, there have been instances of the Chief Justice or the Court of Appeal President performing the duties of the CJM.

“However, in no case has a junior judicial administrator held the fort of the top two offices,” he told FMT.

Among the duties of the chief justice and appeals court president is to empanel judges to hear criminal and civil appeals and other applications that come before their respective courts.

Presently, it is unclear who the frontrunners for the two coveted positions are.

Article 122B(1) of the Federal Constitution provides that the appointments are made by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, acting on the advice of the prime minister, and after consulting the Conference of Rulers.

The next conference is scheduled in two weeks.

Under the law, a Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC), set up under the JAC Act 2009, recommends to the prime minister candidates for appointment to all administrative positions in the judiciary.

It is not known if there have been any recommendations by the JAC and who Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has in mind for the top two positions.

Meanwhile, lawyer Salim Bashir said the top two posts must be filled expeditiously as the functioning of the two courts could be impaired.

“Last year the office of CJM was left vacant for nine months before Hasnah’s appointment in November,” said Salim, who is a former Malaysian Bar president.

He said that as acting chief justice, Hasnah may be in a position to also call for the monthly JAC meeting to fill the vacancies expeditiously.

However, two of the spots on the nine-member panel are now vacant following the retirement of the two judges.