Journal of Malaysian and Comparative Law

THEIR LAW IN OUR HANDS – THE APPLICATION OF ENGLISH LAW ACT 1993 (SINGAPORE): ARE THERE LESSONS FOR THE CIVIL LAW ACT OF 1956 (MALAYSIA)?

CHAN SEK KEONG — Thu, 12 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0800

The 13th Tun Suffian Memorial Lecture 2024 delivered at the Faculty of Law, Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, 50603, Malaysia on 10 October 2024.

UTILIZING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN INVESTOR-STATE DISPUTE SETTLEMENT: PRESENT ISSUES AND FUTURE CHALLENGES

LU YAN, TIE FATT HEE — Thu, 12 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0800

The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) into Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) has emerged as a transformative force, promising to streamline complex investor-state arbitration processes and enhance the accuracy of legal determinations. However, this technological advancement also presents several challenges, necessitating a critical examination of the role of AI in shaping the future of ISDS. This paper evaluates the impact of AI on ISDS, highlighting its potential to improve investor-state arbitration by enriching efficiency, objective decision-making, and advanced evidence analysis. It acknowledges the capacity of AI in refining risk assessment and predicts dispute outcomes, providing a cutting-edge approach to ISDS. However, the analysis also addresses significant concerns, including algorithmic bias, the ethical implications of decision-making, and the overreliance on technology that may overlook the complexity of human judgment. To overcome these challenges, the paper suggests a regulatory framework that mandates transparency and accountability, ensures justice through rigorous algorithm audits, and promotes a collaborative relationship between humans and AI. By maintaining human autonomy and enhancing the role of AI as an assistive tool, especially in intricate cases, the paper advocates for a balanced integration of AI in ISDS, striving for a harmonious blend of technological innovation and human expertise in future arbitration processes.

THE FUTURE OF E-COMMERCE DISPUTES: AN ANALYSIS OF MULTILATERAL DISPUTE RESOLUTION MECHANISMS

HAIJING HUANG, ONG TZE CHIN — Fri, 13 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0800

The globalisation movement and the rapid growth of e-commerce necessitate effective dispute settlement mechanisms in multilateral trade agreements. The qualitative analysis conducted on the dispute settlement mechanisms in the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) reveals the regulation of electronic commerce (e-commerce) and demonstrates the efforts and limits of these three trade agreements. This article compares the dispute settlement mechanisms and their legal arrangements for e-commerce within the WTO, ASEAN and RCEP frameworks to determine the most efficient for resolving e-commerce disputes in the Asian region. The results show that existing trade agreements offer a basic framework for future digital trade or e-commerce regulation, but they only provide a limited scope. The resolution of e-commerce disputes remains an ongoing issue for Member States, challenging traditional dispute settlement mechanisms and thereby requiring a new mechanism. The Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) mechanism stands out as a promising solution for the sustainable growth of e-commerce and the resolution of the surge in trade disputes.

CYBER SEXUAL HARASSMENT & VICTIM PROTECTION LAWS: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF MALAYSIA, SINGAPORE, AND AUSTRALIA

PAVITRA KALAISELVAN, HAEZREENA BEGUM BINTI ABDUL HAMID, JAL ZABDI BIN MOHD YUSOF — Fri, 13 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0800

Sexual harassment is a widespread phenomenon, affecting various people across the globe, irrespective of gender and age. With the technological revolution, sexual harassment has infected the digital realm in the form of cyber sexual harassment, where an individual can be sexually harassed without the physical presence of the harasser. As cyberspace is a global platform for communication, the harasser could harass his target from any part of the world while remaining anonymous. On the other end, the victim could suffer in the real world with harm such as emotional disturbances and mental health issues. Thus, this paper aims to address the gap in Malaysian laws to protect victims of cyber sexual harassment. To achieve this aim, the sexual harassment laws in Malaysia and their weaknesses will be examined. Following this, a comparative study will be conducted on laws relating to cyber sexual harassment in Singapore and Australia.