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Companies Ordinance 1953 of Sabah and the Companies Ordinance 1958 of
Sarawak. 69
Economic growth provides opportunities for members of the public to invest in the
company and to earn profits. At the same time, unscrupulous persons in the company
may take advantage of their investments. Hence there must be legal mechanisms to
protect the public interests in the company. However, in doing so, the law must not
be burdensome and fetter commercial activities. The same concern was echoed by
various law commissions in other jurisdictions referred to by the Mohar
Commission. 70
After careful consideration, a statute based on the UK Companies Act 1948 and the
Australian Uniform Companies Act 1961 was enacted. 71 The Companies Act 1965
remains until today as the statute which governs company law and winding up in
Malaysia. There have been no major reforms in the area of company law and
insolvency law since it was first enacted in 1965 and any amendments made to the
Act have been piecemeal reforms. Since the Act was first enacted, the focus of the
government has always been to facilitate commerce in order to spur the country‟s
economic growth. Thus, as long as the country‟s economy remains vibrant and
healthy, there is no urgent need to implement drastic reforms.
4.2.2 Role of Law Reform Agencies
Law Reform Committees and the Law Commission play important roles and
contribute significantly toward the development of company and insolvency law.
Practice has developed in the UK for major reviews and consolidation of statutes to
69 Ibid.
70 Malaysia, Parliamentary Debates, Dewan Negara ,(16 August 1965) Vol II No 6 at 768.
71 Shanty Rachagan, Janine Pascoe and Anil Joshi Principles of Company Law in Malaysia (Malayan
Law Journal, Malaysia, 2002) at 6.
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