Federal Statutes, State Enactments and Subsidiary Legislation

what is subsidiary legislation

law made through powers delegated by legislature to a person or body based on the provision in the parent statute

what is amendment act

when changes has been made to a principle act. for example road transport (amendment) 2023 and copyright (amendment) 2022

what is revised act

when changes have been made to the principle act due to technical, grammatical and typographical errors but do not change the substance of the law. for example, penal code (revised- 1997) and water act 1920 (revised-1989)

What is legislation?

a law enacted by the parliament (dewan rakyat/negara). laws passed by parliaments are called Acts but those passed between 1st April 1946 to 10th September 1959 are called ordinances

what is consolidated act

an act that combines more than one acts that have been passed by parliament. for example, interpretation act 1948 and 1967

why is subsidiary legislation important

legislative bodies have insufficient time to enact the law in a very detailed aspect. Many laws involve technical and specific matters therefore experts are needed to legislate them. The laws made by legislative bodies only deal with general and broad principles. The legislative bodies are also not always in session and procedures in enacting laws are very cumbersome

What are the four types of acts

revised act, principle act, amendment act, consolidated act

what is are the mechanisms to control subsidiary legislation

subsidiary legislation is actually made by the executive which goes against the separation of power so mechanisms need to exist to avoid abusing of power 1. consultation - before a subsidiary legislation is made, the relevant bodies involved in making it must seek prior consultation from advisory bodies who are experts in the subject matter 2. publication - some statues state that the publication of a law in the gazette is mandatory. The law will only come into effect from the date of publication or any date specified in the gazette. 3. legislative control - a statute may provide that any subsidiary legislation shall be laid before the dewan rakyat as soon after it is made - the dewan rakyat can repeal, revoke or vary the subsidiary legislation 4. judicial control - through judicial review - courts may declare a subsidiary legislation as void if it is not consistent with the act passes by parliament

what is principle act

the most common one. an act that covers the law on that particular subject or area. for example abolition of mandatory death penalty act 2023 and road transport act 1987