Debtor Protection Within Bankruptcy Proceeding in Malaysia and Singapore: A Comparative Analysis
Lim Jia Min, Rohaida Nordin
Faculty of Law, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
Abstract
Bankruptcy means the state of being completely lacking in a particular quality or value and it is normally referred to as financial ruin. The purpose of this paper is to examine, compare, and contrast the bankruptcy law in Malaysia and Singapore which are provided in Insolvency Act 1967 (Act 360) and Bankruptcy Act (Chapter 20), respectively. Both bankruptcy regimes have been amended recently, in 2017 and 2015. The analysis in this paper is centred on the issue as to what extent the existing laws provide due protection to the debtor as much as to the creditor. Using doctrinal comparative analysis, the discussion starts with the procedural flow of the bankruptcy proceeding and the analysis of new amendment in each regime and ends with the comparison between the amendment of the law in each jurisdiction. Generally, Malaysian amendment improves the bankruptcy law to a great extent in term of demand for justice and benefit for both the debtor and creditor. On the other hand, Singapore bankruptcy law is undergoing reformation all the time, to keep pace with the social and economic developments in the country. Both countries show great enthusiasm to keep on reforming their laws to suit every era’s need.
Keywords: Debtor protection, Bankruptcy, Comparative analysis, Malaysia, Singapore
