REVISION OF LAWS ACT 1968

A member of the Committee shall hold office for a period of two years and shall be eligible for reappointment:

Provided that the Chief Justice may terminate the appointment of a member, and any member may resign, at any time.

The Chief Registrar of the Federal Court shall be the

Secretary to the Committee.

Printing of revised laws

to omit from any revised law—

any repealing enactment and any table or list of repealed enactments, whether contained in a schedule or otherwise;

(aa) any provision, or part of a provision, in any law, which has ceased to have effect;

any preamble or part of a preamble to a law;

any introductory words of enactment in any law or provision thereof;

any enactment prescribing the date when a law or part thereof is to come into force or operation:

Provided that the date on which the law or part thereof came into force or operation is inserted by the Commissioner in square brackets immediately following the long title of the revised law;

any amending enactment where the amendments affected thereby are embodied by the Commissioner in the law to which they relate or have been so embodied in any reprint printed in pursuance of any written law;

any enacting clause;

any part of a law which can more conveniently be included as subsidiary legislation;

any interpretation of any expression which is defined in identical or similar terms to those used in the definition of that term contained in the law applicable for the interpretation of the law after it has been revised;

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any provision referring to any matter for which provision is made in identical or similar terms in the law applicable for the interpretation of the law after it has been revised:

Provided that the provisions relating to the construction of amending laws contained in the law applicable for the interpretation of laws shall apply to such omissions in the same way as if the provision omitted has been repealed; and

in the case of a law which refers to matters partly in the Federal List and—

partly in the Concurrent or State List; or

partly in the Concurrent List and partly in the State List, all provisions other than those which refer to matters in the Federal List:

Provided that the powers contained in this paragraph shall not be exercised except after consultation with the State Attorney General or the Legal Adviser of the State affected;

to arrange the sequence of revised laws and to give chapter, serial or other numbers thereto;

to make such formal alterations to any law as are necessary or expedient for the purpose of securing uniformity of expression; or to bring the law into conformity with the provisions of the law applicable for the interpretation of the law after it has been revised;

to adopt a convenient standard form in all revised laws for—

the interpretation section;

any penal section;

any section giving power to make subsidiary legislation;

Revision of Laws

Revision of Laws

Subsection 6(1)—(cont.)

to alter the word “Enactment”, “Ordinance” or “Proclamation”

in any law to “Act”;

to add a long title or a short title to any law which may require it, and to alter the long title or short title of any law;

to supply or alter tables of contents, chronological tables, references and notes:

Provided that such tables of contents, chronological tables, references and notes shall not form any part of the law in which they appear;

to consolidate into one law any two or more laws or part thereof in pari materia relating to matters with respect to which Parliament has power to make laws, by whatever legislature those laws were enacted, making such alterations as are thereby rendered necessary in the consolidated enactment, and making modifications to have effect in particular States where if no such modifications were made it would bring about a substantial change in the law in force in such State and appointing such date for the coming into force thereof as may seem most convenient;

to divide any law into two or more laws and to make such amendments, including the supplying of titles, or the alteration of existing titles, as are thereby rendered necessary;

to add to or omit from any law any provision required to be added or omitted, or to substitute for any provision of any law any provision required to be substituted, in consequence of any amendment made to that law by any other law or by any authority under powers conferred by law;

to transfer any provision contained in a law from that law to any other law to which that provision more properly belongs, making any alterations thereby rendered necessary;

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to alter the order of the provisions in any law, and to renumber the provisions of any law;

to alter the form or arrangement of any provision of any law by transposing words, by combining it in whole or in part with another provision or other provisions or by dividing it into two or more provisions;

to divide any law, whether consolidated or not, into parts or other divisions;

to correct grammatical, typographical and similar mistakes and for that purpose to make verbal additions, omissions, or alterations not affecting the meaning of any law;

to alter, insert or omit punctuation marks in any law;

to make such formal alterations as to names, localities, departments, offices, titles and otherwise as may be necessary to bring any law into conformity with the circumstances of the Federation on the date on which the law in its revised form is to come into force;

*(xviia) to make such alterations in any written law to reflect any change of the style and title, or the transfer of any functions or responsibility, of any Minister, or the change of name of any Ministry;

to make such adaptations or amendments in any law as may appear to be necessary or proper as a consequence of any change in the constitution of the Federation or any part thereof or any part of the Commonwealth;

to correct cross references including references to the laws of other territories;

*NOTE — see section 4 of Revision of Laws (Amendment) Act 2019 [Act A1599] w.e.f. 1 August 2019

which provides the following provision:

“Commencement of change or transfer

, (xxiii) and (xxiv) by P.U. (A) 107/1970, paragraph 3(c), in force from 1 January 1969. P.U. (A) 107/1970 was repealed vide Act A43, section 10

in force from 30 April 1971. The renumbering was reinserted by Act A43

paragraph 3(c), in force from 30 April 1971.

to correct references to repealed laws by substituting for such references, references to any laws by which the repealed laws have been replaced, for which purpose it is declared that a law is deemed to be replaced by another law where it is expressly stated in the subsequent law that it replaces the repealed law, or where the subsequent law re-enacts with or without modification any provisions of a repealed law;

(xxa) to update the terminology and spelling in the national language text of any law so that they are consistent with the terminology and spelling approved by the Dewan

Bahasa dan Pustaka;

(xxb) to delete any word, expression, nomenclature or other provision in any law which has become obsolete or has ceased to have effect, including references to repealed laws, and to substitute therefor, where necessary, the appropriate word, expression, nomenclature or provision or references to the appropriate laws;

to shorten or simplify the phraseology of any law;

to repeal or amend any enactment in consequence of the preparation of a revised law;

to appoint the date on which a revised law shall come into force:

Provided that such date shall not be earlier than the date on which the revised law is published in the Gazette;

to do all other things relating to form and method which may be necessary for the perfecting of a revised law.

In subsection (1) “amendment” includes, where it is used in relation to the powers conferred upon the Commissioner, any variation of any law which is necessary for giving effect to any enactment in any other law whereby the scope, effect or construction of any provision of the first mentioned law is varied, modified, enlarged, restricted, qualified or otherwise affected.

The powers conferred on the Commissioner by subsection (1)

shall not be taken to imply any power in him to make any alteration or amendment in the substance of any law.

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Method of compiling a revised law

on the front page thereof—

the expression “Laws of Malaysia”;

the short title and number of the revised law;

the date up to which it has been revised; and

the date appointed under paragraph 6(1)(xxiii) on which the revised law is to come into force;

a list of the laws by which the law has been amended up to the date of its revision showing the dates on which the amendments came into force;

a list of the laws or parts thereof which the revised law supersedes or repeals.

(Deleted by Act A43).

Examination by the Committee

The validity of any certificate given by the Committee under subsection (1) shall not be affected by any vacancy in the membership of the Committee or by the inability of any member thereof to give his opinion by reason of temporary absence, indisposition or any other cause.

Revised law to comply with Committee’s opinion

On and after the date from which a revised law comes into force, such revised law shall be deemed to be and shall be without any question whatsoever in all courts and for all purposes whatsoever the sole and only proper law in respect of matters included therein and in force on that date.

Completion of revision of pre-1969 laws to be notified in Gazette

amendments effected by any law, and

amendments made by the Commissioner under the powers conferred upon him by subsection (2), and any copy of a reprint purporting to be printed in accordance with this section shall be deemed, until be contrary is shown, to be the authentic text of the law as in force, except in so far as may be specified in the copy, on such date as may be so specified.

In preparing a reprint the Commissioner shall have the powers contained in paragraphs (vii), (x), (xv), (xvi), (xvii), (xviii), (xix), and

of section 6(1).”.

P.U. (A) 107/1970 was repealed vide Act A43, section 10, in force from 30 April 1971. The provision was reinserted by Act A43, section 8, in force from 30 April 1971; except that in paragraph 14(1)(a), the word “affected”

was substituted for the word “effected”.

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Saving of existing subsidiary legislation

The provisions of this Act relating to the preparation and publication of a revised law, but not the provisions relating to examination by the Committee, shall apply with any necessary modifications to the preparation and publication of revised subsidiary legislation.

Reprint of laws

amendments affected by any law; and

amendments made by the Commissioner under the powers conferred upon him by subsection (2), and any copy of a reprint purporting to be printed in accordance with this section shall be deemed, until the contrary is shown, to be the authentic text of the law as in force, except in so far as may be specified in the copy, on such date as may be so specified.

Revisions of Laws

Section 14—(cont.)

In preparing a reprint the Commissioner shall have the powers contained in paragraphs 6(1)(vii), (x), (xv), (xvi), (xvii),

(xviia), (xviii), (xix), (xx), (xxa) and (xxb).

Publication volume by volume 14a.  (1)  The Commissioner may, if he considers it expedient, authorize a reprint to be prepared and published volume by volume, in any sequence and at such times as he deems expedient.

Any volume of a reprint may contain such tables, appendices and other supplementary matter, including an index, as the

Commissioner may consider necessary.

Updating of reprints 14b.  The Commissioner may, if he considers it expedient, authorize the preparation and publication of updates incorporating the latest amendments to a reprint, in any sequence and at such times as he deems expedient.

Delegation of powers 14c.  The Commissioner may delegate any of his powers under subsection 14(2), sections 14a and 14b to the Deputy Commissioner.

Rectification of formal errors

An order made under subsection (1) shall have the force of law with effect from the date referred to in paragraph 7(i)(d).

Revisions of Laws

Section 16:

This was previously section 15 and renumbered as section 16 by

P.U. (A) 107/1970, section 9, in force from 11 March 1970.

P.U. (A) 107/1970 was repealed vide Act A43, section 10, in force from 30 April 1970. The renumbering was maintained by Act A43, section 9, in force from 30 April 1970.

Section 17:

This was previously section 16 and renumbered as section 17 by

P.U. (A) 107/1970, section 9, in force from 11 March 1970.

P.U. (A) 107/1970 was repealed vide Act A43, section 10, in force from 30 April 1970. The renumbering was maintained by Act A43, section 9, in force from 30 April 1970.

Section 18:

This was previously section 17 and renumbered as section 18 by

P.U. (A) 107/1970, section 9, in force from 11 March 1970.

P.U. (A) 107/1970 was repealed vide Act A43, section 10, in force from 30 April 1970. The renumbering was maintained by Act A43, section 9, in force from 30 April 1970.

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Reference to number of line in any law