This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on March 18, 2020

PUTRAJAYA: Criminal and civil trials scheduled for today to March 31 have been postponed in line with the restriction of movement order issued by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin on Monday night.

Federal Court chief registrar Ahmad Terirudin Mohd Salleh said in a statement yesterday that new civil cases or appeal notices and related documents can be filed as usual through the e-filing system.

Venues which do not have the e-filing system could file their applications from April 1.

However, remand of individuals under Section 117 of the Criminal Procedure Code would continue as usual, the statement said.

On Monday night, Muhyiddin announced the nationwide movement control order effective from today until March 31.

With this announcement, several high-profile cases, including former premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s 1Malaysia Development Bhd trial, former deputy prime minister and current Umno president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s corruption trial and former federal territories minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor’s graft trial scheduled for three days from March 25 will also be postponed.

Initially, Najib’s case was expected to resume last Thursday, after his counsel Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah had been tested negative for Covid-19.

It was postponed last Thursday, following fears that Muhammad Shafee may have contracted the disease.

The senior lawyer told several media on Sunday that he was free from Covid-19, and was raring to go.

Ahmad Terirudin in the statement issued yesterday to law firms said new trial dates would be fixed later for the criminal and civil trials postponed for these two weeks.

He added that for newly registered criminal cases, the investigating officer is required to inform the Magistrates’ or Sessions Court judges in their area for them to prepare the courts.

“State court directors should also assign the rightful officers on duty for the duration of the control movement order,” he said in the directive.

New Malaysian Bar president Salim Bashir in a statement issued to the press on Monday called for the government to impose a lockdown for two weeks, including the courts, in a bid to prevent the spread of the virus.