Adjudication In Malaysia

Introduction

The use of adjudication as a rapid binding dispute resolution procedure for construction contracts has been slowly spreading around the world. Adjudication was first introduced in the UK in May 1998 as a result of the Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996. The legislated scheme provided that anyone entering into the construction contract (with some exceptions) had the unilateral right to call in an adjudicator if a dispute arose. The adjudicator was to be appointed within 7 days and had to provide a written decision with 28 days. It quickly became apparent that the courts would enforce those decisions very quickly. The general rubric was, and remains, "pay up now argue later". So if you did not like the adjudicator's decision you had no choice but to pay while then going on to arbitration or litigation in order to have the dispute reheard.