KUALA LUMPUR: The International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation Bill 2025 has been introduced to promote mediation as an effective method for resolving international commercial disputes.
The bill was presented for its first reading in the Dewan Rakyat by Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said on Wednesday (Dec 3).
The second and third readings were scheduled for the next session of the Dewan Rakyat.
To implement the United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation, which Malaysia signed on Aug 7, 2019, a law must be enacted.
This treaty, also known as the Singapore Convention on Mediation, establishes a uniform framework for the recognition and enforcement of settlement agreements arising from commercial mediation in cross-border disputes.
The Bill outlines the provisions for the enforcement and admissibility of these international settlement agreements.
“In pursuit of Malaysia's intention to ratify the Convention and become a party to it, the proposed Act seeks to establish the necessary legal framework to fulfil the obligations under the Convention and facilitate the enforcement of international settlement agreements in Malaysia. This will, in turn, promote mediation as an effective means of resolving international commercial disputes,” the Bill states.
The law would apply to international settlement agreements resolving commercial disputes, but would not cover personal, family or household transactions, nor would it cover court-approved transactions, arbitral awards or court judgments.
Under the proposed law, international settlement agreements would be admissible as evidence in any court or institutional proceedings to demonstrate that the matter has been resolved.
