KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Bar has filed an application for leave to initiate judicial review in its bid to challenge the appointment of Federal Court judge Tan Sri Ahmad Terrirudin Mohd Salleh to the Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC).
In its application, filed last Thursday (Feb 12), the Bar named Ahmad Terrirudin, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, the JAC, and the government as the first to fourth respondents, respectively.
The Bar is seeking a certiorari order from the High Court to quash the Prime Minister's decision to appoint Ahmad Terrirudin as a member of the JAC.
It also seeks a mandamus order compelling the Prime Minister to exercise his prerogative to appoint a member to the JAC in accordance with the law, including established conventions and the JAC Act 2009.
The Bar is also seeking a mandamus order compelling the JAC to establish a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) to investigate allegations against Ahmad Terrirudin, with the findings to be disclosed to the public.
The Bar seeks a court declaration that the decision to appoint Ahmad Terrirudin is unlawful and null and void.
The case has been fixed for hearing before Justice Aliza Sulaiman on March 16.
On Nov 18, a Federal Government gazette stated that the Prime Minister had appointed Ahmad Terrirudin as a JAC member under paragraph 5(1)(e) of the JAC Act 2009.
His appointment, for a two-year term from Nov 15, 2025, to Nov 14, 2027, fills the vacancy left by Federal Court judge Datuk Zabariah Mohd Yusof, who retired the month before.
This makes the former attorney general the eighth member of the nine-member JAC panel, which was established to ensure transparency and select qualified judges for the superior courts for the Prime Minister’s consideration.
Ahmad Terrirudin was elevated to the Federal Court in November 2024.
