Consistency in Sulu rulings

THE rulings of the Hague Court of Appeal in the Netherlands and the Paris Court of Appeal, which dismissed the Sulu claimants’ application for recognition and enforcement of a purported arbitral award of US$14.9bil (RM69.6bil), have been hailed as landmarks.

But let’s not forget that the rulings of both courts are consistent with those of the Malaysian judge who heard the Malaysian government’s application in 2019 for a number of declarations, including that there was no arbitration agreement in the 1878 agreement. (See Government of Malaysia V Nurhima Kiram Fornan & Ors [2020] MLJU 425)