Q.
Which English Law is part of the Malaysian Law?
A.
The definition of law in Article 160 of the Federal Constitution includes 'the common law'. This means the 'common law' which is part of the English Legal System.
So, the question is which is the right 'common law' of the English Law?
The qualification concerns the extent to which English Law is applicable in Malaysia. The answer is now to be found in the Civil Law Act 1956 (Act 67) (Revised 1972) (CLA 1956). Under section 3 of that Act, English Law means 'the common law of England and the rules of equity' and, in prescribed circumstances, English Statutes.
Then again, what is 'common law' in England? Is it like adat istiadat of the Malay States? The common law is based essentially on customs common throughout England (hence the name 'common law' in contrast to local customs, which had applied in England before the Norman Conquest 1066. The common law is the unwritten or unenacted law of England, the law based solely on decisions of the courts. This is different from 'Equity'.
Equity, on the other hand, is the body of rules developed first by the Lord Chancellor (the King's right hand) and later, towards the end of the fifteenth century (1400++), by the old Court of Chancery. Equity, unlike common law, is not a complete body of rules which can exist on its own. It came into being to supplement the common law, to correct its defects and mitigate its harshness.
Ref:
Wan Arfah Hamzah (2009) A First Look at the Malaysian Legal System. Oxford Fajar. Pg: 115.