Tan Sri The Malay language has a complex system of styles, titles and honorifics which are used extensively in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and the southern Philippines. Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore and several provinces in Indonesia regul ...

Dato' Sri Ahmad bin Haji Maarop (born 25 May 1953) is a

Malaysian Malaysian may refer to: * Something from or related to Malaysia, a country in Southeast Asia * Malaysian Malay, a dialect of Malay language spoken mainly in Malaysia * Malaysian people, people who are identified with the country of Malaysia regard ...

jurist and lawyer who served as the tenth

President of the Court of Appeal of Malaysia The President of the Court of Appeal of Malaysia (Malay: ''Presiden Mahkamah Rayuan''), is the office and title of the deputy head of the Malaysian judiciary system. The title has been in use since 24 June 1994, when the Court of Appeal of Malay ...

(PCA).

Early life and education

Maarop was born in , a village in the historical state of

Malacca Malacca ( ms, Melaka) is a state in Malaysia located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, next to the Strait of Malacca. Its capital is Malacca City, dubbed the Historic City, which has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site si ...

. He underwent his primary school education at Jasin National Primary School, Alor Gajah National Primary School and finally Bukit Beruang National Primary School, all in his home state. Maarop then attended the Dato' Abdul Razak School, a premier boarding school in

Sungai Gadut Sungai Gadut'is a small town in Seremban District, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia, near Senawang. The place is surrounded by many smaller towns such including Taman Tuanku Jaafar, Bandar Seremban Selatan, Taman Pinggiran Senawang, Taman Senawang Per ...

Seremban Seremban (Negeri Sembilan Malay: ''Soghomban'', ''Somban''; Jawi: ) is a city in the Seremban District and the capital of the state of Negeri Sembilan in Peninsular Malaysia. The city's administration is run by the Seremban City Council. Sere ...

Negeri Sembilan Negeri Sembilan (, Negeri Sembilan Malay: ''Nogoghi Sombilan'', ''Nismilan'') is a state in Malaysia which lies on the western coast of Peninsular Malaysia. It borders Selangor on the north, Pahang in the east, and Malacca and Johor to the s ...

. Upon completion of high school, he read law at the

University of Malaya The University of Malaya ( ms, Universiti Malaya, UM; abbreviated as UM or informally the Malayan University) is a public research university located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is the oldest and highest ranking Malaysian institution of highe ...

and obtained

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

(Honours) (LL.B. (Hons.)) in 1978.

Career

He started his legal career as a Judicial and Legal Service officer on 8 May 1978 and had since held various post, serving as Magistrate in Betong and

Temerloh Temerloh is a municipality in central Pahang, Malaysia. Temerloh has been proven to be the "centre of Peninsular Malaysia" (Malay: ) 3TS, which is situated at Kampung Paya Siput, Lanchang. Located about from Kuala Lumpur along the Kuantan–Kua ...

, Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) for the

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

Johor Johor (; ), also spelled as Johore, is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. Johor has land borders with the Malaysian states of Pahang to the north and Malacca and Negeri Sembilan ...

, DPP of

Royal Malaysian Customs Department The Royal Malaysian Customs Department ( ms, Jabatan Kastam Diraja Malaysia), abbreviated RMC or JKDM, is the Malaysian Government agency responsible for administrating the nation's indirect tax policy, border enforcement and narcotic offences ...

, State Legal Advisor of

Perlis Perlis, ( Northern Malay: ''Peghelih''), also known by its honorific title Perlis Indera Kayangan, is the smallest state in Malaysia by area and population. Located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, it borders the Thai provinces o ...

, Head of Prosecution Unit for

Penang Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay ...

, Senior Federal Counsel of Ministry of Home Affairs of Malaysia and State Legal Advisor of

Kelantan Kelantan (; Jawi: ; Kelantanese Malay: ''Klate'') is a state in Malaysia. The capital is Kota Bharu and royal seat is Kubang Kerian. The honorific name of the state is ''Darul Naim'' (Jawi: ; "The Blissful Abode"). Kelantan is located in the ...

. In 1994, while serving as State Legal Advisor of Kelantan, he was admitted as

advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. Different countries' legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a barrister or a solicitor. However, ...

and

solicitor A solicitor is a legal practitioner who traditionally deals with most of the legal matters in some jurisdictions. A person must have legally-defined qualifications, which vary from one jurisdiction to another, to be described as a solicitor and ...

in the High Court in Malaya at

Kota Bharu Kota Bharu, colloquially referred to as KB, is a town in Malaysia that serves as the state capital and royal seat of Kelantan. It is situated in the northeastern part of Peninsular Malaysia and lies near the mouth of the Kelantan River. The t ...

. He was then transferred to the Attorney General's Chambers headquarters where he served as deputy director and later as Head of Division, Advisory and International Division of Attorney General's Chambers. On 1 October 1998, he became one of the seven persons who were appointed as Senior Deputy Public Prosecutor by the Attorney General of Malaysia. His last position in Judicial and Legal Service was Commissioner Law Revision and Reform Malaysia. On 1 June 2000, he was elevated to the High Court bench as judicial commissioner and was assigned to preside over

High Court in Malaya The high courts in Malaysia are the third-highest courts in the hierarchy of courts, after the Federal Court and the Court of Appeal. Article 121 of the Constitution of Malaysia provides that there shall be two high courts of co-ordinate jurisdi ...

in Malacca. On 1 March 2002, he was appointed as a High Court Judge and served in the

in Malacca, Kuala Lumpur and Terengganu. His elevation to the

Court of Appeal A court of appeals, also called a court of appeal, appellate court, appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal. In much of t ...

bench took place on 18 July 2007. On 10 August 2011, he took his appointment as Judge,

Federal Court of Malaysia The Federal Court of Malaysia ( ms, Mahkamah Persekutuan Malaysia) is the highest court and the final appellate court in Malaysia. It is housed in the Palace of Justice in Putrajaya. The court was established during Malaya's independence in 1 ...

. On 1 April 2017, he was officially appointed as

Chief Judge of Malaya The high courts in Malaysia are the third-highest courts in the hierarchy of courts of Malaysia, courts, after the Federal Court of Malaysia, Federal Court and the Court of Appeal (Malaysia), Court of Appeal. Article 121 of the Constitution of Ma ...

, taking over from Zulkefli Ahmad Makinudin to occupy the third highest judicial office in

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

. Following the 14th Malaysian general election and the resignation of Zulkefli, Maarop was again chosen to take over from Zulkefli, this time ascending to the second highest judicial office of Malaysia, becoming the President of the

Court of Appeal of Malaysia The Court of Appeal ( ms, Mahkamah Rayuan Malaysia) is an appellate court of the judiciary system in Malaysia. It is the second highest court in the hierarchy below the Federal Court. This court was created in 1994 as part of reforms made to t ...

. He was sworn-in by the

Yang di-Pertuan Agong The Yang di-Pertuan Agong (, Jawi: ), also known as the Supreme Head of the Federation, the Paramount Ruler or simply as the Agong, and unofficially as the King of Malaysia, is the constitutional monarch and head of state of Malaysia. The of ...

(King of Malaysia) on 11 July 2018. As such, Maarop is currently the second-highest judicial officer in Malaysia after the

Chief Justice of Malaysia The Chief Justice of Malaysia (Malay: ''Ketua Hakim Negara Malaysia''), also known as the chief justice of the Federal Court, is the office and title of the head of the Malaysian judiciary system. The title has been in use since 1994, and pr ...

. Maarop retired as PCA on the 24 November 2019 having reached the mandatory retirement age as stipulated by the

Constitution of Malaysia The Federal Constitution of Malaysia ( ms, Perlembagaan Persekutuan Malaysia) which was promulgated on 16 September 1963, is the supreme law of Malaysia and contains a total of 183 articles. It is a written legal document which was preceded ...

Honours

* : **

Officer of the

Order of the Defender of the Realm The Most Esteemed Order of the Defender of the Realm ( ms, Darjah Yang Mulia Pangkuan Negara) is a Malaysian federal award presented for meritorious service to the country. The Order Motto are 'Dipeliharakan Allah-Pangkuan Negara' (By the Grace o ...

(KMN) (1997) **

Grand Commander of the

Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia The Most Esteemed Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia ( ms, Darjah Yang Mulia Setia Mahkota Malaysia) is a Malaysian federal award presented for meritorious service to the country and awarded by the sovereign. The order was instituted on ...

(PSM) - Tan Sri (2013) * : ** MY-MAL Exalted Order of Malacca

Companion Class I of the Order of Malacca (DMSM) - Datuk (1998) ** MY-MAL Exalted Order of Malacca

Knight Commander of the Order of Malacca (DCSM) - Datuk Wira (2015) * : ** MY-PAH Order of the Crown of Pahang - Companion - SMP

Companion of the

Order of the Crown of Pahang The Esteemed Order of the Crown of Pahang ( Malay: '' Darjah Kebesaran Mahkota Pahang Yang Amat Mulia'') is a knighthood order of the Sultanate of Pahang. History The order was founded by Sultan Abu Bakar on 27 December 1968. It is awarded ...

(SMP) (1990) ** MY-PAH Order of Sultan Ahmad Shah of Pahang - Grand Knight - SSAP

Grand Knight of the

Order of Sultan Ahmad Shah of Pahang The Most Illustrious Order of Sultan Ahmad Shah of Pahang (Malay: ''Darjah Kebesaran Sultan Ahmad Shah Pahang Yang Amat Di Mulia'') is a knighthood order of the Sultanate of Pahang. History The order was founded by Sultan Ahmad Shah on 24 Oc ...

(SSAP) - Dato' Sri (2018) * : ** MY-TER Order of Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin - Dato Setia - DSMZ 2012

Knight Companion of the

Order of Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin of Terengganu The Most Select Order of Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin of Terengganu (Bahasa Melayu: ''Darjah Kebesaran Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Terengganu Yang Amat Terpilih'') is an honorific order of the Sultanate of Terengganu History It was founded by Sult ...

(DSMZ) - Dato' (2006)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ahmad Maarop Living people 1953 births Malaysian Muslims Malaysian people of Malay descent 20th-century Malaysian lawyers 21st-century Malaysian judges People from Malacca University of Malaya alumni Presidents of the Court of Appeal of Malaysia Commanders of the Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia Officers of the Order of the Defender of the Realm