Hayati binti Mohd Salleh (or simply Hayati Salleh)
is a
Bruneian lawyer and the first female
Attorney General of Brunei
The Attorney General's Office of Brunei is the public prosecutor of Brunei, and Legal advice, legal adviser to the Government of Brunei. The functions of the attorney general are carried out with the assistance of the deputy attorney-general and t ...
,
who served the office from 2009 to 2018.
She is also the first female High Court Judge in the
Supreme Court of Brunei, as well as the first
Bruneian Malay woman to be called to the
English Bar
Barristers in England and Wales are one of the two main categories of lawyer in England and Wales, the other being solicitors. Barristers have traditionally had the role of handling cases for representation in court, both defence and prosecutio ...
.
In addition to her judicial responsibilities, she serves on a number of committees, such as the Law Revision Committee, the National Education Council, and the "Badan Perencana Kemajuan Jangka Panjang," which is charged with developing Brunei='s long-term development strategy and overseeing its implementation. She also serves as the working committee's chairman for the Legal Profession Act.
Biography
Education
The Raja Isteri Fatimah Malay School (SMRIF), Raja Isteri Girls' High School (STPRI), and
Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien College in Brunei provided the foundational education for Hayati. After receiving a Brunei Government Scholarship in 1974, she continued on to complete her
'A' Levels at
Exeter College of Further Education in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
, eventually earning a
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...
(
Law
Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...
)
Degree
Degree may refer to:
As a unit of measurement
* Degree (angle), a unit of angle measurement
** Degree of geographical latitude
** Degree of geographical longitude
* Degree symbol (°), a notation used in science, engineering, and mathematics
...
from the
University of Exeter
, mottoeng = "We Follow the Light"
, established = 1838 - St Luke's College1855 - Exeter School of Art1863 - Exeter School of Science 1955 - University of Exeter (received royal charter)
, type = Public
, ...
in 1979. She became a certified
Barrister-At-Law
A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and g ...
of
Lincoln's Inn in 1980.
Career
Hayati started working as a
legal counsel
A lawyer is a person who Practice of law, practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different Jurisdiction, legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney at law, attorney, barrister, canonist, canon l ...
and deputy
public prosecutor
A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the case in a criminal tria ...
in the Attorney General's Chambers. She thereafter moved to the State Judiciary Department where she served as a
magistrate
The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judic ...
before becoming chief magistrate and deputy chief registrar of the
Supreme Court, chief registrar and judge of the intermediate court, and judicial commissioner of the Supreme Court. She was the first woman to get such an honour when
Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah appointed her as a High Court Judge on 1 January 2001.
On 4 August 2009, she was once again the first woman to be selected as
Attorney General. On 29 May 2010, that position was upgraded to a Ministerial status.
She was a member of the
cabinet in the reshuffles of 2005,
2010,
2015,
and 2018.
She was responsible for overseeing the implementation of
sharia law in Brunei.
For Brunei's legal system, the 2013 implementation of the Sharia Penal Code Order represents a significant development. To provide justice in line with the due process of the law is the primary goal of criminal justice law. Criminal offenses have traditionally been subject to the civil courts' and religious courts' jurisdiction. The Sharia Penal Code gives sharia courts the authority to hear cases involving offenses against
Islam, such as
intoxicated drinking, failing to give ''
zakat
Zakat ( ar, زكاة; , "that which purifies", also Zakat al-mal , "zakat on wealth", or Zakah) is a form of almsgiving, often collected by the Muslim Ummah. It is considered in Islam as a religious obligation, and by Quranic ranking, is ...
'' (
alms), or disrespecting
Ramadan.
On the request of Datin Hayati,
Professor Cao Jianming visited Brunei for business from 24 to 26 November 2017. The
Supreme People's Procuratorate
The Supreme People's Procuratorate () is the highest national agency responsible for legal prosecution and investigation in the People's Republic of China. Conceived initially in 1949 as the Supreme People's Prosecutor's Office, the agency was r ...
and the Attorney General's Chambers of Brunei signed a joint statement after agreeing to further increase communication and collaboration between the two prosecutor offices. On 24 January 2018, the president of the Law Society of Brunei Darussalam, On Hung Zheng, paid Datin Hayati a courtesy call in the law building. They spoke about topics of mutual interest, including methods to improve the standard of legal services in Brunei Darussalam and potential avenues for collaboration.
On 9 August 2018, His Majesty has approved the appointment of Dato Hairol Arni as Attorney General to take the place of Datin Hayati in accordance with the Sultan of Brunei's directive.
Personal life
Datin Hayati is the eldest daughter of nobleman and politician,
Pehin Orang Kaya Shahbandar Dato Seri Paduka (POKSDSP) Salleh.
Awards and honours
On 15 July 1999, she was bestowed the title of Datin Paduka, also styled as Yang Berhormat (
The Honourable
''The Honourable'' (British English) or ''The Honorable'' ( American English; see spelling differences) (abbreviation: ''Hon.'', ''Hon'ble'', or variations) is an honorific style that is used as a prefix before the names or titles of certain ...
).
Her title was later promoted to Datin Seri Paduka on 15 July 2011.
Throughout her career, Hayati has earned the following honours:
Awards
* Salute to Brunei Women Achievers Award (given by
Asia Inc
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...
Forum; 2008)
Honours
*
Order of Seri Paduka Mahkota Brunei
The Most Honourable Order of Seri Paduka Mahkota Brunei ( ms, Darjah Seri Paduka Mahkota Brunei Yang Amat Mulia), also translated as The Most Honourable Order of the Crown of Brunei, is an order of Brunei
Brunei ( , ), formally Brunei D ...
First Class (SPMB) – Datin Seri Paduka (15 July 2011)
*
![Medal_for_Service_to_State_(Brunei)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/Medal_for_Service_to_State_%28Brunei%29.jpg)
Excellent Service Medal (PIKB)
*
![Long_Service_Medal_(PKL)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/Long_Service_Medal_%28PKL%29.jpg)
Long Service Medal (PKL)
References
*
External links
Introduction of sharia legal principles
Bruneian lawyers
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
21st-century women politicians
Bruneian Muslims
Bruneian women in politics
Women scholars of Islam
Alumni of the University of Exeter
{{Brunei-bio-stub