Param Cumaraswamy said the extension was given to enable judges to complete their remaining judgments before leaving office.
“That is the rationale for the provision in the Federal Constitution, and it must be utilised judiciously,” he told FMT in an interview.
Article 125 (1) states that the mandatory retirement age for judges is 66, but the Yang di-Pertuan Agong may approve such extensions on the advice of the chief justice and the prime minister.
Param, who is a former United Nations special rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, said an extension would not be needed if the administrators in the judiciary closely monitored their subordinates.
In Singapore, Param said, the chief justice tracked his judges to ensure they completed their grounds of judgments within a reasonable period and before they left office.
“Here, it is becoming a norm rather than an exception for judges to get the six-month extension,” Param, said adding that a prudent practice could also save public funds.
The 77-year-old, who became a lawyer about 50 years ago, said an extension could be given if a judge was temporarily incapacitated due to health problems, to enable him to finish outstanding judgments.
Param, who was named this year’s recipient of the Malaysian Bar Lifetime Achievement Award, also said the appointment of additional judges to the Federal Court was meant to help the bench clear the backlog of cases.
“Ex-judges with experience and expertise can be appointed but it must be for a specific period of time,” he added.
Param said he was supportive of such appointments but warned that it must not be made a standard practice or abused.
“However, the purpose of such appointments must be clearly spelt out and the term should preferably be six months.”
Article 121 (1A) states that the king, on the advice of the chief justice, can appoint any person who has held high judicial office in Malaysia to be an “additional judge” but for a specific purpose and time.
A retired High Court judge, S Chelvasingam MacIntyre, was the first to be appointed an additional judge in 1968, while ex-Federal Court judge Jeffrey Tan Kok Hwa was appointed for a two-year period from July 1, 2016.
Chief Justice Raus Sharif and Court of Appeal president Zulkefli Ahmad Makinudin were appointed additional judges for three and two years respectively in order for them to remain in their positions.
A seven-man bench is expected to decide soon on whether it is constitutional for additional judges to also hold administrative posts.
Ex-CJ: My advice to make Raus, Zulkefli additional judges is legal