KOTA KINABALU: Sabah lawyers have urged the government to enact a new law to address legal disputes caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and movement control order (MCO).
Sabah Law Society (SLS) president Roger Chin said there might be a sharp increase in litigation concerning issues surrounding the MCO and the failure of parties to fulfil their obligations.
He said such cases would arise over legal uncertainties about the stay-at-home order and its effect on contractual or statutory obligations.
Cases which could not be resolved amicably could take years and thousands of ringgit to settle, he added.
“At this critical juncture, the time and resources spent on resolving such disputes would be better invested in rebuilding the nation’s economy than potentially protracted litigation,” he said today.
While such a law would not be able to cater to every case, he said, it would significantly benefit the public.