Hazlina received her appointment letter from Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat at the Palace of Justice here this afternoon.

She later took her oath of office before Chief Judge of Malaya Zabidin Diah.

She has been posted to serve at the Shah Alam High Court.

A statement from the Federal Court chief registrar’s office said Hazlina, who graduated with a law degree from Universiti Islam Antarabangsa, has served LHDN in various capacities since 1995.

She was appointed director of its special appellate division in November 2022.

Hazlina joins nine former judicial and legal service officers and lawyers who were appointed judicial commissioners on Dec 8 last year.

Last October, a five-member Federal Court panel dismissed Najib and Nazifuddin’s appeals from judgments totalling RM1.7 billion entered against them.

Delivering the court’s unanimous verdict, Justice Nallini Pathmanathan said the longstanding principle of “pay first, talk later” stands.

She said taxpayers must settle the sums assessed as owed to LHDN in full before bringing any appeal from the assessments to the special commissioners of income tax.

LHDN had secured judgment against Najib for RM1.69 billion, and for RM37.6 million against Nazifuddin over tax assessed for years 2011 to 2017.