On Wednesday, Judicial Commissioner Hazizah Kassim refused to strike out the allegations from Williams’s court documents, as well as claims of witness tampering made against three high-ranking individuals in CMI.

Hazizah said the claims of perjury and witness tampering were relevant to the case, and must be heard in full.

Trial of the suit is scheduled to take place in August 2026.

Williams is suing CMI, a chartered professional body for management and leadership based in London, and three of its officials for defamation.

He is also a defendant in another defamation suit brought by the UK charity and its Malaysian-based subsidiary in the Shah Alam High Court, which will be heard in September next year.

Williams has a separate defamation lawsuit against a former chairman of CMI’s Malaysian regional board which has been transferred from the sessions court in Kuala Lumpur and will be heard together with his suit against CMI.

Meanwhile, the lead lawyer acting for CMI and all related parties in the three suits has officially withdrawn from the case.

This comes after a complaint was raised that she had lodged a police report against one of the parties to the suit last year.

FMT understands that the report was filed on June 3 last year, one day before CMI’s defamation suit was filed, raising concerns about a potential breach of the Legal Profession (Practice and Etiquette) Rules 1976.

CMI’s solicitors have denied any wrongdoing on the lawyer’s part, pointing out that the police report had been made on their client’s instructions.

CMI’s lawsuit stems from allegations it was selling certificates which do not have accreditation in Malaysia. CMI claims it does not need accreditation from the Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA).