Judge of the Court of Appeal of Malaysia, The Honourable Justice Datuk Dr Shahnaz binti Sulaiman, welcomed to The City Law School

On Wednesday 7 October, The City Law School was delighted to formally welcome The Honourable Justice Datuk Dr Shahnaz binti Sulaiman, Judge of the Court of Appeal of Malaysia, with permission of the Chief Justice of Malaysia, The Right Honourable Tun Wan Ahmad Farid bin Wan Salleh.

Justice Sulaiman delivered a fascinating evening Keynote speech about her varied career to date to an international audience of students, staff, practicing lawyers and further invited special guests, gathered at the Law School Building’s mock courtroom.

Her speech included insight into her path into, and through the law profession, what it is actually like working within the Malaysian legal system, lessons on how to take advantage of career opportunities, and balancing career goals with nurturing a growing family.

An eclectic career

A doctoral alumna of the School, Her Ladyship was called to the Malaysian Bar in 1996 and spent 22 years at the Attorney General’s Chambers, where she was seconded to the Malaysian Aviation Commission, where she served as an Associate Director.

Earlier in her career, she served at the Ministry of Works, the Ministry of Health and the Department of Civil Aviation.

In May 2019, Justice Sulaiman was appointed a Judicial Commissioner and in April 2022 she was appointed a Judge of the High Court of Malaya. Most recently, in July 2025, she was elevated to the Court of Appeal.

Alongside her judicial career, Justice Sulaiman has maintained a strong interest in legal scholarship and the wider profession. She is a member of the Editorial Committee of the Journal of the Malaysian Judiciary, an associate member of the Royal Aeronautical Society, a member of the Commonwealth Association of Legislative Counsel, and a Committee Member of the Inns of Court Malaysia. Her Ladyship is also a former President of the Competition Appeals Tribunal.

A warm welcome

Welcoming everyone to the event, Nikki Walsh, Associate Dean Partnerships & Development, remarked on what a pleasure it was to have Justice Sulaiman back at the School, and what an extra delight it was to also welcome members of Her Ladyship’s family too to mark the occasion with her.

Walsh went on to highlight the long standing and important relationship between the School and the Malaysian legal profession. This included the School’s pride in having between 60 to 100 Malaysian students studying with it each year, and building a substantial alumni community which the School celebrates with its Annual Malaysian Alumni Reception held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.  At the most recent reception held last winter,   Justice Sulaiman served as Guest of Honour.

Dr Marc Mimler, School lead for Global Engagement, then spoke of what a privilege it has been for the School to be the only official educational sponsor of the United Kingdom & Ireland Malaysian Law Students' Union (KPUM), and hosting its annual, national moot final. He also thanked the School’s Bar Vocational Course student hosts supporting the evening’s event, Nichole Ong, Henrick Yong and Eileen Sim, noting that they are also members of the KPUM’s executive.

Dr Mimler further announced that the School’s LLB course was now formally recognised by Malaysia’s Legal Practice Qualifying Board, meaning that from the same time next year, undergraduates from Malaysia will also be joining their Bar Course peers at The City Law School.

Professor Jason Chuah was Justice Sulaiman’s doctoral supervisor when she undertook her PhD in Law at the School that she completed in 2015, under a Federal Government Scholarship.  Remembering this time fondly, and with some disbelief at how small her son, now in the audience had been, he provided the introduction to her Keynote Speech.

He later told City St George’s News:

As her former supervisor, there is a special joy in seeing Shahnaz return to City St George’s, having achieved so much since her PhD. For a teacher, seeing a former student flourish is one of the greatest rewards of the profession — and today makes me a very proud supervisor.

Keynote Speech

Beginning her Keynote Speech, Her Ladyship said:

Let me start by saying this, ever since I was a child, I have always wanted to be a lawyer. I had however, never thought, never dreamed or imagined, that one day I would be on the bench one day.

She went on to share how her journey into law was not a direct one, she did not go straight into law from school.   After school she pursued a degree in public administration at a local institution in Malaysia, then started a job as an editorial assistant for the Asian Defence Journal and then worked as a broadcast journalist.

She reminded her audience that while seemingly not relevant to her dream of becoming a lawyer, both shaped her professional and personal growth:

...as an editorial assistant, I had to be concise, and adept with words…   and as a broadcast journalist I discovered the art of asking questions, or rather the art of obtaining information.

However, while in secure, well-paid employment, her dream nagged at her, and about a year later she undertook a four-year law degree in Malaysia.  Graduating was a defining moment she said, especially for her mother, who was ‘thrilled’.

“I then secured a pupillage at a law firm for nine months, was admitted to the Malaysian bar and I was retained at the law firm for about two years.”

At her mother’s suggestion, she then left the private sector to join the public sector as a legal officer.

“In Malaysia that meant joining the legal and judicial service, and I applied and was accepted.  I spent about 22 years as a judicial legal officer in various capacities and postings.”

This included as legal advisor in the Department of Civil Aviation. She further remarked that working in such a variety of roles meant she took transferable skills from one role to the next. Justice Sulaiman also shared that while paying less than the private sector, the public sector was advantageous for career advancement.

This included the ability to complete her LLM in Islamic Law at SOAS on a scholarship (in 2007) and then later pursue her PhD in Aviation Law at The City Law School.

Making the decision to undertake her PhD was a challenging one, as she already had a family of four children and her husband, and had to consider the prospect of moving with them to London.

Commenting on her support during her doctorate at the School she shared:

To PhD candidates at The City Law School, you are always given the support and assistance you need, and in terms of infrastructure, guidance and advise toolset.

She also highlighted how niche aviation law is, and the challenges raised by that, but given her interest and background as well as support, she learned a great deal.

Research training she could not have envisioned would come in direct use upon her return to Malaysia with the dual national tragedies, within months of each other, of the disappearance of Flight MH 370 in March 2014 over the South China Sea, and the shooting down of Flight MH17 over Ukraine in July 2014.

This led to her being part of related government aviation work including a task force and then to an independent commission.

Later when she took the bench in 2019, as she had never had professional experience before in criminal law she said she had to prepare herself mentally as well given the types of cases she would be judging including for instance the crime of murder.

Toward the conclusion of her keynote, Justice Sulaiman reflected:

A law degree gives you the knowledge, being a lawyer requires much more than that.  It requires judgment, resilience and integrity.

Her Ladyship’s speech was followed by time for an in-depth Q & A session where she fielded a wide range of questions from her audience.

Providing closing the remarks, Professor Richard Ashcroft, Executive Dean of The City Law School shared what an honour it was to have Justice Sulaiman back at the School, including how she will always have a home at the School.

He thanked her for providing her audience with a wealth of useful advice, and among others,  provided a key reflection on a recurring theme in her speech:

One word that you used frequently was courage. It’s a really important word.  I’d invite you all to think what does courage mean to you, and in your career?  What would make you proud of yourself, or what would you want others to say about you, in your professional career?

Following a gift giving ceremony, with formal custom being for tokens given to be  returned to the Chief Justice of Malaysia to be displayed in his Palace of Justice, Her Ladyship and all guests engaged in a networking session.

Further faculty from the School who participated in the evening event included Professor Mark O’Brien, Deputy Dean of the School, Professor Dimitrios Giannoulopoulos, Head of Academic Programmes,  Professor Stuart Sime, and Senior Lecturer, John-Paul MacNamara.