Melinda Marie D’Angelus

Melinda Marie D’angelus

Melinda graduated in 2003 with a LL. B (Hons) from the University of London. Melinda was called to the Malaysian Bar and admitted to the roll of Advocates and Solicitors in April 2007.

Thereafter, she began her career in Messrs De Silva, which subsequently merged into the firm known as Bodipalar Ponnudurai De Silva up until end of 2011. During her employment, she handled various legal practices such as civil litigation, industrial relations and constitutional and administrative matters.

Melinda joined Azmi & Associates in 2012 and led a unit within the Litigation and Arbitration Practice Group, specialising in Labour and Employment. Melinda was then elevated to a Partner of the firm in 2016. In 2017, Melinda was named in the Asian Legal Business (Asia Edition) as the Top 40 under 40 outstanding legal professionals in the Asian region. Some of Melinda’s interests outside of law include travelling, baking, and reading.

Melinda has been involved in many matters since she began her career in law, some of the more notable cases include:

• Obtaining an award of unfair dismissal for two expatriate employees which were subsequently successfully relied on in an international arbitration and advising the foreign counsel handling the said arbitration.

• Successfully represented a subsidiary of national housing company in arbitrations against the Government of Malaysia an obtaining awards for the said national housing company in a construction dispute.

• Successfully obtaining orders from the High Court of Malaya for selective Capital Reduction exercises, one of recent being for a subsidiary of a State Government investment arm.

• Representing a National Trade Union in successfully obtaining an interpretation of a provision in the Trade Unions Act 1959.

• Obtaining a Mareva injunction against a public listed company in the High Court and successfully maintaining the decision at the Court of Appeal.

Details

Melinda Marie D’angelus
Partner

Direct Line:
+603 2118 5021

Mobile Phone:
+6019 388 2009

E-mail:
melinda.dangelus@azmilaw.com

Practice Areas

Ahmad Syahir Yahya

Ahmad Syahir Yahya

Ahmad Syahir graduated from International Islamic University of Malaysia (IIUM) with a First-Class Honours Degree in 2008.

During his study, he obtained several awards for his academic performance including the Ahmad Ibrahim Kuliyyah of Laws Dean’s List Certificate for all eight semesters of his studies. He was also awarded the Best Student in Islamic Banking Law and was named in the Rector’s List during the 24th IIUM Convocation 2008.

He attended International and Executive Legal Education (IELE) training at University of California, Berkeley, United States in 2015 and he has successfully obtained a Certificate of American Law from Berkeley School of Law, University of California, U.S.A.

He also attended an Arabic language course at the Abu Nour University, Damascus, Syria in 2006. In 2005, he was selected to participate in a course organized by Da’wah and Guidance Centre that was held in Makkah al- Mukarramah, Saudi Arabia. He received Certificate of Excellence for both courses he attended. He was a product of Darul Quran, JAKIM. He completed the memorization of the whole thirty chapters of al-Quran and received his Certificate in Tahfiz al-Quran Darul Quran-IIUM with jayyid jiddan (second class upper) in 2004.

He joined Azmi & Associate in May 2008 to undertake his pupilage under the supervision of our Senior Partner, Dato’ Azmi Mohd Ali. He was called to the Malaysian Bar on 10th April 2009. He was part of the team that advised on the issuance of Sukuk al-Ijarah and al-Mudarabah by Malaysian highway concessionaire Projek Lintasan Shah Alam Sdn. Bhd., which garnered the Islamic Finance News Deal of the Year 2008 award for its innovativeness.

He was also part of the team that advised Bursa Malaysia Islamic Services on the drafting of the rules governing the operations of Bursa Suq al-Sila’, the world’s first fully-automated secure online commodity-trading platform established by Bursa Malaysia Berhad based on the Shariah concept of Murabahah (tawarruq) which was awarded the “Most Outstanding Islamic Finance Product” at the Kuala Lumpur Islamic Finance Forum (KLIFF) 2009.

He has also been actively involved in advising various financial institutions, corporations, cooperative societies and government agencies for the development of common Islamic finance and banking documentation.

He is listed under the Legal 500 as a recommended lawyer in the area of Banking & Finance.

His other notable assignments include:

• Advising syndicated lenders in relation to the Term Loan Facility of USD1.5 billion granted in favour of an oil and gas services company to part finance a floating production, storage and offloading vessel for the oil field in Brazil;

• Advising the Ministry of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives (MEDAC) and Malaysia Co-operative Societies Commission for the development of Islamic financing facility documents based on Shariah concept of Tawarruq;

• Advising the Government of Malaysia in relation to the Islamic Financing Facilities of up to RM577.0 million and RM480.0 million granted to a land development authority;

• Advising the Government of Malaysia in relation to the Islamic Financing Facilities of up to RM544.0 million and RM230.0 million only granted to a government-owned corporate entity for the purpose of financing of specific development and project;

• Advising a Malaysian bank in respect of Islamic financing facilities of RM570.0 million granted to a State Economic Development Corporation;

• Advising a Malaysian bank (being the Issuer) on the updating and upsizing of its existing multicurrency medium-term notes programme from USD1.5 billion to USD4.5 billion;

• Advising a listed oil and gas services company in relation to syndicated facilities up to USD550.0 million granted by syndicated financial institutions;

• Advising syndicated lenders in relation to the Term Loan Facilities of USD456.0 million granted in favour of three Labuan subsidiaries of a listed oil and gas company to finance the project costs of 3 vessels;

• Advising a Malaysian bank on aircrafts financing facilities of USD103.2 Million in favour of an Indonesian airlines company for the purchase of aircrafts;

• Advising a Malaysia bank in relation to a Line of Islamic Facility under Standby Letter of Credit-i (SBLC-i) of USD85.0 million granted in favour of a company involved in purchase and supply of Liquefied Natural Gas;

• Advising a Malaysian bank for the Structured Islamic Financing Facilities of RM0 million granted in favour of a concessionaire to finance development of facilities and infrastructure of Children’s Specialist Hospital;

• Advising a Malaysian Development bank in preparing the relevant legal documentation in relation to the novation exercise and settlement arrangement of the outstanding total loan facilities of up to RM1.863 billion involving a group of companies involved in water supply services;

• Advising a Malaysian bank in relation to the Commodity Murabahah Term Financing-i (CMTF-i) of RM500.0 million granted to a logistic services company;

• Advising the largest Islamic bank in Malaysia in relation to the fresh Islamic Short-Term Revolving Credit-i Facility of up to RM1.0 billion in favour of the federal land development authority;

• Advising a Malaysia bank in relation to a fresh Intra-Day Overdraft facility of up to RM2.0 billion in favour of the national energy provider; and

• Advising Bursa Malaysia Islamic Services on the drafting of the rules governing the operations of Bursa Suq al-Sila’, the world’s first fully-automated secure online commodity-trading platform established by Bursa Malaysia Berhad based on the Shariah concept of Murabahah (Tawarruq).

Details

Ahmad Syahir Yahya
Partner

Direct Line:
+603 2118 5020

Mobile Phone:
+6019 388 1655

E-mail:
syahir@azmilaw.com

Practice Areas

Philip Teoh

Philip Teoh

Philip Teoh graduated with Bachelor of Laws (Honours) from National University of Singapore in 1989 and later obtained a Master of Laws from University of Malaya.

He chambered under the reknowned litigator Mr Harry Elias in Singapore and then commenced his practice with the shipping law practice of Koh & Yang. He later founded the Shipping and Insurance practice of David Chong & Co and practised in both its Singapore and Malaysian offices. He is admitted as Advocate and Solicitor of both the High Court of Malaya and the Supreme Court of Singapore. He has more than 25 years’ experience in the shipping & transport, admiralty, insurance and international trade matters.

Prior to joining the firm, he established his own firm Philip Teoh & Co. He has previously founded and headed the International Trade, Shipping and Insurance Practices of Messrs. David Chong & Co., and had led the Shipping, Insurance and International Trade practices of Lee Ong & Kandiah and Zaid Ibrahim & Co. respectively.

Through his years of practice, he has amassed experiences in:

• handling both contentious and non-contentious areas in the shipping, insurance and international trade matters.

• advising clients with respect to acquisition of insurance, shipping and transport companies and its regulatory requirements.

• advising clients on the various aspects of the insurance, shipping and transport and logistics industries including risk and insurance coverage and liability, application for licences, marine and general insurance and reinsurance claims and recoveries.

• where appropriate, appearing in all levels of Malaysian Courts (up to the Federal Court) and acting as arbitrator and counsel.

He argued and won the first reported decision of the Malaysian Admiralty Court in the case of The Istana VI. His cases have been reported in the law reports, many of which involved novel points of shipping law including:

  1. The Istana VI [2014] 5 MLJ 124
  2. Ing Hua Fu Marine Line Sdn Bhd v Vitachem (M) Sdn Bhd [2013] 9 MLJ 825
  3. AXA Affin General Insurance Bhd v Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance (M) Bhd – [2009] MLJU 888
  4. Pemilik Kapal ‘Luna Indah’ v Admiral Shipping Sdn Bhd – [2006] 4 MLJ 296
  5. Malaysia National Insurance Bhd & Anor v Suruhanjaya Syarikat Malaysia & Anor – [2004] 4 MLJ 472

He has handled cases in several of the notable shipping incidents in the region:

  1. Collision between the Nagasaki Spirit and Ocean Blessing
  2. Collision between the Orakpin Global and Evoikos
  3. Collision between the Maju Song and Jambo 90
  4. Sinking of the An Tai
  5. Explosion and sinking of the Ing Hua Fu No. 9

Philip other achievements throughout his practice years and associated credentials are better represented in the following:

Publications:

  1. Malaysian Encyclopaedia of Forms and Precedents – Shipping, Insurance Claims, Wills and Wills Trusts.
  2. Halsbury’s Laws of Malaysia –Shipping, Carriers (Land, Air and Sea), Marine Pollution, Bailment, Liens and Limitation of Liability, Sale of Goods, Conflict of Laws,
  3. Annotated Statutes on Merchant Shipping Laws of Malaysia- Merchant Shipping Ordinance, Merchant Shipping Oil Pollution Act, Collision Regulations and Sale of Goods Act.

Presented Papers and Conducted Seminars At:

  1. Legal Education Extension Programme at the Faculty of Law, University of Malaya
  2. ASEAN Shipper’s Council
  3. Maritime Institute of Malaysia (MIMA)
  4. Malaysian Insurance Institute (MII)
  5. International Chamber of Commerce, Malaysian Chapter
  6. PORAM Malaysia
  7. Maritime Enforcement Coordinating Centre Residential Programme for Maritime Agencies
  8. IOPC Fund and Malaysian Maritime Institute Seminar on Oil Pollution
  9. Malaysian Institute of Arbitrators Qualification Course
  10. Malaysian Maritime Institute
  11. AMMSAT Malaysia Maritime Awareness Programme

Specific Areas of Expertise:

  1. General Commercial and Corporate
  2. International Trade and Commerce
  3. Commercial Transactions and Sale of Goods
  4. Ship Finance
  5. Shipping and Admiralty
  6. Transport, Freight Forwarding and Logistics
  7. Insurance and Reinsurance
  8. Maritime and Commercial Arbitration
  9. Environmental Laws

Relevant Engagements:

  1. Accredited Arbitrator, Kuala Lumpur Regional Center for Arbitration
  2. Advisor, Singapore National Shipper’s Council
  3. Arbitrator, Kuala Lumpur Regional Centre for Arbitration
  4. Former Council Member of the Malaysian Institute of Arbitrators (4 consecutive terms)
  5. Legal Advisor for Federation of Malaysian Freight Forwarders (FMFF)
  6. Legal Advisor of Association of Selangor Freight Forwarders and Logistics Association (SFFLA)
  7. Tutor, Malaysian Institute of Arbitrators Qualification / Upgrade Course

Philip Teoh joined Azmi & Associates in January 2015 as a Partner and Head of the Admiralty & Shipping, Insurance and International Trade Practice Group.

Abu Daud Abd Rahim

Abu Daud Abd Rahim

Abu Daud graduated from the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) with LL.B (Hons) in May 2002, and earned his second degree in Bachelor of Laws (Shariah) in April 2003 with First Class; whereupon he immediately joined the firm and commenced his pupillage under the supervision of the then partner, Mohamed Musa Mohamed Haneefa.

Abu Daud was called to the Malaysian Bar and admitted to the roll of Advocates and Solicitors in February 2004, and since his elevation to become a partner in 2011 is heading the Litigation & Arbitration Practice Group. Abu Daud is also an adjudicator under the Construction Industry Payment and Adjudication Act (CIPAA) 2012.

In his practice journey, Abu Daud has equipped himself with advocacy skills valuable to court proceedings as well as out-of-Court settlements. An avid learner, he embraces the Firm’s philosophy of continuous progress by supervising the most numbers of litigation practitioners at the Firm.

Abu Daud’s experience amongst others includes the following:

• Reversing on appeal an Interlocutory Injunction resulting in the promissory note of RM800, 000.00 being honoured to the beneficiary.
• Setting aside a Mareva Injunction.
• Successfully obtaining an acquittal for a subsidiary company to a major oil and gas company in Malaysia for prosecution under the Malaysian Environmental Quality Act.
• Obtaining a Judgment preserving a private caveat beyond the statutory lifespan.
• Defending a client’s staff for a charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder under Section 304 of the Penal Code.
• Acting as arbitration counsel for several construction disputes.
• Obtaining an Interlocutory Injunction for repossession of goods worth RM11 million.
• Recouping a portion of client’s substantial money lost due to forgery.
• Successfully defending a land development authority in a suit by the beneficiaries for alleged mismanagement of land development.
• Successfully recovering huge amount paid to the vendors on account of part payment in a frustrated transaction.
• Sustaining the certification of a Project Consultant of work done by a contractor and obtaining judgment against the contractor for defective work in a construction case.
• Obtaining sealed Court Orders confirming capital reduction of few companies within 1 month of the filing of the Court application.
• Delivering adjudication award in several disputes under the Construction Industry Payment and Adjudication Act (CIPAA) 2012.
• Handling the litigation of a dispute between the beneficiaries of the estate of a prominent statesman leading to an amicable settlement after more than 20 years of acrimony.
• Obtaining the restitutionary remedy of a sale transaction that was found to be void by the Court due to illegality.
• Securing refund of RM8.4 million additional tax assessments and penalty for an automotive distributor following the decision of the Special Commissioners of Income Tax that the taxpayer’s practice of writing down its assets was valid. Abu Daud and his team also sustained the decision on appeal by the Inland Revenue Board to the High Court and the Court of Appeal.
• Securing payment of the full sums due to ex-employees under a voluntary separation scheme resulting from the Court’s decision that the ex-employees are beneficiaries of the assets of the wound-up company administered by the liquidator under an implied trust.

Details

Abu Daud Abd Rahim
Partner

Direct Line:
+603 2118 5005

Mobile Phone:
+ 6019 326 6870

E-mail:
a.daud@azmilaw.com

Practice Areas

Norhisham Abd Bahrin

Norhisham Abd Bahrin

Norhisham brings 23 years of corporate legal experience with him.

He is currently a Corporate and Mergers & Acquisitions Partner at Azmi & Associates, a legal firm with more than 80 lawyers in Kuala Lumpur. His practice focuses on investments, corporate and commercial transactions, private equity & venture capital, corporate governance and compliance.

He has strong business acumen having advised major corporate transactions for listed companies and GLCs across a number of industries including automotive, palm oil plantation and real estate.  

Norhisham also maintains a robust corporate governance practice and is a regular speaker in the market.  He has conducted more than 85 public and in-house programs in the last 5 years for many entities including the Securities Industry Development Corporation (SIDC), Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA), Malaysian Insurance Institute (MII), and the Malaysian Directors Academy (now known as the Institute of Corporate Directors Malaysia). He also coaches board members of public listed companies and GLCs on corporate governance issues. 

 

SKILL SET:

Corporate & Commercial Law, Mergers & Acquisitions, Investments, Restructuring, Due Diligence, Joint Ventures, Cross-Border Investments, Private Equity, Companies Act 2016, Bursa Malaysia Listing Requirements, Compliance, Risk Management, Corporate Governance (MCCG, Board Responsibilities & Accountability, Shareholder Activism, Anti-Corruption, Cybersecurity, Sustainability and ESG), Strategic Planning and Negotiation Skills.

EDUCATION:

• LLB (Hons.) International Islamic University Malaysia (1999)
• MBA in International Business, Royal Docks Business School, University of East London (2012).
• Certificate in Business Sustainability Management (Cambridge, UK) (2024)

 

MEMBERSHIP:

• Advocate & Solicitor at the High Court of Malaya
• Member, Kuala Lumpur Bar
• Member, Institute of Corporate Directors Malaysia (ICDM).

HIGHLIGHTS & ACCOMPLISHMENTS:

Norhisham’s key transactions are as follows:

• Advised a listed conglomerate in the restructuring of its subsidiaries under the automotive divisions valued at RM1.7 billion including successfully obtaining a stamp duty waiver arising thereof.

• Advised a listed company on its joint venture and shareholder agreements involving 5 separate companies.

• Advised an aviation company in relation to the restructuring of its aviation business by de-merging the business into 2 separate units including the assets, leases and licenses thereof.

• Advised an aviation company in relation to the sale of a 30% stake to a private equity powerhouse for USD202 million.

• Advised a listed company on its proposed restructuring and de-merger exercise involving the upstream poultry cultivation and processing businesses.

• Advised a listed company in the internal restructuring of its heavy equipment companies in Malaysia, Singapore, Myanmar and Papua New Guinea under a joint venture company incorporated in Malaysia and the disposal of minority shares in the said Malaysian joint venture company to a Japanese conglomerate.

• Advised a listed company on the internal restructuring and disposal of its oil and gas companies and assets in Malaysia, Australia, China and Singapore.

• Advised QSR Brands (M) Holdings Bhd, the region’s largest quick-service restaurant operator for a joint venture arrangement with the Delivery Hero Group and Foodpanda Malaysia to establish a halal-compliant food logistic service provider as well as to complement the existing delivery services of KFC and Pizza Hut restaurants on Foodpanda Malaysia’s platform.

• Advised Malaysian Venture Capital Company Berhad (MAVCAP) for the setting up of and investment in a USD600 million Exempted Limited Partnership Fund based in Cayman Islands.

• Advised a GLC on its proposed land right acquisition for palm oil plantations involving equity and asset acquisitions amounting to RM1 billion.

• Advised an aviation company in relation to the proposed joint venture with the national oil company of Mozambique, Africa.

• Acted as the Malaysian counsel for the IPO of Arena Events Group plc on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) of London Stock Exchange. Attended to the due diligence exercises on the Malaysian subsidiaries and prepared the legal opinions for the purpose of listing in our capacity as the Malaysian counsel. The IPO raised a total of approximately £60 million.

• Advised Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (Diperbadankan) for its investment in a RM300 million private equity fund focused on investing in Shariah-based industries.

• Advised a concessionaire in a concession agreement with the Government of Malaysia relating to the provision of hospital support services valued at RM1.3 billion.

Details

Norhisham Abd Bahrin
Partner

Direct Line:
+603 2118 5016

Mobile Phone:
+6013 338 1868

E-mail:
norhisham@azmilaw.com

Practice Areas

Ahmad Lutfi Abdull Mutalip

Ahmad Lutfi Abdull Mutalip

Ahmad Lutfi graduated in 1995 from International Islamic University Malaysia with a LL.B (Hons) and was subsequently admitted to the Malaysian Bar in 1996. He has also obtained his professional qualification from the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ICSA) and graduated from the Institute in February 1996.

He embarked on his journey as a legal practitioner by joining Hisham Sobri & Kadir from 1996 to year 2000 where he was made partner. Lutfi then became one of the founding partners of Azmi & Associates and now heads a team of 15 lawyers who specialise in financial services and Islamic banking. Azmi & Associates is presently the 8th largest law firm in Malaysia with more than 70 lawyers with offices in Kuala Lumpur, Johor Bahru, Singapore and a joint-venture office in Jakarta, Indonesia.

He has advised various clients in numerous exercises ranging from private debt securities, syndicated and cross-border financing, structured and project financing, trade facilities; both conventional and Islamic, Islamic banking product development, Islamic profit rate swap, corporate debt restructuring, privatization and build-operate-transfer/build-operate-own projects, mergers and acquisitions, foreign direct investment, energy and power related transactions, joint ventures to telecommunication projects and building contracts and Islamic derivatives.

Lutfi has also advised clients in various transactions involving debt and equity structured on Shariah principles and concepts of Murabahah, Mudharabah, Musharakah, Tawarruq, Ijarah, Istisna’, Wakalah, Bay Sarf, Bai Dayn, Kafalah and Rahnu. His capabilities include the areas of Sukuk, syndication and structured finance. He also has significant expertise in Islamic product development, venture capital and private equity funding.

Asialaw Leading Lawyers, a publication of Asia Law & Practice in its 2015, 2013 and 2012 publications respectively has identified Lutfi as one of the leading lawyers in Islamic banking and finance. Islamic Finance news in its publication, Leading Lawyers for 2009, 2010 and 2011 has identified Lutfi as one of the leading lawyers nominated in the category of Islamic Banking and Finance.

Lutfi has been featured in ISLAMICA 500 in 2015 as one of the 500 most influentials to make Islamic Economy.

On 29 September 2016, Azmi & Associates has received the inaugural Best Islamic Finance Law Firm 2016 Award in Jakarta by Global Islamic Finance Awards (GIFA).

Lutfi has presented papers, conducted workshops, trainings, moderated and participated in forums on Islamic finance in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Russia, Kazakhstan, the United Kingdom, Italy, Luxembourg, Nigeria, Austria, Saudi Arabia and had moderated the Malaysia Belgium Conference on Islamic Finance.

Lutfi is also an Independent Non-Executive Director of Malaysian Industrial Development Finance Berhad (MIDF).

Details

Ahmad Lutfi Abdull Mutalip
Partner
Head of Global Financial Services and Islamic Banking

Direct Line:
+603 2118 5008

Mobile Phone:
+6012 238 7532
+6019 232 9977

E-mail:
alam@azmilaw.com

Practice Areas