Dr. Ahmad Hidayat was called to the Bar of the High Court of Malaya in 2001. He was a former magistrate and Sessions Court judge (2002 to 2012) and later established his own law firm known as Messrs Ahmad Nor & Associates ( 2012 to 2024). He obtained his Bachelor of Laws Degree (LL.B) from the International Islamic University of Malaysia (IIUM), Master of Business Administration (Marketing) from Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) and Ph.D in Islamic Finance from INCEIF University.
In his decade of judicial service, he served in vast areas of cases/courts among others from civil, criminal, bankruptcy, maritime, land reference, tax, Intellectual Property (IP) court, Juvenile court, Coroner's court, commercial / Muamalat court etc in the states of Penang, Perak and Sarawak. In term of legal practice, his focused is on Islamic finance and banking, criminal defence, immigration and tax advisory. Meanwhile, he is also a Commissioner for Oaths appointed by the Chief Justice of Malaysia since 2022. Apart from the legal practice, he was also active in giving lecture to university, talks, writing and TV talk shows appearance in regards to legal advocacy and current law issues. Among the highlights are as follows:
Notable Cases:
- Land Acquisition:
- The star: Court rejects Buah Pala residents' bid to stay on --- 17/07/2009---Click Here
- Mstar: Pertikaian tanah: Mahkamah tolak permohonan Kg Buah Pala ---24/06/2009---Click Here
2. Defamation:
- TERGEMPAR: Sidang Media Neelofa vs Anzalna Nasir, Dengar Ini Penjelasan dari Mulut Neelofa --- 31/07/2012---Click Here
- The Borneo Post: Neelofa: See you in court, Anzalna ---15/06/2012---Click Here
- Mstar: neelofa-beri-anzalna-seminggu-jawab-tuduhan-fitnah --- 12/06/2012---Click Here
3. Tax: Bahtera Marine Sdn Bhd vs Lembaga Hasil Dalam Negeri [Ref No: PKCP(R) 85/2012(3) ] Unreported.
Notable Activities:
Publication
Md Nor, A.H., Muneeza, A. and Mohsin, M. (2024). “What is the insolvency regime applied under Shariah for Islamic banks?”. International Journal of Law and Management
Conferences
- Md Nor, Ahmad Hidayat and Muneeza, Aishath. (2025). Analyzing Insolvency Risks in Islamic Banks: Lessons from Global Case Studies of Failed Financial Institutions. In: 8th World Islamic Economics and Finance Conference (WIEFC 2025), 25-26 January 2025, Minhaj University Lahore, Pakistan.
- Md Nor, Ahmad Hidayat. (2020). Insolvency Regime for Islamic Banks in Malaysia. In: INCEIF Doctoral Colloquium, 22 May 2020, INCEIF University, Kuala Lumpur.
- Md Nor, Ahmad Hidayat (2011). Mediation process at Penang High Court from the Perspective of the Deputy Registrar. In: Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC)’s Conference on Applied Mediation (Northern Zone), 13-15 May 2011, Traders Hotel by Shangri-La, Georgetown.
- Md Nor, Ahmad Hidayat (2010). Proses perundangan pengurusan harta berwasiat dan tidak berwasiat: Isu, realiti dan cabaran. In: Seminar Pengurusan Wasiat & Harta Pusaka, Universiti Utara Malaysia, 27-29 May 2010, Bella Vista Hotel, Langkawi.
Teaching & Mentoring
2023 – 2024: Appointed by Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (USIM) to teach the students ( 5th Year) of the Syariah and Law Faculty (FSU) for subject known as ‘Criminal Trial Advocacy’ (LAD4203) and also to share experiences, providing advice and mentoring among lecturers.
Award
2007: Excellent Service Award (Anugerah Perkhidmatan Cemerlang / APC) by former Chief Justice Tun Abdul Hamid at Putrajaya International Convention Centre (PICC), organized by the Office of Chief Registrar of Federal Court.
In January 2025, Messrs. Ahmad Nor & Associates has merged with Messrs. Abdul, Low & Partners to create a full-service law firm by expanding an additional branch in Kuala Lumpur. Equipped with more than two decades of experience in judicial service and legal practice, Dr. Ahmad has been tasked by the firm to head and lead the Pusat Bandar Melawati branch in Kuala Lumpur.