Opening and Keynote session

Session 1:

Duties and Responsibilities of Sharī`ah Boards from a Legal and Regulatory Perspective

Sharī`ah Boards have a special role in ensuring Institutions offering Islamic financial services (IIFS) adhere to rules and principles of the Sharī`ah. As their function has become increasingly imminent in view of rapid expansion of IIFS and sophistication in their product offerings, this session aims at examining the status of Sharī`ah Boards vis-à-vis the prudential framework for IIFS.

(Question & Answer Session)

Session 2:

Sharī`ah and Legal issues in Islamic structured products

The session will examine and discuss existing and potential legal issues of Islamic structured products including the Sukuk, especially in view of the diverging Sharī`ah opinions and the liquidity crunch in the global financial market. The session aims to highlight whether the existing securities laws framework, including the investor protection mechanism, is sufficient to address these issues effectively.

(Question & Answer Session)

Session 3:

IFSI Insolvency and asset recovery framework - Gaps and Challenges

The session aims to discuss whether the IFSI insolvency and asset recovery framework is sufficiently robust in keeping abreast with product innovations of the industry. The session will also highlight the areas of development that must be addressed to strengthen the framework.

(Question & Answer Session)

Session 4:

Interlink/interface between civil law systems and Sharī`ah rules and principles and effective dispute resolution mechanism.

The session will discuss the inter-link between civil law systems and Sharī`ah rules and principles. It will also discuss whether IFSI dispute resolution framework is sufficiently robust to settle dispute effectively, especially for cases involving multi-national stakeholders and cross border transactions. The session aim to highlight elements of the framework, including Sharī`ah requirements that must be met for an effective dispute resolution mechanism.

(Question & Answer Session)

Session 5:

Challenges in managing legal risks in IFSI: Case studies

The focus of this session is for prominent legal firms to present their experiences through case studies, on how they identify, overcome and manage legal risks of Islamic financial transactions.

(Question & Answer Session)