Steve Shim Lip Kiong

Shim's career in the legal service began on 10 August 1970 when he became a cadet legal officer. By 1977, he was made a registrar at the High Court of Borneo. In between, Shim had also served as a crown counsel and magistrate.[1] His career then progressed further when he was appointed as a sessions courts judge in 1989.[2]

On 1 March 1992, Shim was appointed as a judicial commissioner at the High Court in Sibu.[1] He served in that capacity for just five months before being promoted as judge of the same High Court in August 1992. As a High Court judge, Shim took postings in Kuching and later Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of Malaysia, beginning 1996.[2]

Having served as a High Court judge for almost eight years, Shim was chosen to take over duties as acting Chief Judge of the High Court of Sabah and Sarawak in July 2000. He officially ascended to the fourth highest judicial office in Malaysia, after the Chief Justice of Malaysia, President of the Court of Appeal of Malaysia and Chief Judge of Malaya, in September 2000.[2]

Shim retired from the legal service on 19 July 2006.[3]

In 2011, Shim was selected to chair the newly-created National Wage Consultative Council placed under the Ministry of Human Resources of Malaysia.[4]

Following the loss of Mohammad Najib Abdul Razak and his Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition in the 14th Malayoian general election, Shim was selected to chair a special tribunal formed in 17 October 2018 to probe and seek the removal of six members of the Election Commission of Malaysia (SPR) after thirteen charges were framed against the latter.[5][6][7][8][9] In May 2019, Shim deemed the matter academic and announced that the tribunal has decided to no longer proceed its probe after the personnel in question all opted for early resignation. This decision earned him a rebuke from the Attorney General of Malaysia, Tommy Thomas.[10]