ABSTRACT
With reference to the legal enforceability of selected Sarawak Iban land customs, this chapter examines the extent to which legal pluralism is accommodated within Sarawak laws and more broadly, the Malaysian constitution. The analysis is based upon relevant primary and secondary legal and other sources and on the scope of enforceable Iban land customs as determined by the Malaysian apex court in Director of Forests, Sarawak v. TR Sandah AK Tabau. The chapter apprises future evaluation on the legal weight of customary normative systems where these systems have been afforded a place within the sanctioned legal system. It analyses Iban customs relating to land by focusing on those that have been subject to legal contestation, the context in which such Iban customs are defined as 'law' by the state, and the definitional disparities and legal conflicts in respect of the legal enforceability of these customs.
