ABSTRACT
Prior to the establishment of courts during the period of the British Residency, Brunei fitted the mould of a society which had a long tradition of resolving disputes informally and consensually. The interventions of headmen, local ulama (religious scholars) in the community, and imam (prayer leaders at local mosques) had been well established as the means for settling differences and disputes at the local level. More serious disputes would come to either the district chiefs or the Sultan personally, with both fulfilling roles as mediator/ arbitrator for those disputes involving valued property, or people of standing. For Brunei the historical antecedents provide strong endorsement for both mediation and arbitration. Being long-standing practices, they were embedded in the culture and continued to influence attitudes and sustain preferred ways of behaving, long after the establishment of the English common law courts.
