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The abuse of children for sexual purposes has a long-standing history. It evolved due to many factors such as disparity in gender, misled religious beliefs, acceptable customary practices, superstition and economic development and it remains severe globally. The United Nations Children's Fund ("UNICEF") estimated in 2014 that about 120 million girls under the age of 18 have been subjected to forced sexual acts at some point of their lives. Even though this statistic covers all categories of sexual abuse, including exploitative as well as non-exploitative forms, the number is irrefutably alarming and UNICEF acknowledges that sexual violence, including sexual exploitation, is one of the most disconcerting of violations against the rights of children. Owing to the severity of the matter, protecting the children against sexual exploitation and abuse has become an international agenda since the late 1800s. It is now universally established under Article 34 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child ("the UNCRC") that children have the rights to be protected against any form of sexual exploitation and sexual abuse. This article seeks to canvass the historical development of the laws relating to child sexual exploitation prior to the passing of UNCRC in 1989. Contribution/ Originality: This study contributes to the existing literature concerning child sexual exploitation. It has canvassed the historical development of the laws prior to the passing of UNCRC in 1989 emphasising on the factual circumstances that have driven such development.

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Given the exposure to today's easy-to-know information, children should seemingly become mature faster than their predecessors, and therefore better informed even at a tender age. However, it remains to be seen whether fixingthe age of 18 forminors or children to enter into contracts is relevant. This paper focuses on contract law; it examines the age of majority and the legal implications of contracts entered into by minors. To a certain extent, this paper examines the issue by making comparisons between Malaysian and English law. The findings derived imply that the determination of the age of majority needs to be compatible with the capacity of minors and current realities. This determination must be premised on a fair balance between protecting minors' welfare and the interest of those who have attained the age of majority.

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