By : June Ramli, NST
KUALA LUMPUR: The standard of lawyers, most of whom graduated from local universities, range from the good to the grotesque, says a senior judge.
“Many of them are bad because of the low-quality training they received at local institutions of higher learning,” Court of Appeal judge Datuk Gopal Sri Ram told the New Straits Times after the launch of a book, Malaysian Employment Laws, by M.N. D’Cruz here on Thursday.
Sri Ram, who has been in the legal profession for 40 years, said some lawyers did not have a clue how to introduce their opponents or to cite cases in court.
There was also a large number who did not know how to prepare written briefs, he added.
“The Bar Council should address this problem instead of being distracted by other matters. ”
He said the professional standard of lawyers, estimated at 13,000, had declined in the last 10 years.
“At Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, for example, I was told that they do not offer company law, which is a core subject if one wants to practise law.”
He said many lawyers were also financially strapped because of the high cost of maintaining their practice.
As a result, many could not afford to even buy law journals, which cost between several hundreds and thousands of ringgit per volume.
“Law books to a lawyer are what the scalpel is to a surgeon and making them expensive does not help the profession,” he said.
“Many are broke because private practice takes a lot of money; they have to pay their staff and their provident fund and taxes, and when all that is done, nothing much is left.”
He said the journal for contract law, for instance, cost RM2,000 and this was because it was printed and published in England.
“Many law journals come from Australia and India while Malaysia produces very few law books.
“This is another reason why it makes it expensive for lawyers.
“That is why the photocopy machines in their offices are kept busy at all times,” he added.
He commended the government’s decision to replace the Certificate in Legal Practice examination with the Common Bar Examination.
Sri Ram added: “This is a good idea and we should give it our support.”
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Ability of judges ‘also down the drain’
By : Marc Lourdes and Evangeline Majawat, NST
Lawyers at a gathering at the Palace of Justice. It is more expensive for lawyers to practise now because of the increased cost of office rentals and reference journals.
KUALA LUMPUR: The decline in the calibre of judges is more glaring than the drop in quality of lawyers, according to a veteran criminal lawyer.
He said judge Datuk Gopal Sri Ram’s lament on the “low quality” of locally-trained law-yers and his comment that they ranged from the “good to the grotesque” also applied to judges.
“It works both ways. The quality of judges has gone down the drain since the 1980s,” he added.
The lawyer, who declined to be named, agreed with Sri Ram’s statement that many legal practitioners were a bunch of “broke professionals”.
“It is more expensive to practise now because of the increased cost of office rentals and good staff.
“Since there are so many lawyers around, there is also intense competition in terms of fees; so much of undercutting takes place.”
He said this was the main reason why lawyers struggled to afford “luxuries” like law journals.
While local journals and law reports were relatively affordable, foreign publications like the Commonwealth Report, the All India Report or the All England Report could cost upwards of RM50,000, he said.
Asked if he agreed with Sri Ram’s assessment that poor training was the reason for lawyers faring so badly in court, he replied that it was the lack of passion and the lust for money over self development that were the causes.
“We need people like Sri Ram to come down, talk to the students and motivate them,” he added.
Another veteran lawyer said a person might not be broke just because he could not afford law journals.
“This should not be an issue. The journals are expensive and rookie lawyers cannot afford them immediately.
“It doesn’t mean that you’re a bad lawyer if you don’t have the journals.
“The integrity of the lawyers is far more important than the journals.”
He said the Bar Council was doing its part by offering a wide selection of law journals to its members.
He denied that lawyers from local universities were poorly trained.
“We’re trained under the masters. Generally, there isn’t much difference when it comes to being foreign or locally trained.
“I think all lawyers, trained locally or overseas, have the knowledge,” he said.
However, he agreed there was room for improvement.
“Knowledge-wise, I think we’re doing well. But there is inadequate practical training as the education is examination-based.
“The Certificate in Legal Practice should be more practical-based to prepare the students for pupilage,” said the lawyer, who added that the nine-month period in chambers was insufficient.