Success In Law: Yours For The Taking - Brendan Navin Siva

Speech by Brendan Navin Siva at the Ethics and Professional Standards Course Luncheon that took place on 16 June 2011

Make your dreams happen. | Source: flickr.com/cdevers

The last time I gave a talk at the Ethics luncheon was exactly one year ago — I delivered the June 2010 luncheon talk. A transcript of that speech was published in LoyarBurok in June 2010 and in Praxis in the first quarter of 2011. Google the words “Of Sunscreen, Blackberries and Successful Lawyers” and you will find it on the internet.

Most of what I said then is still applicable now. So please try to get it and see whether there is anything useful there for you. Back then, I spoke about 10 specific things that I believed you ought to work on to make yourselves a good lawyer. But nothing I said there should be taken as absolute truths and nothing I say today should be taken as absolute truths – they are just my views and my perspective – it may be useful to you or it may not – that is entirely up to you.

Today I want to speak more generally about success and successful lawyers.

Throughout my very short career as a lawyer, I have witnessed and observed many lawyers come and go. Some excel, some don’t.

Some excel from the very beginning while others take a bit of time to get on their feet. I have seen some pupils come in on the first day as accomplished individuals with the right attitude and I have seen some pupils take 9 months to gradually learn how to be an accomplished lawyer.

I have also seen individuals who spend 1 or 2 years floundering and wandering aimlessly until one day a spark lights up in them and they suddenly transform into accomplished lawyers.

Sadly, I have also seen many who never actually make it at all. Many leave the profession too early before they hit their stride or before they have had the opportunity to become good lawyers.

Why do some people start off as accomplished lawyers and others take time? Why is it that some people suddenly blossom into good lawyers? There is no clear answer to these questions. And there isn’t one single piece of advice I can give you today that will trigger an inner awakening in you and transform you into an accomplished and successful lawyer.

It is all about you.

Success in law is yours for the taking. But YOU must want to succeed. And you must first realize that success doesn’t come to the guy by the side of the road waiting for something to happen. It comes to the guy who is out there looking for it. Success does not come knocking on your door and waits for you to answer. It comes to the guy who is first in line at the door.

The trigger point is when you realize and accept that what YOU become in life and how successful YOU become is mainly dependent on what YOU do and how much work and time YOU are prepared to put into achieving success. Are YOU willing to do what the average person is not willing to do? Are YOU willing to put in the excruciatingly long hours to gain the knowledge and experience required to succeed in law? Are YOU willing to put in the extra hours to learn more about a particular area of law than any other lawyer? Are YOU willing to put in the time to learn how to market yourself professionally? Are YOU willing to put in the extra effort to speak eloquently and write well?

When you are ready to say yes to those questions, then I believe you are on the right track.

These are not just questions for a young lawyer or pupil. I still ask myself these questions. Every lawyer must keep asking himself or herself these questions. The most successful lawyers in this country and in the world are not relaxing at home on the weekends – they are working hard. I know the top 5 litigators and the top 5 corporate lawyers in Malaysia – they have worked very hard to get where they are today and they continue to work hard every day.

Some of you have already asked yourselves this question. That is why you are already on the right track. What is the right track?

From my perspective, when I see a pupil spend hours on a piece of research and is able to come back to me with an answer and is able to defend that answer and argue with me on the merits of that answer, he or she is on the right track.

When a lawyer can speak to me or to a judicial officer or to a client in a manner and in a tone that exudes confidence and assures me that he or she knows the law and can persuade me that her solution or understanding of the law is the correct one, he or she is on the right track.

When a young lawyer is able to follow me for meetings with clients and is able thereafter to deal with the client and answer the client’s queries, he or she is on the right track.

When a lawyer can come up to me and tell me she would like to attend this conference or that seminar or that she would like the firm to buy this book or that book because it will enhance her knowledge in a particular area of law and this would benefit the law firm, that person is on the right track.

In short, you are on the right track if you conduct yourself as a LAWYER and not as an employee. What do I mean by this?

In your first few years, most of you will probably be an employee – a legal assistant – someone who assists the partner or senior lawyer to generate fees for the law firm. But eventually you will have to be the FEE EARNER – the person who the client comes to and gives a brief to and is prepared to pay fees to do his brief. Accept this fact as reality – a successful lawyer is a FEE EARNER – someone that clients WANT to engage to do their work – not because of the name of the law firm or the name of some other person in your law firm. They want to engage YOU.

You must work out from Day One what needs to be done to become a FEE EARNER – again, I repeat – someone that clients WANT to engage – What differentiates you from any other lawyer? What level of service can you provide that the person sitting next to you now cannot provide? Focus on this. Focus on being a FEE Earner – a good lawyer that clients want to engage.

Don’t focus on your bonus for this year or why your room is so small or why that other lawyer in your firm is doing less work than you but earning more than you or why you have to do more mentions than that other lawyer.

Don’t complain about how much the firm is using you, focus on how much you can use the firm as a platform for you to become a fee earner.

A person on the right track will equip themselves with the knowledge and the ability to be a strong FEE Earner. A strong Fee Earner can go out on his own and start his own legal practice or join another law firm and be a successful lawyer. He is not beholden or dependent on the law firm. The law firm is dependent on him or her. The law firm will want to make you a partner.

When you are on the right track, I assure you that there will be many many different options and opportunities that will come your way, all of which promise, and carry the potential for, success. But first you must ask yourself at this point in time – as you are just about to embark on your career – Are YOU prepared to INVEST in yourself?

Artikel : Samada peruntukan A.6 k.7(2A) K.M.T 1980 terbatal menurut S.23(1) & 45 Akta-Akta Tafsiran 1948 &1967.

Dear Members,

An Article entitled:-

"Samada peruntukan A.6 k.7(2A) K.M.T 1980 terbatal menurut S.23(1) & 45 Akta-Akta Tafsiran 1948 & 1967 "

is available for viewing and download HERE.

The article is courtesy of En. Norazali Nordin our Chairman for Professional Development.

Thank you.

Perak Bar Blogmaster

PERAK-PENANG BAR GAMES "Est. 1964" FINAL REPORT

Dear Members,

As many of you might have already heard, Perak Bar won the annual games between the 2 bars this year. It was a hard fought victory in which the members of the Perak Bar acquitted themselves well...

The overall tie ended 7-4 in Perak Bars favour with the Perak Bar winning Football, Tennis, Basketball, Snooker, Hockey and Darts whilst the Penang Bar won Badminton, Netball, Volleyball and Bowling. Futsal and cricket were tied.

The Dinner was held at the Neptune Room at the Ipoh Swimming club where the attendees had a blast drinking and eating. Laughter/ was heard throughout the room where foes on the pitch became friends over food and drinks. Gifts were exchanged and the celebratory cake went down well with the members of both Perak and Penang bars.

Both the respective state bar chairmen called for the continuation of the games and its tradition and to keep on going with the annual games which had become the envy of many other state bars.

The Perak Bar wishes to extend their greatest appreciation to all those members who have participated and sponsored in one way or another.

This year it is the 46th year of the games. We will be there for the 47th in Penang. Will you be there to join us? Yes you can!

Perak Bar Blogmaster

OF SUNSCREENS, BLACKBERRIES AND SUCCESSFUL LAWYERS

Dear Members, 

The article can be viewed at http://loyarburok.com and is courtesy of Brendan Navin Siva.

 

Of Sunscreen, Blackberries, and Successful Lawyers

24 July, 2010

By Brendan Navin Siva

Brendan Navin Siva’s speech at the Ethics and Professional Standards Course Lunch that took place on 15 July 2010.


Ladies & gentlemen,

15 minutes is hardly enough time to speak on any topic let alone to give a talk to pupils on how to be an excellent, ethical and successful lawyer and the challenges ahead in the profession.

By giving this talk, I am by no means proclaiming myself to be an excellent or successful lawyer. And by no means are you to blindly accept everything I say to you today as being correct or similarly applicable to you. “Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it.” These are words from The Sunscreen Song.

Who does not know The Sunscreen Song? It is a song made up of someone’s rambling advice about random things in life.

Wear sunscreen.

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long-term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience. I will dispense this advice now.

I will dispense this advice now.

Look at yourself and work out what YOU want to do in life. Have a plan. Do not meander through life not knowing what you want. Wanting to be rich or wanting to make money is not a plan. It is the end result of a good plan but it is not itself a plan.

Work hard. Many people would have told you the same thing the last 9 months but it is true. There is just so much that you need to learn in the next 3 years – how to draft, how to speak, how to handle clients, how to handle judges, how to think, how to solve problems and, over and above all this, to acquire the knowledge of law in many areas of law. Put your head down for the first 3 years and set yourself a good foundation for your future whether or not you continue to be a lawyer thereafter.

Present yourself well. Dress sharp. Invest in good clothes. Always be well groomed. What you think looks cool or suave to your friends may not be the right image that the real world expects of a lawyer.

Deal with stress. Do not try to run away from it. Stress is a part of the life of any successful professional – whether you are a lawyer, doctor, engineer or accountant. Understand that stress is relative – whatever you find stressful today, I can assure you will not be stressful for you in 3 years time. And what is stressful for you in 3 years time will not cause you much stress when you are a senior lawyer of 10 years or more. But there will always be stress at all levels. It is part of the job. Find your own way to deal with stress. But never use stress as an excuse to give up pursuing something. Never use stress as an excuse for failing to do something. And never blame stress for producing sub-standard work.

Learn how to deal with people. You will be dealing with people a lot in your career. There are many different types of people. Some are nice. Some are not so nice. More often than not, you will not deal with nice people. The people you deal with will be demanding, irritating, annoying, deceitful and demanding in many different ways and forms. The key to success is learning how to deal with them all.

Never ever be beholden to any client. Never put yourself in a situation to be totally dependent on any client financially. Always be in a position where, if your client asks you to do something that you know is not lawful or ethical, you can stand up and politely excuse yourself and walk out of the room without compromising your integrity and morality.

Speak and write English well. There is no way out of this one. English is the language of commerce and it is the language of the common law. Our courts will not abandon English any time soon. Our clients – local and international – will judge you as a lawyer on how well you speak and how well you draft – in English.
Take steps to improve your English, regardless of whether you think your English is good or bad. In particular, you must acquire the ability to say or write something in a concise and comprehensive manner. To do this, read English newspapers online (most of them are still free), read magazines (Newsweek, Economist, The Far Eastern Economic Review), watch CNN or BBC at least an hour a day. See and learn how they package and present large amounts of content into a concise and compelling 5 minute newsreel or one page article.
Embrace technology. Blackberries are not evil. They are not your enemy. They save time. They save a lot of time. When you are waiting in court, when you are waiting for a meeting to start, when you are stuck in a traffic jam, when you are waiting for friends for dinner, when you are watching TV and the advertisements come on – emails can be checked and responded to – this is time that you do not otherwise have to spend in the office answering emails. Embrace Change. A lawyer is nowadays only one part of a transaction. If the clients are all on blackberries, you do not have the luxury of saying “It is 6pm. I am out of the office and I cannot answer your queries.”

Set aside 1 week in the first half of the year and one week in the second half of the year for a holiday. Book these dates well in advance so your boss cannot say he did not know about it. Better yet, book tickets to fly somewhere so your boss cannot expect you to reschedule your plans (without feeling guilty). Downtime is very important. The more senior you get, the more difficult it will be to take scheduled time off.
Travel. See the world. See what is out there. It gives you perspective and it opens your eyes to things you never would normally think about. It matures you.

Find a network of friends who are similar as you in thinking, in ambition and in character. There is nothing unhealthy about a group of lawyers socialising together on the weekend or after work. There is nothing wrong with a group of lawyers talking about law all the time. You will grow together and you will become better lawyers together.

Lastly, do not blindly accept everything you are told by someone more senior and supposedly better than you. We are not better than you. We have just been here a little bit longer than you. Challenge the logic of what we say. If it does not make sense to you, don?t accept it.

Thank you.

TRANSITIONING FROM ACADEMIA TO PRACTICE by Ms. Julia Tang

Transitioning from Academia to Practice:

We often forget that the study of law is vastly different from the practice of law. What we learnt in law school is but only a fraction of what law is in reality. It is no surprise then that the whole body of law cannot be learnt in a lifetime.

Being a fresh young lawyer I can honestly say that my knowledge of the practical workings of law is limited. However, my academic knowledge of law is probably superior to the former. I often chastise myself for not knowing certain legal aspects but quickly remind myself that this is something new to be learnt while practicing as a lawyer. More often than not, these ‘legal’ aspects are more procedural than anything else. These were not taught in law school and can only be learnt during our chambering days and practice.

Another handicap if I may say so that prevails among Malaysians is the unwillingness to ask questions or rather fear of being ridiculed and embarrassed. Similarly chambees and young lawyers may face this situation in their working lives. A simple example is the use of abbreviations and acronyms in our line of work. Terms like MOB, OIT, LA, etc. abound in practice.  However, not every young chambee may realise the meaning of these terms. Thus the misuse of these terms is rampant. A senior lawyer once related to me the story of how a chambee prayed for “OIT”, obviously not realizing that the prayer was for “Order in Terms”. This mistake was made because his or her Master had scribbled the words “OIT” without further explanation of what this meant. Similarly this chambee neglected to ask what it meant, or was probably embarrassed to ask the simple question:  what the acronym meant. So he or she promptly went to Court and proceeded to “OIT”.

The simple gist of that illustration is this: we need to stop fearing and learn to ask more questions. Of course this is not an invitation to be mollycoddled because some questions can be readily answered by self-research on legislation, journals, internet etc. Maybe once in awhile, just once in awhile, senior lawyers may reflect on their own journey to where they are now and the very fact that they too started off somewhere. Everyone has a starting point but along the way we tend to forget this simple truth. Chambees and young lawyers are just at the beginning of their careers. Mistakes are bound to happen. Of course I am not asking for a simple slap on the wrist when that happens. However, it would be encouraging to know that senior lawyers do empathize with their positions and are ready to lend their advice instead of a gruff retort when questions are asked. The relationship between junior-senior lawyers needs to be strengthened by the willingness of both sides to ask and answer. Hierarchical barriers need to be broken down for a stronger cohesion between all members of the Bar. If anything, at least we can all minimise the risk of “OITs” being littered in our courtrooms. 

by JULIA TANG

MALAYSIAN LAW CONFERENCE

Dear Members,

The Malaysian Law Conference is upon us once again from the 29th - 31st July 2010. You may obtain the necessary details of the same from the Malaysian Bar Website.

The Perak Bar Committee has decided to sponsor 2 Young Lawyers (Below 7 years in Practice and/or below 40 Years Old)to the above mentioned conference.

Kindly submit your name, contact details, firm name as well as contributions to the Perak Bar/Malaysian Bar and also your reason for being selected to the Perak Bar
Secretariat by the 30th April 2010.

Kindly note that the Perak Bar reserves the right to pick and choose the candidate and that the decision is final and not appealable.

Thank you.

Perak Bar Blogmaster

Assignment of Counsel for Capital Cases

Dear Members,

If you are interested in being an assigned counsel for Capital Cases kindly download the form and complete the form and mail it back to the Bar Council.

The form can be downloaded HERE.

Thank you.

Perak Bar Blogmaster

WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS

Last year, when the Interstate Bar Golf Tournament was held in Orna Golf & Country Club Malacca, the Perak Bar golfers surprised everyone by clinching the runner up medal, trailing KL Bar by only a single. Our Mr. Andrew Yee was the overall individual champion and together with Mr. Ahmad Kamal Ayob, Perak Bar had 2 players amongst the top 5 players of the tournament. A job well done!



This year, when the Perak Bar Golf Captain, Mr. Dalgit Singh confirmed our participation, the spirit was different. Everyone was eager to prove that Malacca’s achievement was not a fluke and this year Perak Bar was represented by the following golfers:-

1. Tuan Haji Mat Diah Endut (Perak Bar Chairman)
2. Mr Dalgit Singh (Golf Captain)
3. Mr. Andrew Yee
4. Mr. K. Subramaniam
5. Dr. James Loh
6. Mr Ahmad Kamal Ayob
7. Mr Akhiruddin Mohamad Taib
8. Mr Muhammad Fuaad Saibun
9. Mr Zaizuraimy Abd Rahim.



Our team travelled approximately 480km to Pekan Pahang and the tournament was held in Pantai Lagenda Golf & Country Club. This course is not children playground. Located by the open South China Sea, the are a lot of elements awaiting all the golfers especially its unpredictable and nasty wind condition, not to mention the blistering heat thanks to the current weather. “This course will definitely silent the big talkers” said our Captain before the tee-off. 80 golfers from various State Bars took part this time and the mode of play was System 36 Stableford.



The Perak Bar Golf team performed tremendously and finally, we were declared as the outright team champion of this year tournament amidst some confusion over the scores with Selangor Bar in the process. KL Bar was the 2nd runner up. Mr Andrew Yee put the icing on the cake on the victorious day when he secured the Overall Best Individual Player for two consecutive years! For the team event, our winning points were contributed by Mr. Andrew Yee, Mr. Dalgit Singh, Dr. James Loh, Mr. Akhiruddin Mohammad Taib. Mr K Subramaniam and our Chairman, Tuan Hj Mad Diah Endut equally scored 31 points.



On the final note, I wish to congratulate all the golfers involved for their efforts and determination in writing this history with an outstanding performance despite the short notice of this event. My special thanks must go to the Chairman in representing Perak Bar, the Golf Captain, Mr Dalgit Singh for sponsoring out team T-shirts and Mr Andrew Yee for his excellent performance which was way above others. I believe that this is a good start for our sporting events and I personally urge and encourage other members of the Perak Bar especially the juniors to participate more in any events, especially sports, organized by Perak Bar.

Zaizuraimy Abd Rahim
Sports Committee
Perak Bar.

REPORT OF THE COURTS SUB-COMMITTEE

I am proud to say that when the invitations were sent to members of the Perak Bar, the members of the Courts Sub-Committee answered the call to assist the Perak Bar.

It has been a hard year with the constant changes that we as practitioners have had to face what with the numerous changes to the court systems.

We have sent out circulars to the members of the Perak Bar to obtain feedback as to what problems and issues they were facing in dealing with the courts. The feedback received was good and the issues that were raised were then followed up with. The Sub Committee then came up with possible solutions as to how to deal with these issues.

Armed with these complaints and possible solutions, meetings were held with Datuk Zainal and Puan Rasidah and their respective teams. I would like to report that these meeting were very well attended and our suggestions were well received especially by Puan Rasidah and her team. Most of the issues that were raised were dealt with speedily.

The Courts themselves have made efforts to organize meetings with the other stakeholders such as the AG’s Chambers and the Police and invited us to attend and inform them of our problems. During those meetings the Sub-Committee members who were present were able to be frank about what the members’ problems were. These problems were then conveyed to the respective heads of the stakeholders and these problems have been dealt with.

However, on a more cautionary note, these problems have been dealt with and the results have been encouraging but as with all issues not all members of the said stakeholders have been cooperating fast enough. As such it will take time to implement these solutions.

I hope that the incoming members of the Sub-committee will continue where this committee has had to stop.

We, as members of the Perak Bar, must accept that the fast Track system is here to stay. On paper it will improve efficiency in dealing with matters that have been filed in court. However, I must go on record to state that the system can only be effective if the parties to the system cooperate and work together to ensure that the system works. If one component does not see the issues that the other component requires and assists the said component, then the system will fail. As such I humbly seek the cooperation of the members of the Perak Bar to work with the system. If there are any failings or issues, please inform the Perak Bar Committee in writing and the problems that you face will be dealt with by bringing it to the attention of the other stakeholders or components of the system. In short, cooperation and communication are key in ensuring that the system will work for the benefit of all concerned.

I wish to make a plea to the members of the Perak Bar to please contribute your time and effort by either joining the Sub Committee or by writing to the Sub-committee through the Perak Bar Committee, in order that we, as members, can make a difference in our lives.

I wish to thank the members of the sub-committee for all their time and hard work that they have contributed to ensuring that they have made a difference in the practice of law in the state of Perak.

Thank you.

Shan Theivanthiran

Perak Bar Courts Sub Committee.

REPORT OF THE LEGAL AID SUB-COMMITTEE

The Management Panel - (Legal Aid And Human Rights

Sub-Committee)

The management panel for the year 2009/2010 comprises of the following members:-

Chairman : Mr. Domnic Selvam Gnanapragasam

Head of Orang Asli Affairs BCHRC : Mr. Augustine Anthony

Advisor/Deputy Chair : Ms. Lee Pooi Mun

Executive Legal Officer : Mr. M. Gokoolaram Naidu

Committee Members : Dato’ Hjh. Shamsuriah Bt. Sulaiman

Mr. T. Shan

Mr. M. Vengetraman

Mr. M. Thangaveloo

Mr. Joseph Sebestian

Mr. Nahtan Krishnan

Mr. Kenny Lai Choe Ken

Miss Thiru Mangai

Mr. Charan Singh

Ms. Yokinee AT Selvam

Mr. Dexter Mah Kok Leong

Mr. N. P. Ramachandran

Mr. Navaneetha Krishnan

Human Rights Activities

Orang Asli Project

We have been actively involved in this project for the past 5 years. Whenever we are called for assistance by the orang asli villagers, we listen to their grouses and thereupon offer basic advise including legal advice (if necessary) in simple easy to understand manner. Instead of doing everything for them, we will usually guide them into taking a series of action that empower them to face the challenges that confront them. At the same time we will periodically monitor and check on their progress.

A meeting with was held on 07.01.09 at Pejabat Daerah dan Tanah, Batang Padang, Tapah to look into the complaints made by the orang asli villagers of Pos Bersih over heavy erosion caused by sand mining activities which have affected the livelihood of the villagers. The meeting was chaired by the District Officer Dato Zamiri.

Later on the same day another meeting was held at the Kuala Lumpur Central Market to discuss a state level gathering of Malaysia’s Aboriginal Community sponsored by Perak State Government to provide greater awareness to the public of their plight.

On 19.02.09 a meeting was held at Pejabat Daerah dan Tanah, Slim River to discuss land trespass and illegal logging activities at Ulu Slim in Slim River. The meeting was chaired by the District Officer of Slim River.

A talk was held in Kampong Sungei Genting in Chendriang, Tapah on 17.05.09 to empower the orang asli villagers on their rights, land grab, compensation and recognition of ancestral land.

A similar talk was held at Kampong Bilek in Tapah on 07.06.09 as the villagers there were faced with land encroachment and sought means to protect their land.

On 22.07.09 a law awareness program was held at Kampung Batu 14 in Tapah to empower the orang asli villagers and to guide them into taking a series of action to face the challenges that confront them.

A similar program was held on 08.08.09 in Kampong Sungei Tiang and Kampong Bahong Baru at the Pahang-Kelantan border.

On 09.08.09 we partook in World Aboriginal Day 2009 which was celebrated in Kampung Chang in Bidor. The annual celebration included speeches, cultural performance and exhibition.

A law awareness talk was held at Kampung Pahlawan in Langkap on 17.08.09 to provide greater awareness on land rights among other issues.

Another law awareness program was held on 23.08.09 in Kampung Sungei Terisu at the Kelantan-Pahang border to further empower the villagers to fend for themselves.

A visit was made to Gua Musang on 07.11.09 upon receiving distress calls from the villagers of Kampong Segar over the destruction of their ancestral graves and land clearing issues.

Law Awareness Programs

Perak Legal Aid Centre has for years been at the forefront of promoting law awareness among the people. Since we started this project, we have traveled extensively throughout the state and studied and observed exhaustively the condition of the poor and needy in order to ameliorate and endeavor to better their conditions.

A Law Awareness program was held at SMK Dato’ Haji Taib in Chemor on 20.06.09. The talk was on juvenile delinquencies, gangsterism, vandalism and disciplinary matters.

In conjunction with the National Law Awareness Week 2009, several programes were held at various towns in Perak. Three such programs were held in Dewan Merdeka at Lenggong on 22.10.09, Dewan Bunga Raya at Changkat Jering on 27.10.09 and Dewan Merdeka at Tapah on 25.11.09. All three programs were organised by Jabatan Pembangunan Wanita Negeri Perak.

The halls were packed even before the session began as between 350 to 400 participants turned up. Participants included staffs from various government departments, including school students, doctors and nurses, and members of the public.

As for the orang asli communities, two programs were held in Kampung Batu 15, Jalan Cameron Highland, Tapah on 26.10.09 and the other at Kampung Suak Padi, Bota on 27.10.09. Both these programs were well received by the villagers as the turn out was extremely good. The topic on Polis dan Hak Hak Asas Anda interested them and they seemed very receptive by judging from the queries raised during question and answer sessions.

Chambering students who participated were able to gain an insight into a completely different way of life as well appreciated and experience how people lived at such remote places. It was an enriching experience for them.

On-Going Activities

On 06.07.09 a visit was made to Kem Tahanan Kamunting (KEMTA) to provide legal assistance to the detainees and to assist the Bar Council’s Human-Rights Committee (BCHRC) team in any ongoing efforts being conducted on detainees behalf. During the period under review, 6 visits were made to the Tapah Prison and 4 visits were made to Taiping Prison respectively to assist remand prisoners in their bail applications and or legal representations. Our Centre also jointly works with Biro Bantuan Guaman to provide legal assistance to the needy.

The Chambering Pupils program is structured for a duration of 14 clinic days during which time they are given a run down of the Centre’s various projects and activities and are also urged to join them. They are also given guidance on how to interview clients and take instructions. At the end of their short-call period, pupils begin taking up matters by preparing for mitigations and subsequently conducting hearings. At all times they are guided by volunteer lawyers and other senior pupils who act as their mentors. Nineteen pupils enlisted with us underwent a Dock-Brief Training Program on 17.07.09. The pupils were given guidance on mitigation procedures, bail-application and handling of criminal cases.

Cases Handled

During the period under review there were a total of 503 consultations (inclusive of law awareness programs) with 138 new files being opened. The following is the breakdown of cases handled by the Centre:-

Matters Files Opened Consultaton Rejected Total

Criminal 35 23 39 97

Family 19 21 27 67

Employment 17 14 16 47

Summons/H P 15 23 18 56

Probate matters 12 33 17 62

I.C/Passport 27 36 42 105

Tenancy 13 22 34 69

----- ----- ----- -----

138 172 193 503

=== === === ===

The 193 rejected cases refer to matters where the clients either failed the compulsory Means Tests and\or matters which are not within the ambit of the Legal Aid Centre. There are also 27 active litigation files carried forward from the previous years bringing the total of active litigation files being handled for the current period to 165.

(Sgd)

Domnic Selvam Gnanapragasam

Chairman

Perak Legal Aid Centre and Human Rights Sub-Committee

REPORT OF THE SYARIAH SUB-COMMITTEE

Chairperson : Dato Hjh Shamsuriah Sulaiman

Course Preview

The Syariah Laws Committee (SLC) approached the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) enquiring whether they can organize the following courses in Ipoh:-

Diploma in Syariah Law & Practice

Diploma in Law and Administration of Islamic Judiciary and

Diploma in Islamic Banking and Finance

At the time of enquiry, the above courses were only conducted in Kuala Lumpur.

The first course is a pre requirement for any Muslim Advocate and Solicitor who is interested to practice at the Syariah Courts, whilst the third course is now preferred by Banks of Advocates and Solicitors to be empanelled as their Syariah banking lawyers or to be able to continue in the preparation of their Islamic banking documents.

The IIUM has indicated their interest to conduct the course in Ipoh and are considering same.

Wawacana Ilmu

In conjunction with and to commemorate the 81^st Birthday Celebrations of the

DYMM Paduka Seri Sultan Perak Darul Ridzuan, the above two days programme was organized by IKIM, INTIM with the cooperation and support of the State Government of Perak, of which were also invited to participate.

Several eminent and distinguished guests and speakers presented and discussed papers. Some of the topics were:-

Isu-Isu Semasa Perlembagaan

Beberapa Kes dan Isu Perlembagaan

Pertukaran Agama

Penubuhan Mahkamah Persekutuan Syariah - Satu Keperluan

Undang-Undang dan Perlindungan Keluarga

Penambaikan Terhadap Pelaksanaan Undang-Undang Berkaitan Keluarga dan Wanita

Perbandingan Antara Konvensyen Tentang Penghapusan Segala Bentuk

Diskriminasi Terhadap Wanita ( CEDAW) Dengan Undang-Undang Islam Di Malaysia

Ekonomi dan Cabaran Semasa

Pendekatan Ekonomi Islam : Penyelesaian Kepada Kegawatan Ekonomi Dunia

Budaya Perniagaaan dan Daya Upaya Penjanaan Ekonomi

Other topics

Zakat

A zakat giving ceremony was coorganised by the SLC with the cooperation of Bank Persatuan Berhad whereby zakat of about RM5000.00 were given to the needy and students during the month of Ramadan, 2009 just a few days to the auspicious Hari Raya Aidilfitri.

It sure did brought relief, cheers and smiles to the recipients.

Maal Hijraah Conference

The SLC of the Bar Council together with the SLCs’ of the State Bars is organizing a Conference. The said Conference was initially fixed on 19.12.2009 in Kuala Terengganu. Unfortunately due to several factors especially the weather conditions, it had to be deferred.

A new date is to be fixed and announced later.

I take this opportunity to thank all those and all who have assisted in the above programmes and activities of SLC.

(Sgd)

Dato Hjh Shamsuriah

Chairperson

Syariah Law Sub Committeee

REPORT OF THE SOCIAL SUB-COMMITTEE

Chairman : Mr. Su Keong Siew

This has been a rather quiet year for the social sub-committee.

Initially there were plans to organize at least 3 events over the course of this committee. However only one was successfully held, that is, the Annual Dinner with the others abandoned for want of support and response from the members.

This year the Annual Dinner was held at Impiana Casurina Hotel on 20.11.2009 with Y.A. Dato’ Zainal Adzam bin Abd. Ghani D.P.M.P., D.P.M.K., S.M.J., K.M.N. as our guest of honour. Also among the invited guests who attended our dinner were 3 of the Judicial Commissioners of the High Court Y.A. Tuan Tarmizi bin Abd Rahman, Y.A. Tuan Ridzuan bin Ibrahim and Y.A. Tuan Teoh Say Eng.

With a limited budget, members who attended the dinner were treated to a live band performance by “The Mystery Band” and lucky draws. All in all the dinner was a great success and the sub-committee members are grateful and thankful to all members who have contributed to this success in attending the dinner.

Last but not the least, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those members who have assisted me in organizing the Annual Dinner in particular Miss Janet Wong, Mr. Gavin Tang and Mr. Kenny Lai without whom the Annual Dinner would not have been a success.

(Sgd)

Su Keong Siew

Chairman

Social Sub-Committee

REPORT OF THE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SUB-COMMITTEE

Chairman : Mr. Gavin Tang

The Perak Bar Blog has now been running for more than a year. We were pleasantly surprised when YA Dato Wan Afrah wholeheartedly supported our request for the weekly causelist. Ever since then, we have been receiving the causelist weekly and this has been of great assistance to all members of the Perak Bar. We hope to continue having support from the Bench with regards to the causelist. It has however been rather difficult sourcing for articles from our members. However, I must record my thanks to the regular contributors to the blog, namely Miss Navit Kaur, Mr S.Y. Lee and Miss Julia Tang who took time out of their busy schedules to contribute to the blog. It must be noted that the response of the members of the Perak Bar to the articles written were rather underwhelming and our hopes that the blog would provide a sounding board for our members has not taken off.

REPORT OF THE SPORTS SUB-COMMITTEE

Chairman : Kenny Lai Choe Ken

Members : Purshotamdas Nathermal Thadani (Kiko)

Nicky Chen Kok Wai

Ng Poh Tat

Jagjit Singh

Sakthivel Nagalingam

Nahtan Krishnan

Chong Kok Yew

Gavin Tang Cheng Loong

Su Ching

Janet Wong Siang Ping

Dalgit Singh

Nor Asikin Bt. Abdul Rahman

Stephen Su Keong Siew

This years games were however dampened by the news that the Golf game would be called off due to conflict of schedules and lack of players from the Penang side (of so I was informed unofficially). Our golfers were actually all prepared to go for the games and win the crucial point for us but alas, fate had other ideas.

This was just the precursor to a few more cancellations. Hockey had to be called off as our convenor fell sick on the day before with fever and and a number of hockey players did not turn up for the games from Perak. The same for darts. For once the drinkers were dart players as well. Hopefully, the participation from members for these games would increase.

Anyhow, on to the games. The Perak contigent started off the games with a bang! Perak won the tennis game 3-0. Kiko Das and Teik Lee saw off their Penang counterparts with relative ease to give us the first point (8-2) and this was followed by a hard fought victory from our first pairing Aw Tai Jak and Kenny Lai who beat their counterparts 8-5 giving Perak the first point of the games.

The icing on the cake came with our 3rd pairing of Nahtan and Kiko combining to see off the Penang challenge completely. 1-0 to Perak!

Following this, the Perak team had their Badminton, snooker, futsal and table tennis games played almost all at the same time. Despite a valiant effort from Chong Kok Yew and our Perak contigent, we lost Badminton narrowly 4-3. All square now.

More bad news was to come from snooker where Gavin, Kenny, Kiko and our Chairman Shan Theivanthiran lost 4-2 to the Penang team. The only consolation from this was that our actual players for snooker were not available for this years games and hopefully the point would come back to us next yeat. Penang 2-1.

Table tennis was represented by our very own Mr. Ng Poh Tat, Mr. Tan and Mr. Goh from the courts and James Kong. Having watched them battle it out and seeing the concentration and sweat flow, the Penang boys capitalized on their home advantage and our team’s lack of constant practice as table tennis was only scheduled by request 2 weeks before the actual games. Penang 3-1.

There was however good news for Perak from the futsal courts. Perak beat Penang 4-3 with the goals coming from Nicky Chen, 2 from Dave and the winning goal from Kiko Das. The win here was an important one as the Thinakaran s/o Prabakharan challenge trophy (specially donated by M/S Lalchand Nawawi in honour of their friend and partner of the firm) was up for grabs. A minutes silence was held before the kick off as a mark of respect and remembrance of our fallen comrade. Penang 3-2.

The evening session of games came along and 2 more points were at stake, Netball and football.

Despite valiant efforts by our makeshift team of Netball players we lost the game. All credit must go my convenor Mdm. Su Ching for managing to find the players for the games. I must state here however that the participation from the female members for the games is at best appalling. I hope that the participation from the women members increase in the years to come. Penang 4-2.

Football was held and the Perak held off the younger and fitter Penang players for 2 halves throwing themselves at every ball with every ounce of their energy in the blazing evening sun.

The Penang bar threw everything including the kitchen sink at the Perak Bar goal post but some inspired defending from the defenders Ian Choo, Baldip Singh, Andrew Yee and Chong Kok Yew met every challenge and prevailed.

The first half started with Kenny Lai in goal as the regular keeper Nahtan had injured himself in the futsal game earlier. The second half started with Kiko Das in goal in place of Kenny. Half way through the second half Kiko requested to be put in midfield and was duly replaced again by Kenny in goal. Soon after that, a freekick was awarded to Perak about 30 yards from goal 2 minutes from full time..

Having already scored a freekick for Perak Bar in Futsal, Kiko stepped up to put his 21 years experience playing for Perak Bar to use. With the blow of the whistle and a perfect free kick beating the wall and the tallest player from Penang (their convenor GT) and the outstanding keeper (who had a blinder of a game thus far). GOAL! Perak had scored despite the overwhelming odds and Kiko lifts his arms up in the shape of a “V”.

There was still much to do though for the last 2 minutes the onslaught from Penang continued but the midfield of Perak and the Defence of Perak held on and prevailed! Perak had won the football match and pulled one back for Perak. Penang 4-3.

The last competitive point for the day was the boat race and Perak was represented by Janet Wong, Chong Kok Yew, Andrew Yee, YB Kashvinder Singh and Ranjit Singh. Perak led all the way and won the boat race when Penang was disqualified when the 4th drinker did not wait for the 3rd drinker to set the cup down on the table before picking his glass up. It may have been a technicality but it was still a point for Perak. Perak 4-4.

The dinner was held at the Penang Sports Club. The food was great and the drinks were flowing continuously and the camaraderie was evident on the faces of all who were there. Friendships were made and competitiveness was set aside for the festivities. The term eat, drink and be merry was the theme for the night. And for some it was a really late night!

The next morning we had the last few competitive games to be played of basketball, volleyball, bowling and cricket.

Somehow, Perak managed to beat Penang in basketball with a score of 28-20. Must have been the inspired commandeering of the squad by its convenor Mr. Stephen Su. Perak 5-4.

Perak however were no match for the volleyball prowess of Penang Bar and duly lost the tie 2-0. Penang 5-5.

Cricket was played in the blazing hot sun and being short of players, the Perak team had a few Penang bar members helping out. A true show of the spirit of the games. And the score was also a great reflection of it. A Draw! 6-6.

The final and deciding game was bowling. Perak raced to a 170 pin lead in the 1st 2 frames. With one final frame to go, our Perak team must have thought the game was in the bag. The Penang team though had other ideas and fought back to win the 3rd frame and the overall bowling game by 25 pins. Kudos to Noraisikin and her team for their brave and valiant effort anyhow. Penang wins the challenge trophy narrowly by 7-6.

Overall, the games was held in a great atmosphere and the camaraderie. It has been suggested that the games be toned down and to start the games from Friday night. This would be left to the next convenor. And I hope that the participation from our members increases next year and the Perak-Penang Bar games continues on.

I must put in a word of thanks to all my convenors and all the players and the supporters who took the time to travel to Penang for this installment of the games. Thank you!

On a separate note, I would like to state for the record that the annual Perak-Penang Games have been a long standing tradition and it is getting more and more difficult to get the younger members of the Perak Bar to participate in the games which in turn makes it very disheartening for those who have sacrificed their time and effort. Participation means both in playing the games as well as in supporting the team when they play. It is through the camaraderie of the games that we make lasting friendship amongst the members of the Perak Bar as well as making new ones with the members of the Penang Bar. I hope that the members will start participating as a lot of time and effort is put in by the Sports Committee in organizing the games.

(Sgd)

Chairman

Kenny Lai Choe Ken

Sports Sub-Committee