Not as glamorous as Boston Legal

Article from Star.

Putik Lada:By MELISA TAN MEIN SZE

More and more young lawyers are considering leaving the profession for better remuneration and greater career advancement opportunities.

YOUNG lawyers can be loosely defined as lawyers with less than seven years of practice, or below the age of 40. They are a vital component of the profession as they make up 25% of the 12,500-member strong Malaysian Bar.

Rather shockingly, a recent survey showed that as high as 66.7% of young lawyers are considering leaving the profession within five years.

Contrary to popular belief, the majority of lawyers in Malaysia are underpaid, and the profession hasn’t exactly been generous towards young lawyers. More so, if you work in a smaller firm.

Depending on the city and size of the firm, a newly qualified lawyer’s starting pay could range from RM1,500 to RM2,500.

In a survey conducted by the Bar Council’s National Young Lawyers Committee last year, 59.2% of the respondent young lawyers indicated that they were dissatisfied with their current salary, while 68.8% were not happy with their salary increment.

Lawyers in medium to large and more prominent firms are better paid, with a starting salary of RM2,800 to RM3,000 but some have deemed the raise not adequate, as more often than not such raise in salaries is accompanied by an increase in minimum billable hours or an extended work load.

As young lawyers, being inexperienced and on a rather steep learning curve, most are often struggling to work around the clock and to put in long hours to satisfy the never-ending demands of clients, to meet up with expectations of their bosses as well as the firm’s minimum billable hours policy.

As a result, they quite often find themselves being caught in a situation involving very hard work with very little pay off.

Work and life integration has increasingly become a very crucial issue most young lawyers have to deal with.

Studies in the United States and Australia have interestingly come out with the term Generation-Y lawyers – referring to those born in 1978 or after.

They are ambitious, and want to grow professionally, but are carefully considering the trade-off to their personal life if they were to blindly meet the demands of firms (or their clients).

These young lawyers are less willing to put in long hours compared with their predecessors and are instead more focused on preserving the quality of life or balance in life.

Young lawyers in practice therefore need to learn to structure their life to support, and accomplish, both personal and professional goals.

Apart from that, clients today are more demanding of lawyers than ever. They want fast results at low cost, and have high expectations towards the responsiveness of their lawyer or how the law should solve their problems.

It is expected of young lawyers to use technology as a work element and to be able to effectively and efficiently use email, Internet, teleconferencing as well as mobile phone to communicate with clients.

Further, living in the age of globalisation means that young lawyers cannot afford to remain isolated and idle: they are expected to spread their horizons and reach out further for cross border work, and keep up with current trends, in order to meet the expectations of the global market.

Competition has also led to the pressing need for lawyers to find their area of specialisation.

Unlike before, general law practice can be tough and may not be sustainable in view of the global atmosphere and this has led to the escalating need to find a niche and drive towards specialisation.

Most young lawyers have now begun to feel the pressure to differentiate themselves from the thousands of other lawyers in the legal profession.

Apart from the practical aspects, many young lawyers have also joined the legal profession only to find that lawyers are no longer held in high regard by the public.

The negative public perception against lawyers is largely attributed to some bad apples tarnishing the reputation of the profession.

Public confidence in the Malaysian judiciary continues to remain very low due to the lack of political will to acknowledge the problems the judiciary is facing.

All these have directly or indirectly discouraged young lawyers from joining or staying in practice.

Your lawyer friends probably have already told you, legal practice is never quite as glamorous, hard-hitting and high-paying as what is portrayed in television legal fictions such as Boston Legal and Damages.

Annually, the Bar records a fair number of lawyers leaving the practice.

Some leave the profession entirely while some move to the corporate scene (often better pay, hours and benefits), to become in-house legal counsel.

The Bar is also gradually losing more talented young Malaysian lawyers who are increasingly seeking opportunities to practise as foreign lawyers in other jurisdictions, such as Singapore, Hong Kong and Shanghai for better remuneration and greater career advancement opportunities.

Well, practice is not all a bed of roses, and will never be.

Of course, on the other hand there is still a substantial number of young lawyers who have found passion in practising law, and the profession a satisfying one.

Not to mention that many have chosen to remain in practice, progressing from pupils to associates and ultimately to partners.

Having briefly mentioned the various difficulties in dealing with the reality of practice, I can’t help but leave this to the last.

> Young lawyers of today should nonetheless challenge themselves to stand firm and carry themselves as future leaders of the Bar (and the country).

> They must adhere to the profession’s code of ethics and uphold the integrity of the profession to restore the public’s confidence in the profession.

> Most importantly, young lawyers should carry on the Bar’s tradition in upholding justice without fear or favour.

These, in my humble opinion, should be the greatest challenges for our esteemed young lawyers of today.

> The writer is a member of the Bar Council’s National Young Lawyers Committee (NYLC). For more information about the NYLC, please visit www.malaysianbar.org.my/nylc

Interesting Sites

Hi all. It's been a while. A long while I mean. Most of you are either graduated, working or still struggling with daunting textbooks.

I've found this link particularly useful to those who are going to start their BVC, LPC or CLP.

Pupillage and How to Get it.

Also, remember the first lesson we had in contract law lectures? Carlill v Carbolic Smokeball Company? Nothing to do with the law of offer and acceptance. It's an interesting site selling unusual gifts for professionals like lawyers. Check it out here.

Carbolic Smokeball Co.

Till' I see ya' again.

'English common law still needed'

Govt to look into CJ's suggestion: Nazri Our judiciary may risk insulating itself: Ex-judgeCindy ThamPETALING JAYA (Aug 22, 2007): Is the English common law still relevant to Malaysia, 50 years after the nation attained independence from British rule?

A former law professor said the English common law has a role to play in the Malaysian legal system.

He said Sections 3 and 5 of the Civil Law Act provided for the use of English common law where there was no Malaysian statute to deal with the case.

"The English common law is particularly important for commercial law," he told theSun today.
He said that being a legal practice that was recognised internationally, the English common law would strengthen the credibility of Malaysia's legal system in the eyes of the world, such as among foreign investors.

He was responding to Chief Justice Tun Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim's comment that there was no need for Malaysia to refer to the English common law as there were many legal experts here who could help to solve legal matters.

At the opening of the "Ahmad Ibrahim: Thoughts and Knowledge Contribution" seminar in Petaling Jaya yesterday, Ahmad Fairuz said despite being independent for 50 years, Malaysia had yet to be truly free from colonialism because of the provision in the Civil Law Act.

He suggested that the seminar participants discuss the common law issue to see if it should be retained or substituted.

According to Black's Law Dictionary, unlike laws enacted through the legislature, the common law comprises principles and rules of action that are derived from usages and customs, and court judgments which affirm and enforce these usages and customs.

These principles tend to have general or universal application.

As distinguished from ecclesiastical law, the common law system of jurisprudence is administered by secular tribunals.

The former law professor said any move to sever English common law from the Malaysian legal system would give rise to several questions.

"What should be used to replace the lacuna that would result from a removal of the English common law?" he asked.

He said Malaysia has several pieces of legislation, such as the Contracts Act, which resulted from the codification of English common law principles or statutes into Acts, passed by the Malaysian Parliament.

"In applying the Acts, some judges still go back to the principles of common law," he said.
"If you want to stop referring to common law, does that also apply to the Malaysian Acts that had originated from English common law statutes?"

He also asked: Has there been a high incidence of cases which Malaysian laws are unable to deal with?

"I don't know of any case in the past five years where there were no Malaysian laws to deal with the case," he said.

He added that the English common law has not had any negative effect on the process of justice in Malaysia, but served to strengthen its credibility in the international arena.

Copy From: http://www.sun2surf.com/article.cfm?id=19075

Law Career Convention 2007

United Kingdom Malaysian Student Law Union, or the Kesatuan Penuntut Undang-
undang Malaysia di UK dan Eire (KPUM) and University of Malayas Law Society
would be co-organising a Law Career Convention 2007.

Event: Law Career Convention 2007
Date: 25th August 2007 (Saturday)
Venue: Faculty of Law, University of Malaya
Time: 9am - 5.30pm

Benefits:
- Students meet with future employers.
- Speak to partners of local top firms.
- Understand legal industry in Malaysia.
- Bring cv's and resume's for attachment programmes and chambering positions.
- Explore alternative career options for legal students.
- Non-legal students encouraged to attend as non-law firms will be present.

Following the success of the Law Career Convention 2006 with the participation of 20 prestigious law firms, and attendance of about 1500 law students, we seek to organise the
Law Career Convention 2007. For the first time since the law career convention has been organised, we have succeeded in broadening the scope of our convention by including non law
firms to provide an alternative career prospective for the law students.

Listed below are the firms taking part in the convention this year.

Albar & Partners
Bodipalar Ponnudurai Nathan
Cheang & Ariff
Cheah Teh & Su
Chooi & Company
Gideon Tan Razali Zaini
Jeff Leong Poon & Wong
Kadir, Andri & Partners
Lee Hishammuddin Allen & Gledhill
Logan Sabapathy & Co
Michael Chai & Co
Shook Lin & Bok
Sivananthan
Shearn Delamore
Skrine
Tay & Partners
Wong & Partners
Zaid Ibrahim & Co.
Zain & Co.
Zul Rafique & Partners
Non Law firms:

KPMG Tax Services
Securities Commission Malaysia
Shell Malaysia
Attorney Generals Chambers
SUHAKAM
SUARAM
Bar Council

Educational talks will be held throughout the day by esteemed lawyers which will enable students to find out more about the different sectors of law, current issues pertaining to the
legal world and giving students the oppurtunity to find out what it takes to be a lawyer.

Listed below are the topics of the talks given by top law firms.

10.30-11.15am - Talk by Shook Lin &
Bok- "Banking & Corporate Law"

11.20-12.05pm - Talk by Lee
Hishammuddin Allen & Gledhill- "The
Lawyer's Role in Managing Client
Expectations and Legal Issues"

12.10-12.55pm - Talk by 'Bodipalar
Ponnudurai Nathan- "Employment Law"

1.302.15pm - Talk by Kadir, Andri &
Partners- "Becoming a Lawyer"

2.303.15pm - Talk by Shell Malaysia-
"What you did not know about oil and
gas Industry."

3.304.15pm - Talk by Zul Rafique &
Partners- "Current Issues on Cyberlaw"

To all students, do come and find out for yourself about your future pospects in the legal and non-legal industry! Bring along your CV's for inspection and you just might be hired there and then!

Memo

Memo to all employees:
In order to assure the highest levels of quality work and productivity from employees, it will be our policy to keep all employees well trained through our program of SPECIAL HIGH INTENSITY TRAINING (S.H.I.T).

We are trying to give our employees more S.H.I.T than anyone else. If you feel that you do not receive your share of S.H.I.T on the course, please see your supervisor. You will be immediately placed at the top of the S.H.I.T list and our supervisors are especially skilled at seeing you get all the S.H.I.T you can handle.

Employees who don't take their S.H.I.T will be placed in DEPARTMENTAL EMPLOYEE EVALUATION PROGRAMS (D.E.E.P.S.H.I.T).

Those who fail to take D.E.E.P.S.H.I.T seriously will have to go to EMPLOYEE ATTITUDE TRAINING (E.A.T.S.H.I.T).
Since our supervisors took S.H.I.T before they were promoted, they don't have to do S.H.I.T anymore, and are all full of S.H.I.T already. If you are full of S.H.I.T you may be interested in a job teaching others.
We can add your name to our BASIC UNDERSTANDING LIST of LEADERS (B.U.L.L.S.H.I.T).

For employees who are intending to pursue a career in management and consulting, we will refer you to the department of MANAGERIAL OPERATIONAL RESEARCH EDUCATION (M.O.R.E.S.H.I.T). This course emphasizes how to manage M.O.R.E.S.H.I.T

If you have further questions, please direct them to our HEAD OF TEACHING, SPECIAL HIGH INTENSITY TRAINING (H.O.T.S.H.I.T).

Thank you,

BOSS IN GENERAL, SPECIAL HIGH INTENSITY TRAINING
(B.I.G.S.H.I.T)

P.S. Now send this S.H.I.T to 5 people who need S.H.I.T in their life, just not the same person who sent you this S.H.I.T. They have already had their fill of S.H.I.T.

Thank you for your time. !
Sincerely,

The Director Under the Main Bureau of Super High Intensity Training.
(The D.U.M.B.S.H.I.T).

Sigh of relief over British Bar decision

By SHAILA KOSHY

koshy@thestar.com.my

KUALA LUMPUR: The British Bar Standards Board has tentatively decided to reject the proposal that students who qualify be called to the English Bar only after completing a year's pupillage in Britain.

Although it is still only a provisional decision, the United Kingdom and Eire Council (Ukec) for Malaysian Students president Wan Mohd Firdaus Wan Mohd Fuaad welcomed the rejection of the proposal.

“The proposal, if implemented, would have led eventually to the loss of links to the Inns of Court and traditions that are over 100 years old,” said the former president of the British-based Malaysian Law Students Union who is on holiday here after completing his Bar examination.

On March 4, Sunday Star had highlighted the plight that Malaysians wanting a British barrister-at-law title would face if the proposal was approved.

The coveted title, currently obtained after passing the Bar Vocational Course (BVC) and completing the 12 requisite qualifying sessions, was in danger of costing an extra year of one’s life as well as added living costs ranging from RM35,000 (£5,000) to RM56,000 (£7,000) depending on the location.

After all that, these barristers-at-law would still have had to undergo a further nine-month pupillage when they return home or they could not be admitted to the Malaysian Bar as advocates and solicitors.

The proposal had arisen as a result of public concern in Britain that, by allowing those who had completed the BVC to be called to the Bar and describe themselves as “barristers,” the public might be misled as to who was a fully qualified practitioner.

After a year of consultation and research, the Board said in a report (www.barstandardsboard.org.uk) last month that deferring call to the Bar until after pupillage would not be “an appropriate response to the risk which it is intended to address”.

“We have found very little evidence that the existing protections in the Bar’s Code of Conduct and the criminal law are not sufficient to protect the public from harm,” said Board chairman Ruth Evans.

In a survey of 670 students from 21 universities in Britain, 43% of the 226 non-British students said that they planned to work primarily outside Britain.

During the year-long consultation 83 organisations and individuals responded either in support of (25), against (42) or were non-committal (16).

Among the overseas responses against the proposal were three from Malaysia – the Malaysian Inner Temple Alumni Association, Court of Appeal judge Justice Datuk Gopal Sri Ram who is Lincoln’s Inn Alumni Association president and British High Commissioner William Boyd McCleary.

The Board will give a final decision this month.

Malaysian Bar Council president Ambiga Sreenevasan said the council had written to the Board expressing its support for the provisional decision not to go ahead with the deferral.

[Source]

80% of M'sians go to UK to study law?

Found this in a forwarded mail.

80% of M'sians go to UK to study law?

UK Immigration Officer: Purpose of visit?

Visitor: I'm here to study law, sir.

Officer: You know, you must have a lot of lawyers in Malaysia .

Visitor: Why do you say that?

Officer: Well, i've been here for a good twenty years, and I'd say 80% of Malaysians I see here say they're here to read law.

Visitor: Oh, really? That's really something i never knew. Hard to believe in fact.

Officer: Just you watch, then. You just stand here until the next Malaysian comes along, and I'll bet he's here to read law.

*Visitor waits for 5 mins, Ah Chong from Malaysia comes to immigration counter*

Officer: Mr. Ah Chong, purpose of visit?

Ah Chong: Study lorr...