PUTRAJAYA: Although Karpal Singh as a Member of Parliament and prominent lawyer has the right to make political comments and express his views on the Constitution and laws, the rights and freedom of speech enshrined in the Federal Constitution are not absolute, the Appeals Court has ruled.
Justice Datuk Ahmad Ma'arop, in his 105-page judgment, said the freedom of speech as guaranteed in the constitution meant a person had the right to speak, write or publish anything he or she liked as long as they did not break the laws.
As such, he said, what was uttered by Karpal Singh at a press conference in 2009 regarding Sultan Azlan Shah of Perak over the political crisis in the state then, had exceeded the boundaries permitted by laws and amounted to sedition.
Bar Council memorandum on proposed measures on the implementation of the Subordinate Courts (Amendment) Act 2010
Posted by Web Administrator
Thursday, 09 February 2012 03:08pm
INTRODUCTION
1.In discussions between the Judiciary and the Bar, we have been informed that the Subordinate Courts (Amendment) Act 2010 (“the Act”) will be brought into force this year.
2.The Malaysian Bar, the Advocates Association of Sarawak and the Sabah Law Association have expressed their concern and reservations about implementation of certain provisions of the Act.
3.The Malaysian Bar sets out below some of the measures and proposals that may address the concerns and reservations that we have with regards to the implementation of the Act.
PUTRAJAYA: The National Legal Aid Foundation - which will provide all citizens with free legal advice at the stage of arrest, remand and bail application - will begin operations in March, said the Attorney-General.
“We would like to be fully prepared but we have to start somewhere, so I am pushing for early March,” Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail told The Star yesterday.
The newspaper reported yesterday that many accused were still unrepresented during sentencing because the RM15mil NLAF scheme had not taken off as yet.
A day earlier, another daily had quoted Gani as attributing the delay to the lack of volunteer lawyers for the scheme to properly kick off.
KUALA LUMPUR: Many accused are still not represented at their sentencing because the National Legal Aid Foundation has yet to begin operations.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak launched NLAF almost a year ago with a grant of RM5mil, noting that 80% of the accused were unrepresented.
“Those without representation are often left with no choice but to plead guilty or endure long remand periods. This foundation will greatly help in reducing such cases and avoid miscarriage of justice,” he said.
In his Oct 7 Budget speech, Najib said an additional RM10mil had been allocated for the foundation.
A breathtaking variety of approaches to the law light up the legal firmament in so many spectacular ways that one cannot fail but be impressed.
EVERY judge, lawyer and law teacher has to grapple with some central and eternal riddles that surround the law. The most basic, unanswerable (and embarrassing) question is “what is ‘law’?” Is there some universal concept of law or are there many varied conceptions?
In its simplest form, law could be defined as rules of conduct or norms or standards of behaviour. However, the rich reality is that rules exist in many forms and originate from many sources. Many tributaries contribute to the legal main.
PETALING JAYA: The Bar Council has hit out at the Atomic Energy Licensing Board (AELB) for its decision on Jan 30 to grant a temporary operating licence (TOL) to Australian company Lynas Corporation for its advance material plant in Kuantan.
Its president Lim Chee Wee wants the decision to be revoke or suspended pending the outcome of a detailed environmental impact assessment (EIA) report.
He also urged the government to facilitate consultation between Lynas and all stakeholders.
“We strongly urge the government to take all necessary steps to protect its people and the environment,” said Lim, adding that the approval came only four days after 1,123 comments had been submitted by the public between Jan 3 and 26.
“The Case of the Missing Penang Lawyer: Charity Treasure Hunt 2012”
Posted by Web Administrator
Thursday, 02 February 2012 10:37am
* Please note that the Charity Treasure Hunt has been postponed until further notice. The Penang Bar Committee regrets any inconvenience caused by the postponement. *
The Penang Bar Committee Social Sub-Committee is organising a Charity Treasure Hunt in aid of The National Autism Society of Malaysia (NASOM) on Sunday, 12 Feb 2012. It will be a combination drive & walk hunt and will start and end at Straits Quay, Penang where light breakfast and lunch will be provided. All participants will receive a goodie bag and a t-shirt each.
Entry forms as well as Rules & Regulations will be available at the Bar Committee Secretariat or may be downloaded from our Penang Bar website – www.penangbar.org from Monday, 16 Jan 2012.
Closing date for entries is 6 Feb 2012.
Please join us for a day of intrigue and excitement!
Attorney-general and Bar Council have conflicting views over number of lawyers
KUALA LUMPUR: The Attorney-General’s Chambers and the legal profession are locked in a disagreement over the launch of the governmentsponsored free legal assistance service for low income earners involved in criminal cases.
The dispute is over the number of volunteer lawyers required to make the National Legal Aid Foundation (NLAF) a success.
The scheme, into which the government had ploughed RM5 million, and which was slated to takeoff in November, last year, has now been put on hold, declared Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail.
KUALA LUMPUR: The Joint Action Group for Gender Equality (JAG) is appalled by the 12-year jail sentence meted out to the teenager found guilty of throwing her baby out of a second-floor window.
It expressed concern that Noor Atika Kamarulzaman, 19, was unrepresented in court, and urged the judiciary to call for a revision of the case.
JAG said this yesterday when asked about the sentence the Sessions Court had slapped on Noor Atika last week after she pleaded guilty to causing the death of her child in Taman Selayang Segar 2, between 3.30am and 7.15am on Oct 3 last year, by throwing the newborn out of a second-floor window.
2012 Hotel Corporate Rates Attending seminars? Going for a holiday? Click on the link above to check out the list of hotel corporate rates for Members of the Bar, which is updated regularly.
Talk on Intellectual Property Law (10 Feb 2012) Organised by the Selangor Bar Committee, the talk on “Intellectual Property Law” will take place at 5:00 pm, at the Selangor Bar Committee Auditorium, on 10 Feb 2012 (Friday). The talk will feature Bahari Yeow Tien Hong. Click on the link above for more details.
Seminar on the Fundamentals of Bankruptcy Proceedings (21 Feb 2012) Organised by the Kuala Lumpur Bar Professional Development Committee, the seminar on “The Fundamentals of Bankruptcy Proceedings”, featuring Sanjeev Kumar Rasiah, will take place at 3:00 pm, at the Kuala Lumpur Bar Auditorium, on 21 Feb 2012 (Tuesday). Click on the link above for more details.
Seminar on the Fundamentals of Conveyancing (24 Feb 2012) Organised by the Kuala Lumpur Bar Professional Development Committee, this seminar featuring Jeremiah R Gurusamy will take place at 3:00 pm, at the Kuala Lumpur Bar Auditorium, on 24 Feb 2012 (Friday). Click on the link above for more details.
Mediation Skills Training Course (29 Feb to 4 Mar 2012) Organised by Bar Council, the Mediation Skills Training Course will take place at 8:30 am to 5:30 pm, at Raja Aziz Addruse Auditorium, Bar Council, on 29 Feb to 4 Mar 2012 (Wednesday to Sunday). Deadline for registration and payment is 17 Feb 2012 (Friday). Click on the link above for more details.
Talk on “Land Fraud: An Australian Perspective” (13 Mar 2012) Organised by IGIL, GSGSG and UUM COLGIS, this free talk featuring Quintin George Rozario of Delta Law, Brisbane, Australia, will take place at 9:00 am, at Dewan Seminar A, Pusat Konvensyen, Universiti Utara Malaysia, Kedah, on 13 Mar 2012 (Tuesday). To RSVP, contact Mr Abutt (04-928 4397; abutt@uum.edu.my).
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Circular No 023/2012: Talk on ISO 9001 | 2008 Quality Management System Certification
