Transmenu powered by JoomlArt.com - Mambo Joomla Professional Templates Club

28 November 2008 marks the last day of service for a truly respected and admired individual synonymous with the Bar’s growth and expansion – the longest serving staff of the Secretariat, Ms Catherine Eu! She retired on 16 September 2006, but remained with the Secretariat as a consultant for the past two (2) years.

The two (2) years has gone by very quickly with Catherine playing a pivotal role in overseeing the Professional Services & Development Committee’s activities and also as Secretary of the recently concluded 21^st Lawasia Conference’s Organising Committee.

We re-print below a Tribute written in September 2006 which recounts Catherine’s numerous contribution to the Bar:

Catherine Eu has become synonymous with the Bar Secretariat. Her retirement last Friday, September 15, 2006 as Executive Director is the culmination of 40 years of hard work, dedication and commitment to the Malaysian Bar; the culmination, but not (thankfully) the end, as she will continue serving the Bar for another 2 years as a consultant.

Catherine began her career in the Bar Secretariat in 1966. K. A. Menon the Secretary of the Bar hired her during the Presidency of that great advocate R. R. Chelliah. At that time the so-called “Secretariat” was a tiny corner in Menon’s law office, containing one desk, one chair, one typewriter, a small cardboard box filled with petition files, and Catherine. No minutes of meetings were kept and Catherine’s first step was to remedy this defect, and to keep records of Bar activities. There were only 380 lawyers in all Malaysia and Singapore, and less than 20 judges.

Catherine oversaw the expansion of the Secretariat from such humble beginnings into its present state, with a staff strength of around 80 (including 20 executive officers), working in a 4-storey building owned by the Bar, serving 12,242 members as at August 2006.

She has worked with 17 different Presidents of the Bar, each with their own style and idiosyncrasies. In an interview with Relevan (the KL Bar newsletter) back in 1999, when asked who was her favourite President, she said it would have to be Raja Aziz, both for his unique style and because he is the man the Bar turns to in times of crisis.

Catherine’s ability to organise large conferences and events is so taken for granted that members do not realise the number of days if not weeks of hard work that have gone into such triumphs as the Malaysian Law Conferences, the successful Commonwealth Law Conference in 1999, the recent Tun Suffian Foundation dinner and countless other events. Catherine’s popularity goes far beyond the confines of the Malaysian Bar: she is known to and well-liked by many people outside the Bar and beyond the shores of Malaysia. The warmth and smile people exhibit when they meet her is testament to her popularity.

I spoke to a few senior practitioners about Catherine and they are all fond of her. Dato V C George who served in Council for 17 years described her as a delightful person to work with and during the time they worked together he had full confidence that the work that had to be done would be competently attended to by her. 

Catherine, the Malaysian Bar salutes you and thank you for your long years of service.

Thank you and God bless.Any member of the Bar who would like to attend the Dinner should contact Mr. Jagjit Singh’s Office before 12 December, 2008.

Footnote:

A small group of Lawyers are organizing a Farewell Dinner for Ms. Catherine Eu,

who will be retiring after many decades of stellar service to the Bar.

This is a subscription Buffet Dinner at RM50/= per person. Orange cordial will be

provided but all other soft drinks and liquor may be purchased at Club prices using

Coupons which will be available for sale.

As limited space available, priority will be given to bookings by table at RM500/= per table.

Please pass this information to all Members of the Bar.

Comments (0)

Subscribe to this comment's feed