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Contributed by the National Young Lawyers
Committee
 “Government should be more accountable”
Kho Yieng San studied law at the University of Exeter, UK and completed her CLP
subsequently. She has been in practice close to 3 years now. Angeline Cheah
distilled some of her thoughts on current issues.
You were practising in KL then moved to Penang. What made you take this step?
This is a question I get asked a lot. I hope I am able to answer it once and for
all. Well, I was first sent to Penang for my pre-university study after I
completed my SPM. I sort of liked Penang and I regularly returned during summer
breaks for a holiday. I also did my attachment here before I started chambering.
Penang is a beautiful, cozy and homely town.
How has practice been so far?
It has not been a bed of roses but the working environment is challenging. You
get to see different types of clients at work, different characters of lawyers
in court and interesting Judges on the Bench. Practice is stressful but it opens
up a wide dimension of perspectives I think.
Do you prefer to practice in KL or in Penang?
Before I came to Penang, I heard that it was a strong and united Bar over here.
Members are courteous to one another and are very united amongst themselves.
This is probably one of the major and obvious differences from practising in KL.
Having said that, I would wish somehow that this unity could actually be
extended in the larger picture as greater unity with the Bar Council.
As a young lawyer, what are some of the challenges that you face in practice
and how do you think these challenges may be overcome?
Being a young lawyer in practice, it is inevitable that we be subjected to some
difficulties from staff in court and sometimes senior lawyers; particularly so
when they are acting for the other side. I don’t have good experiences all the
time with senior lawyers though no doubt there are those who are always willing
to help, generous with their advice and giving their genuine opinions. But there
are others who will come smiling and then suddenly raise all issues with you in
court or insist on certain things relying on their seniority. There are some who
try to stress you out or plainly are uncooperative, rude and so on. It is all
part of the training I guess. The way to overcome it is to have a good grasp of
the laws and rules, a strong confidence in yourself and not allowing anything
undermine yourself, no matter what you to go through or may happen.
Lawyers are generally busy people. How do you think busy
lawyers should strike a balance in life?
I think it is a matter of how you prioritise work, family and personal life
along with better time management. If you find yourself spending too much time
and long hours at work, and your family and personal life start to get affected,
it could be time for change. I understand the Malaysian Law Conference will deal
with this issue in October, and the NYLC is due to release their much-awaited
report on working conditions then. That should be interesting!
What is your take on the recent unanimous decision of the Council to continue
with YLCs in all states?
Bar Council has time and again taken steps to establish and reinstate YLCs in
all states presumably because of the different stand continuously adopted by
different State Bars. In my opinion, the Council has done all it can in putting
forward or propagating the issue. It is really up to the State Bars whether they
agree to come on board. In any event, I feel the notion that because section
46A(1)(a) LPA is repealed therefore YLCs should be abolished alongside it is
misconceived. To start with, YLCs were not formed pursuant to the said
sub-section. The abolition of the same bears little relevance to the
establishment of a platform which primarily intends to allow juniors to voice
issues of public interest, to care for the community, and extend their support
to the Bar Council and so on.
Malaysia just celebrated her 50th birthday. What does 50 years of
independence mean to you as an individual?
To me, it is 50 years of responsibility on the current Government since
independence. Malaysia has gone through tremendous change, growth and
reformation - in terms of the economy, infrastructure, education, social wealth
and the way people think. And now, I think it should be a time for
accountability after so many years in power. With the development,
implementation of systems, policies, and strategies that have taken place or are
now taking place, it is time for the Government to take courage and be more
accountable to its peoples. All the issues that are raised with regard to how
local councils deal with the authority and responsibility entrusted to them, how
Government funds are being spent or allocated, how Government policies are
impacting foreign investment, issues in relation to inter-racial unity, public
confidence in our institutions such as the police and the Judiciary should be
addressed and answered directly and satisfactorily by the responsible bodies or
Ministers. You can’t just turn a deaf ear hoping the issues would die one day
and for memories to fade.
Having said that, what is your opinion on the recent debate to do away with
the common law in our legal system?
Common law principles have been distilled through centuries of thought and
application not only in regard to law but also to society. I think it must be
maintained and continued to develop.
Lawyers have always come in for some flak by the
layperson. How do you feel about these comments?
I feel proud that I am part of the Malaysian Bar. Being a lawyer is very
different from those in other professions in the sense that unlike an
accountant, doctor, engineer or other professionals, the nature of our
profession provides a platform for us to keep an eye perpetually on the ways
Government, statutory bodies, local councils or Ministers behave and conduct
themselves. We should make use of that by taking part and involving ourselves
more with these issues which concern social justice, public interest and good
governance.
Other YL Personalities:
Ng Li Lin
Karthigesan a/l
Shanmugam
Juna Binti
Jusoh
Syamsuriatina
Ishak
Albert Ding
Choo Earn
Sulaiman Bin
Abu Bakar
Nasdrul Umur
Bin Shamsulhuda
Elaine Daly
Devkumar
Kumaraendran
Sandesh Kabir
Singh
Edelina Sophia
Binti Sophian Pulle
Mohd Busyairy
Bin Che Muda
Wong Fook Meng
Fadiah Nadwa
Fikri
Lee Chooi Peng
Angeline Cheah
Yin Leng
Mishant a/l
Thiruchelvam
Shahrizal Bin
Mohd Zin
Rezalman B.
Bahran
Gavin Tang Cheng
Loong
Noreen Ahmad
Ariff
Nadia Ashikin
binti Maduarin
David Dinesh
Mathew
Nizam Bashir
Bin Abdul Kariem Bashir
Amer Hamzah
Bin Arshad
Ernie
Suffiani Binti Salim
Ahmad Syukri
Bin Yusoff
Dipendra
Harshad Rai
Soo Wee Loon
Tracy Hah
Aminuddin bin
Abdullah
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Circular No 297/2008
