Press Release: Malaysian Bar Commends Announcement of the Establishment of an Independent Law Reform Commission
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Thursday, 24 May 2012 10:54am
The Malaysian Bar commends Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Dato’ Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz’s reported announcement that the Government will look into establishing “an independent law reform commission to review and modernise archaic laws in the country”. This echoes a similar announcement made by the Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Liew Vui Keong, on 8 November 2011.
The Malaysian Bar has repeatedly called for the establishment of an independent law reform commission that would undertake research, public consultations and legal policy development, and make recommendations to the Parliament, without fear or favour.
Malaysia only needs to look to the New South Wales Law Commission in Australia, the Australian Law Reform Commission and the English Law Commission for model legislation and set-up.
The Malaysian Bar also welcomes the Minister’s reported statement that the commission will comprise “people from all walks of life”. In our press release of 14 December 2011, we had applauded Datuk Liew Vui Keong’s reported announcement that the composition of the commission would include “retired or serving federal court judges, retired or serving law professors, experts or specialists on law, senior and experienced lawyers as well as senior members of the civil society.”
International Malaysia Law Conference (26 to 28 Sept 2012): Latest Info
Posted by Web Administrator
Thursday, 24 May 2012 08:03am
Don’t miss what is going to be the best conference in the region!
Grab your seat now with our best deals: current promotional rate ends on 30 June 2012!
2012 marks the year the Malaysia Law Conference goes global, which is why the theme “Asian Perspectives, Global Viewpoints” was selected to initiate the International Malaysia Law Conference. This conference will explore the impact of law on business, society, and government in the global arena, through keynote addresses, plenary sessions, and inspirational talks featuring globally-renowned speakers and delegates.
Breaking free from the conventional, we welcome the participation of the general public, and especially entrepreneurs and role players, who are invariably stakeholders of the law. Certainly, while the genesis of the conference was law-centric, the issues, challenges, and opportunities of the third millennium are far too important to be left to the privileged few.
Interested in the spheres of law practice management, arbitration, intellectual property, IT and social media, and others? Want to know more about the application of law in the various domains of business and society, and broaden your horizons? Then the International Malaysia Law Conference 2012 is the place to be!
The current promotional rate ends on 30 June 2012. In addition, a group discount of 10% is available when five or more individuals from the same organisation register simultaneously.
Do peruse the programme overview to review the sessions available at this Conference. Click
here for the registration form.
KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Negara Malaysia said yesterday that the confidentiality of information of bank customers is clearly protected under the law.
Governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz said it was an offence under the Banking and Financial Institutions Act 1989 (Bafia) for any officer of a bank to disclose any information relating to the accounts of its customers.
Banks have in place strict controls and effective processes to ensure compliance with secrecy provision.
"Only when there is a suspected offence under the federal law or where there is a court order or the bank customer has given consent, relevant law enforcement agencies can be authorised under the law to get information.
KUALA LUMPUR (May 23, 2012): The government will look into setting up an independent law reform commission to review and modernise archaic laws in the country.
Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz said it is time to have such a commission take over the role from the Attorney-General's (AG) Chambers.
"I think they (AG's Chambers) have too much on their hands as they are bogged down with matters such as prosecution, advising the government and drafting new bills," Nazri, who is de facto law minister, told theSun in an exclusive interview recently.
He said more than a thousand legislations could have been passed over the years and he was unsure how many were outdated.
"As such, I think this task of reviewing old laws should be taken from the AG's Chambers and given to a commission comprising people from all walks of life," said Nazri, adding that he will raise the matter with the cabinet soon.
Sila lihat di bawah untuk terjemahan pekeliling ini di dalam Bahasa Malaysia.
To Members of the Malaysian Bar
Kindly be informed that subscription to the following Funds for 2012 is now due and payable:
No
Subject
Matter
Amount
(RM)
Mode
of Payment
1
Bar Council Subscription
450
Internet
banking (www.cimbclicks.com.my)/Direct Access Malaysian Bar Credit
Card/Cheque
NB: Items (1) to (5) are to be remitted in ONE single cheque for RM760
made payable to “Bar Council” without the need to indicate the
respective Funds.
2
Bar Council Building Fund
100
3
Bar Council Legal Aid Fund
100
4
Bar Council LawCare Fund
100
5
Bar Council Sports Fund
10
6
2013 Bar Council
Compensation Fund
100
Internet
banking (www.cimbclicks.com.my)/Direct Access Malaysian Bar Credit
Card/Cheque
NB: Items (6) and (7) are to be paid by way of two separate cheques
made payable to “Bar Council Compensation Fund” and “Bar Council
Discipline Fund” respectively.
The Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz recently proposed the setting up of a law academy to serve as an alternative to the Malaysian Bar. He believes that the Bar Council has been partisan in passing the resolution condemning the use of excessive force during the BERSIH 3.0 rally. Kathleen Tan speaks to Lim Chee Wee, President of the Malaysian Bar on the proposals for an alternative bar.
Please clickhereto listen to or download the podcast.
MAY 23 — I knew this was coming because as I said it would be painful for some lawyers to read what I wrote in “Unswayed by fear or favour” last Sunday in The Sunday Star. I am indeed not wrong with my prognostication.
However, I am surprised that it was even necessary for the eight Loyarburoks to come together to give a 2,700-word response to something they felt were just mere fallacies being spun by me.
In a tweet sent out early yesterday morning, one of the eight, K. Shanmuga, tweeted that their joint statement, “Bar’s resolution proper”, The Star, May 23, 2012 was issued because my aforesaid article had got all of them so annoyed.
Hence, because I empathise with them, I would oblige them in the best tradition of the Bar with a short reply, which should suffice.
Firstly, my concern on the independence of the 80 monitors from the Bar is not totally unfounded. Out of the 80 monitors, I personally know at least one of whom I follow on Twitter. On April 28, the day the Bersih 3.0 assembly was held, this monitor, albeit not based in Kuala Lumpur, had tweeted, inter alia, the following whilst undertaking monitoring duties:
CONCERN: Efforts must be made continuously to ensure peace and harmony, says Perak ruler
KUALA KANGSAR: MALAYSIA is feared heading towards anarchy when the people start to set aside laws and no longer believe in law enforcement authorities as well as the integrity of the courts.
Sultan of Perak Sultan Azlan Shah, in his speech at the investiture held in conjunction with his 84th birthday celebration at Istana Iskandariah here yesterday, said the people's lack of confidence in legal institutions would lead them to take action without taking into consideration the supremacy of laws.
He said if investigation methods, detentions, prosecutions and court processes were to be questioned because people felt injustice had been done, it would only result in the people having doubts about the country's legal institutions.
"When people start to set aside laws and no longer believe in the authorities, it is feared that the country is in a state which can cause it to descend into anarchy."
PETALING JAYA (May 22, 2012): Any probe into the events of the Bersih 3.0 rally must have the support and confidence of the public in order to be truly meaningful and independent, the Centre for Independent Journalism said yesteday.
Its chief executive Masjaliza Hamzah told theSun that unless the independent panel formed by the government to look into the April 28 rally gains public approval it will not achieve its purpose.
“The independent panel is perceived to be tainted and the level of public trust (in it) is really low,” she claimed.
She was responding the Human Rights Commission’s (Suhakam) decision to conduct its own inquiry into the rally.
In a statement on Monday, Suhakam said it decided to conduct the inquiry as it could no longer wait for the terms of reference from the government’s independent panel.
The panel, which is headed by former inspector-general of police Tan Sri Hanif Omar, has drawn flak from various groups, as Hanif had been openly critical of the rally.
2012 Bar Council Subscription Click the link above to download Circular 072/2012 pertaining to the 2012 Bar Council subscription, including the payment guide and a set of Frequently-Asked-Questions.
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.
Bar Council Bookshop Read MORE … but pay LE$$! Members enjoy a 20% discount on LexisNexis publications at the Bar Council Bookshop. Click on the link above for the list of available titles.
International Malaysia Law Conference (26 to 28 Sept 2012) Hurry up! The countdown continues and the current promotion rate ends 30 June 2012. Don't miss what is going to be the best conference in the region! On top of that, if you sign up with 5 or more people from the same organisation, we will give you a 10% group discount. Click on the link above to register.
Talk on Summary Judgement (25 May 2012) Organised by the Selangor Bar Committee, this talk will take place at 5:00 pm, at the Selangor Bar Committee Auditorium, on 25 May 2012 (Friday). The talk will be conducted by Ramesh Supramanian. Click on the link above for more details.
Seminar on Tax Issues in Financial Transactions (25 May 2012) Organised by the Kuala Lumpur Bar Professional Development Committee, this seminar, featuring S Saravana Kumar, will take place at 3:00 pm, at the Kuala Lumpur Bar Auditorium, on 25 May 2012 (Friday). Click on the link above for more details.
Dialogue with Criminal Law Practitioners (26 May 2012) Organised by Bar Council, this dialogue will take place at 10:00 am to 12:00 pm, at the Raja Aziz Addruse Auditorium, Bar Council, on 26 May 2012 (Saturday). Click on the link above for more details.
Conference on Competition Law (31 May 2012) Organised by Bar Council with the support of LexisNexis, this conference will take place at 8:30 am to 4:00 pm, at Renaissance Kuala Lumpur Hotel, on 31 May 2012 (Thursday). For more details or to register, please contact Vilashini Vijayan (03-2050 2095; vila@malaysianbar.org.my). Click on the link above for more details.
Talk on What Clients Want (7 June 2012) Organised by the KL Bar Practitioners' Affairs Committee, the talk, presented by Ong Eu Jin, will take place at 5:00 pm, at the KL Bar Auditorium, on 7 June 2012 (Thursday). Click on the link above for more details.
4th LAWASIA Family Law Conference, Penang (13 and 14 July 2012) Supported by Penang Bar Committee and the Malaysian Bar, this conference, themed “The New Global Family: Emerging Trends and Challenges to Family Practice”, will take place at Traders Hotel, Penang, on 13 and 14 July 2012 (Friday and Saturday). Click on the link above for more details.
The Malaysian Bar commends Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Dato’ Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz’s reported announcement that the Government will look into establishing “an independent law reform commission to review and modernise archaic laws in the country”. This echoes a similar announcement made by the Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Liew Vui Keong, on 8 November 2011.
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Circular No 109/2012: Be a Part of the Bar Council Constitutional Law Committee
