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We refer to the letter by S.M. Mohamed Idris (President of Consumers Association of Penang ) published in the New Straits Times on 24 September 2004, entitled 'Lax disciplinary process encourages breach of trust'. En Idris was writing in response to an article published in the New Straits Times on 1 September 2004, under the heading, 'RM44m claims against dishonest lawyers'.

The article published on 1 September 2004 does not clarify whether the claims referred to are in fact adjudicated claims or whether they are pending. It must also not be overlooked that claims against lawyers under the professional indemnity scheme are wide ranging and most of them do not relate to dishonesty. The professional indemnity scheme, established by the Bar Council, is a compulsory insurance scheme aimed at protecting clients of lawyers in numerous ways (and not limited to cases involving dishonesty).

Earlier comments attributed to the Vice-chairman of the Bar Council were made in response to specific questions, and were not made in the context of the statistics that were subsequently published in the said article. It was pointed out that the number and proportion of lawyers who have been found to commit dishonest acts are few, given that we have 12,000 lawyers in the country. At the same time it was stressed that, despite the small proportion, such cases are always taken very seriously by the Bar Council, and that our target is "zero cases" (which is of course an ideal). Hence, we wish to assure En Idris and the public that the Bar Council has always treated, and will continue to treat, complaints against lawyers in a serious and professional manner.

Errant practitioners exist in every profession. In the case of the legal profession, an independently appointed body known as the Disciplinary Board (which is currently headed by a retired High Court judge) adjudicates on all complaints against lawyers.

The most recent statistics reveal that (as at 31 August 2004) the Disciplinary Board has disposed of 81.37% of the complaints registered with the Disciplinary Board over the past 12 years. The process may be painstaking but that is inevitable if all parties are to be allowed a fair representation of their case and natural justice is to prevail.

Upon receiving evidence of any dishonest act committed by a lawyer in his capacity as an advocate and solicitor , the Bar Council will immediately apply to the Disciplinary Board under section 94(4) of the Legal Profession Act 1976 to suspend the lawyer from practice and eventually, to have that lawyer struck off the roll.

The above illustrates the firm commitment to enforce a high standard of integrity and professionalism in Malaysian lawyers. Given that in every profession there are practitioners who fall short of the required standard of conduct, the issue concerns the establishment of the best possible mechanism to minimise and deal with breaches. This process is taking place, and is constantly sought to be improved upon.

Dated : 27th September 2004

Hj Kuthubul Zaman Bukhari
Chairman
Bar Council