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 Justice Datuk Gopal Sri Ram
One such occasion was when close to 300 members turned up on February 10 to hear Justice Datuk Gopal Sri Ram speak on Appellate Civil Procedure. The talk was organised by the Professional Development Committee of the Bar Council at short notice but registrations came in thick and fast, not only from the Klang Valley but from various other States as well. In fact, the overwhelming response necessitated extra chairs being brought into the auditorium to accommodate members, and unfortunately, several late registrations had to be turned down. Some members suggested that the talk should have been held in a hotel.
Justice Sri Ram informed the audience at the start of the talk that he would not speak on Appellate Civil Procedure as all that a lawyer needs to know about that can be found in the Rules of the Court of Appeal and the Courts of Judicature Act. He said he would instead give practical hints to members of the Bar, which would help them in the conduct of their cases in the Appellate Courts. The decision to do so arose from the judge’s concern that a client should not suffer injustice because of a lawyer’s incompetence. Quoting Lord Denning in Doyle v Olby, ‘We never allow a client to suffer for the mistake of his counsel if we can possibly help it. We will always seek to rectify it as far as we can. We will correct it whenever we are able to do so without injustice to the other side’, Justice Sri Ram informed the audience that this has always been his guiding philosophy in deciding cases.
He added that despite the time and effort he had taken to ‘conduct classes in etiquette in the middle of hearing appeals’, little or no results have been discernable as the new batches of lawyers behave in exactly the same manner, if not worse. Hence, his acceptance of the Bar Council’s invitation to speak, in order to reach out to a larger number of lawyers. The hints on courtesy included the necessity to write legibly, the correct way to introduce oneself and one’s opponents (i.e. ‘my learned friend’, not colleague, brother or sister), the proper way to address the Court and the correct order of address (the Appellant’s counsel always addresses the Court first).
Some of the pointers given by Justice Sri Ram include the following:• Always maintain good relationships with fellow lawyers. Loyalty to one’s client is limited to the one brief but relationships with other lawyers are for the long term. • Do not take preliminary objections and waste the Court’s time on technical or procedural points unnecessarily; get to the merits instead. • For case preparation, master the facts and then master the documents. It is important to make the court understand the case and appreciate the point one is making and to be able to state what a case is about succinctly. • Strive to be solid in understanding the fundamentals in order to be able to relate the law to the facts and the facts to the law. Knowledge is the most powerful tool and lawyers should start learning the law by reading law books and law reports. • Study and learn from seniors. There is no substitute for hard work. Do not waste time in any measure that does not improve one’s knowledge. • Cite authorities. There is no need to have many; one or two on the main point(s) is sufficient. The Court only needs to be convinced on the main point(s) of the case. • When drafting the Memorandum of Appeal, draft carefully and widely. Do not address specific points too much. Drafting in general terms will prevent objections being taken. • Do not repeat document(s) in the Appeal Record. • At Case Management, do not take orders for default judgment if the senior counsel does not show up, as the defendant will then apply to the Court of Appeal. Instead, get a trial date to save on time and cost. • If appearing for the respondent and being briefed for the first time, first read the statement of claim or the originating summons, then read your own pleadings in the court below. If there was a trial, read the notes of evidence before reading the judgment. This way, counsel will form an opinion about what the judgment should be. Only then should he or she read the memorandum of appeal. In some cases counsel will find that the judgment is actually supportable on grounds available on the record on a matter of law other than those the judge had made. In such instances, a respondent’s notice should be filed. • When preparing written submissions, do not write in the first person but in the third person. Justice Sri Ram revealed that he does not read written submissions. Instead he reads the records to form a preliminary view on the case, which he then puts to counsel. It is then for counsel to show that the preliminary view is wrong. • Never ever say ‘I humbly submit’ because advocates are never humble. The judge said that advocates are respectful but are forever without humility because they stand tall, being the only profession in this world which has the right of representation. No other professions can represent another human being in court.
 The judge was at pains to emphasise the importance of always being polite to the Court. He stressed that if counsel has to do something that may offend the Bench, he or she should always explain, e.g. if he has to turn his back to the Bench to speak to his junior, he should say ‘My lord, may I have a moment to have a word with my junior on a point?’ or ‘May I have your Lordship’s permission to turn my back to get a document?’ This is part of the simple elementary ethics and courtesy expected of every advocate, which is now sadly lacking in today’s advocate. As the profession has exploded, the quality of advocates has deteriorated. He encouraged lawyers and the Bar Council to take action to stop the rot and to have meetings with other judges to seek their views.
In winding up, Justice Sri Ram again noted the special position of advocates in society, being the only people who have assumed the great power of persuasion, i.e. the power to persuade another human being to take a position different from the position that person wants to take. This power of persuasion will be enhanced by the quality of the language used. He again urged lawyers to learn how to address a court, how to deal with the other side and to speak properly.
During the question and answer session, the judge fielded questions on procedure as well as several personal questions with regard to his experiences at the Bar and at the Bench and his future plans.
It was for all participants a truly congenial way to spend a Friday afternoon. There was not one heavy eyelid in the auditorium that afternoon, testament to Justice Sri Ram’s eloquence and his skill in holding an audience’s attention. What shone through was Justice Sri Ram’s passion for the law and for learning. Needless to say, the participants went away inspired to strive for excellence in their practice of the law. 
Crowded Bar Auditorium - A Rare Sight
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Justice Datuk Gopal Sri Ram has never forgotten his roots. Many times during the talk he kept assuring us that he was and is still one of us. For him to spend time and share his wisdom for our benefit, speaks volume of his character.