Article and
photos by Azwa Zulsamli, Officer, Bar Council Professional Indemnity
Insurance and Risk Management Department
Since its establishment, the Professional Indemnity Insurance (“PII”) Scheme has recorded an increasing trend of claims in respect of conveyancing practice, as more and more lawyers are falling prey to conveyancing scams each year. The PII Scheme has uncovered many such cases involving, among others, unsuspecting individuals transferring property funds to devious scammers, fictitious clients and/or agents, cloning of legitimate law firms, and more.
With these pitfalls in mind, the Bar Council PII Committee organised a seminar in collaboration with the Johore Bar Committee, on “How Not to be a Statistic: The Conveyancing Scam”, on 24 Jan 2019. The response for this seminar was overwhelming, with over 70 participants, despite it having been organised in Johore before.
As in the previous seminar, Karen Cheah of Messrs Chooi & Company + Cheang & Ariff moderated the session, which featured the following panel of speakers from our stakeholders:
(1) Johan Sahar of Jardine Lloyd Thompson Sdn Bhd, broker for the PII Scheme;
(2) George Neo of Messrs Yeo Chambers, panel solicitor for the PII Scheme; and
(3) Mohan Sankaran, Legal Risk Counsel of Jardine Lloyd Thompson Sdn Bhd.
Since its establishment, the Professional Indemnity Insurance (“PII”) Scheme has recorded an increasing trend of claims in respect of conveyancing practice, as more and more lawyers are falling prey to conveyancing scams each year. The PII Scheme has uncovered many such cases involving, among others, unsuspecting individuals transferring property funds to devious scammers, fictitious clients and/or agents, cloning of legitimate law firms, and more.
With these pitfalls in mind, the Bar Council PII Committee organised a seminar in collaboration with the Johore Bar Committee, on “How Not to be a Statistic: The Conveyancing Scam”, on 24 Jan 2019. The response for this seminar was overwhelming, with over 70 participants, despite it having been organised in Johore before.
As in the previous seminar, Karen Cheah of Messrs Chooi & Company + Cheang & Ariff moderated the session, which featured the following panel of speakers from our stakeholders:
(1) Johan Sahar of Jardine Lloyd Thompson Sdn Bhd, broker for the PII Scheme;
(2) George Neo of Messrs Yeo Chambers, panel solicitor for the PII Scheme; and
(3) Mohan Sankaran, Legal Risk Counsel of Jardine Lloyd Thompson Sdn Bhd.
The seminar commenced with Johan
Sahar giving a briefing on the PII policy — what is covered and what is
not, base excess, claims loading, and the Top–Up Policy. He also
provided statistics based on data collected from a number of claims
received over the last five years.
Next, George Neo captured the participants’ attention with a case study of a conveyancing scam that involved two land purchasers. The plaintiff was the first purchaser; however, the title of the land was registered in the name of the second purchaser. George highlighted some salient points of the case and a group discussion ensued. Before he ended, George reminded participants to always document matters in writing and to obtain acknowledgement where applicable. This will clarify the communication between the parties involved, and eliminate misunderstanding.
The final speaker, Mohan Sankaran, shared his thoughts on the essential risk management practices and procedures that should be implemented in law firms. He stressed on the dos and don’ts to observe so that lawyers avoid becoming victims, especially when large amounts of money are involved. He also gave real–life examples of common mistakes in conveyancing practice, and ways to avoid them.
We hope that this seminar — which is being organised in various states — will raise awareness as well as educate Members of the Bar on the importance of implementing best practices in their firms, in order to prevent Members from being scammed. From the feedback compiled at the end of the seminar, a majority of the participants attended the seminar with the aim of gaining a better understanding of conveyancing scams. Over 92% of the participants said they would encourage their peers to attend.
If you would like to attend the next “How Not to be a Statistic: The Conveyancing Scam” seminar, please contact the PII & Risk Management Department by telephone at 03–2032 4511 or by email at pirm@malaysianbar.org.my.
Next, George Neo captured the participants’ attention with a case study of a conveyancing scam that involved two land purchasers. The plaintiff was the first purchaser; however, the title of the land was registered in the name of the second purchaser. George highlighted some salient points of the case and a group discussion ensued. Before he ended, George reminded participants to always document matters in writing and to obtain acknowledgement where applicable. This will clarify the communication between the parties involved, and eliminate misunderstanding.
The final speaker, Mohan Sankaran, shared his thoughts on the essential risk management practices and procedures that should be implemented in law firms. He stressed on the dos and don’ts to observe so that lawyers avoid becoming victims, especially when large amounts of money are involved. He also gave real–life examples of common mistakes in conveyancing practice, and ways to avoid them.
We hope that this seminar — which is being organised in various states — will raise awareness as well as educate Members of the Bar on the importance of implementing best practices in their firms, in order to prevent Members from being scammed. From the feedback compiled at the end of the seminar, a majority of the participants attended the seminar with the aim of gaining a better understanding of conveyancing scams. Over 92% of the participants said they would encourage their peers to attend.
If you would like to attend the next “How Not to be a Statistic: The Conveyancing Scam” seminar, please contact the PII & Risk Management Department by telephone at 03–2032 4511 or by email at pirm@malaysianbar.org.my.