Azailiza is new solicitor general

PUTRAJAYA: Deputy solicitor general I, Datuk Azailiza Mohd Ahad will take over as the country's 17th solicitor general on Nov 1.

She replaces Tan Sri Idrus Harun who has been appointed as a court of appeal judge.

Attorney general Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail disclosed this at the staff monthly assembly here.

Azailiza had also previously headed the International Affairs Division in the Attorney General's Chambers (AGC).

She was involved in negotiations on the Malaysia-European Union Free Trade Agreement, Malaysia-EU Partnership Cooperation Agreement and Malaysia-US Trade Agreement.

She was also in the Malaysian team entrusted to handle international disputes involving the country, at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea and International Court of Justice.

The attorney general also disclosed that deputy solicitor general II, Datuk Tun Abd Majid Tun Hamzah would move up as deputy solicitor general I(Litigation).

Tun Abd Majid who formerly headed the Prosecution Division is known for his role in high profile cases including the murder trial of a Mongolian woman, Altantuya Shaariibuu.

He was also at the forefront of the corruption cases involving Tan Sri Kasitah Gaddam and Tan Sri Eric Chia Eng Hock, and the murder trial of Hasleeza Ishak, the Raja Di-Hilir Perak's second wife. 

Meanwhile, solicitor general III, Datuk Engku Nor Faizah Engku Atek is the new solicitor general II (Legislation), while Advisory Division head Datuk Khadijah Idris replaces her.

During the assembly, the AGC's workforce also toasted the achievement of their Syariah legal advisor Tan Sri Sheikh Ghazali Abdul Rahman, who was recently named 'Tokoh Maal Hijrah 2014'.

Sheikh Ghazali who has been with the AGC since April 2008, was formerly a high court judge before retiring in 1993. He had also previously served as Syarie chief justice. - Bernama