PUTRAJAYA: The Federal Court has upheld a Court of Appeal ruling that the Legal Profession Qualifying Board (LPQB) acted ultra vires (beyond its statutory powers) in abolishing the articled clerkship programme.
A three-member bench led by Chief Justice Datuk Seri Utama Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh and including Federal Court judges Tan Sri Datuk Nallini Pathmanathan and Datuk Lee Swee Seng, dismissed the board's application for leave to appeal on Tuesday (Oct 7).
The court also ordered the LPQB to pay costs of RM80,000 to the respondents.
The articled clerkship programme, established under the Legal Profession Act 1976, provides a pathway for individuals to qualify as lawyers without undertaking full-time law school.
The matter originated in 2022 when Muhammad Khairul Anwar read an article titled "Law Degree Good, Article Clerkship Better" on the blog "From the Bar Stool".
Subsequently, he applied to and was accepted by Fahri, Azzat & Co as an articled clerk. However, the board rejected his application to enrol in the programme on Aug 5, 2022.
Following the rejection, the law firm and Muhammad Khairul filed for a judicial review at the High Court.
On Nov 16, 2023, the High Court dismissed their application. However in 2024, the Court of Appeal overturned the High Court's ruling, stating that the LPQB had acted beyond its powers by deciding to abolish the articled clerkship programme.
The appellate court found that such a significant change to the qualification framework could only be effected by Parliament, not the board.
Consequently, it quashed both the LPQB's original 1985 decision to abolish the programme and its 2022 rejection of Muhammad Khairul Anwar's application.
In the wake of today's Federal Court decision, Muhammad Khairul's lawyer said that the articled clerkship programme remains a valid pathway to qualification and his client can now submit a fresh application to the board. – Bernama
