KOTA KINABALU: Proposed amendments to the Legal Profession Act 1976 to include representation from Sabah and Sarawak on the Legal Profession Qualifying Board (LPQB) must guarantee meaningful representation, says the Sabah Law Society.
Its president Datuk Mohamed Nazim Maduarin said providing representation from both the states will restore a measure of fairness and accountability to the system.
“They will allow both Sabah and Sarawak to participate directly in safeguarding the quality of legal education, particularly in the evaluation of public university law degrees and in ensuring the Certificate of Legal Practice remains a rigorous and credible qualification,” he said in a statement on Friday (Nov 21).
He described the amendments as a “long-overdue step” that acknowledges how decisions made by the LPQB directly affect the standards, integrity and the future of the legal profession in Sabah and Sarawak.
According to him, entry routes into the Sabah Bar, be it through the CLP or law degrees from public universities, have been shaped entirely by a board which neither Sabah nor Sarawak had representation.
“The LPQB’s decisions affect not only who may enter practice in Sabah but also the quality and credibility of those who eventually serve the public as advocates,” he said.
He added that Sabah and Sarawak representation must come from individuals who understand the unique realities and needs of legal practice in the states, and who are committed to upholding standards rather than merely occupying a seat.
Meanwhile, the Malaysian Bar raised concerns over proposed amendments that could possibly open the door to political or executive appointments, influence and interference in the LPQB’s composition.
Its vice-president Anand Raj said empowering the minister in charge of law to appoint and remove a majority of LPQB Board members under the proposed law can gravely compromise professional independence.
“This can create an LPQB heavily shaped by the executive while reducing the Malaysian Bar and the judiciary to a minority of three out of the 13 Board positions,” he said in a statement.
Anand expressed further concerns over how the Bill proposes allowing the Minister to determine the pay and perks of Board members.
“We are gravely concerned that enlarging the Board from five to 13 members, with further powers to create an unlimited number of committees with consequential allowances and expenses, may result in depleting the LPQB’s funds and an increase in costs to law students.
“This is the opposite of what responsible reform requires,” he said.
He said the LPQB’s leadership ought to be entrusted to the Malaysian Bar, with balanced representation from the judiciary, qualified academics and the legal profession.
On Nov 17, deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reforms) M. Kulasegaran tabled amendments to the Legal Profession Act.
The amendments aim to clarify the status of the LPQB as a body corporate having legal capacity.
The Bill also provides power to the minister to appoint certain board members and matters relating to it.
