Bar: Don’t just blame lawyers, advocacy skills low among judges, DPPs too

The Malaysian Bar says all parties in the administration of justice, and not just lawyers, have a duty in maintaining standards.

george-raus-1 Bar: Don’t just blame lawyers, advocacy skills low among judges, DPPs too

Inaccurate to say that poor quality judgments are due to poor standard of advocacy and sub-standard submissions and research by lawyers, says Varughese.

KUALA LUMPUR: It is unfair to pick on lawyers over declining advocacy skills when the trait is also found among deputy public prosecutors and judges, the Malaysian Bar said.

“Thus it is inaccurate to say that poor quality judgments are due to poor standard of advocacy and sub-standard submissions and research by lawyers,” its president George Varughese said.

He said the decline in standards was not peculiar to Bar members but also extended to the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) and the judiciary.

He said all parties in the administration of justice – the judiciary, AGC and Bar members – had a duty and bore equal responsibility in maintaining standards.

Varughese said this in response to Chief Justice Raus Sharif’s remarks at the opening of the Judicial Year last week that the Bar must accept that there was a decline in the standard of its members and that this needed to be addressed.

Raus had said one could not expect quality judgments when the judges were faced with poor submissions and research.

The top judge said an independent legal profession that was skillful, well educated and informed, co-operative and dedicated to serving the community was important in maintaining the fundamental values of the justice system.

Varughese said the Bar Council, which manages the day to day affairs of the Malaysian Bar, in recent years had, among other measures, stepped up efforts in its continuing professional development programme, advocacy training and in conducting specialised courses.

sn-nair Bar: Don’t just blame lawyers, advocacy skills low among judges, DPPs too
Nair says retired judges such as Gopal Sri Ram, and the late V T Singham were known to do their own research before delivering quality rulings and judgments.

Meanwhile, senior lawyer S N Nair said advocacy skills were on the decline among the judiciary and junior lawyers in the private and government sectors due to a lack of proficiency in English.

“This is partly due to the current education system, and also that legal precedents are in English,” he added.

Nair said experienced lawyers from the Bar and the AGC should be appointed to raise the standards in the Bench.

“Retired judges such as Gopal Sri Ram, and the late V T Singham, are known to do their own research before delivering quality rulings and judgments,” he added.

 

Source: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2018/01/16/bar-dont-just-blame-lawyers-advocacy-skills-low-among-judges-dpps-too/