THE recent judgment by a High Court Judge in Ipoh against the chairman of the Malaysian Bar’s Disciplinary Board and its committee is disturbing.

The Bar’s Disciplinary Board – a separate entity of the Bar Council – needs much scrutiny by the public, the government as well as the council. It is an affront to justice if a professional body such as this is allowed to make decisions which go against the norms of natural justice.

The Disciplinary Board is known for taking its time to listen to public grouses against unscrupulous lawyers. A reported complaint in Taiping against a lawyer is probably collecting dust. It has now been four to five months since the complaint was made. Why the delay?

Hopefully, the eye-opening judgment by the learned judge will lead the board to be impartial in hearing public complaints against lawyers and eventually expedite its hearings to restore confidence in the board.

Vijay Shanmugam
Taiping

Source: The Sun – May 29, 2008