More Bar Council members for a better Bar

 

On Sept 25, 2021, the Malaysian Bar held an extraordinary general meeting (EGM). It was held for members of the Malaysian Bar to consider nine motions that were proposed.

One of the motions was to increase the number of elected members in the Bar Council by way of national ballots.

Although sometimes used interchangeably, the Malaysian Bar and the Bar Council are in fact two different entities.

The Malaysian Bar is a statutory body created by the Legal Profession Act with specific object and mandate given by Parliament. All practising advocates and solicitors are members of the Malaysian Bar.

The Bar Council, meanwhile, comprises 38 members who are elected annually to manage the affairs and execute the functions of the Malaysian Bar.

The council consists of the immediate past president and vice-president of the Malaysian Bar, the chairperson of each of the 12 State Bar Committees, one member elected by each of the said 12 State Bar Committees to be its representative to the Bar Council, and 12 members elected from throughout Peninsular Malaysia by way of postal ballot.

The term of office of a Bar Council member is for one year. This means that elections, both at the State Bar level and the national ballot, are held annually. The national ballot elections take place in the whole month of November, with results declared usually on the first day of December.

The ballots are posted by the Bar Council to each individual member of the Malaysian Bar by post. Each member has 12 votes which he or she can cast. Of course, he or she can elect not to vote for 12 members, and instead vote for fewer.

The motion proposed at the EGM on Sept 25, 2021 was to increase the number of elected Bar Council members from the national ballot, from 12 to 16. This would mean that Malaysian Bar members can now vote for an extra four council members from the national ballot.

The motion was carried at the EGM. It was thus resolved by the Malaysian Bar that the Bar Council immediately take the necessary steps to increase the number of elected members from 12 to 16 for the upcoming 2022/2023 election of the Bar Council and this number will remain for subsequent elections.

These resolutions are long overdue. In 1977 the number of elected members was 12. Around those years, the number of Malaysian Bar members were about 2,000. There are about 21,000 members today but the number of elected members has remained at 12 since 1977.

Throughout the decades, the workload of the Bar Council has increased. The number of Bar Council committees, including many ad-hoc committees, is a testament to this fact.

Although ordinary Bar members serve in many committees of the Bar Council, it is usually the Council members who serve as chairs of these committees. More Council members would also mean that the work of the Bar Council can be distributed better between the council members.

Equally as important is the fact that having more elected council members would allow younger members the opportunity to be elected and serve on the Bar Council.

Younger members who go on the ballot usually must compete with more established members, some of whom have served for many years in the council. A lot of the time, younger members lose out simply because the more senior members are more known.

Having more places for candidates to vie for will help create a more representative and diverse Bar Council.

By passing these resolutions, the members have essentially acknowledged that the Bar Council needs to keep up with the changing times. These resolutions are the right steps forward, for a better Malaysian Bar. - Mkini

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SYAHREDZAN JOHAN served in the Bar Council from 2012-2017.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.