Bar Council Issues Warning Lawyers Cautioned Against Overpromising Case Outcomes

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The Malaysian Bar Council reminds lawyers not to indulge in unethical practices such as giving guarantees or making promises to clients on the outcome of their cases.KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Bar Council reminds lawyers not to indulge in unethical practices such as giving guarantees or making promises to clients on the outcome of their cases.
Malaysian Bar president Karen Cheah said Malaysian Bar viewed such practices of giving 'guarantees' on the outcome of cases as highly misleading and can be equivalent to unethical practice.
"The decision maker in all cases is the Judiciary. As such, we lawyers are not in a position to be giving any promises to our clients or to demand money for a guaranteed win in the case fought in court," she said.
Cheah said a prudent lawyer will always caution their client accordingly and would not demand upfront payment for a 'sure win' matter in court.
"Malaysian Bar believes that most lawyers do not practice such unprofessional practices, which we consider to be misleading and misconceive," she said when asked to comment on a recent case where a lawyer is at risk of being disciplined for allegedly over-promising his client's family of the accused's guaranteed release.
The accused family, unhappy after losing the case in court, complained to the Disciplinary Board, which is reviewing the matter.
The complainant had revealed that the lawyer who attended to their family member's case had promised to release the accused from prison on a payment sum agreed by both parties.
It was reported that the lawyer had also promised to return the money in the event the accused was not freed.
"When lawyers overpromise but underdeliver, it will give rise to members of the public having a bad impression of the legal profession and fraternity overall. This is not at all good for the profession or to be practised," Cheah said.
She said in the professional practice of the legal profession, the prudent thing to do would be for lawyers to remain realistic in managing clients' expectations.
She, too, clarified a report published by an online news portal that claimed the Malaysian Bar lodged a formal complaint to the Disciplinary Board.
Cheah said the Bar did not complain about the lawyer's matter. Instead, the client's family member complained to the Disciplinary Board.
"The Bar Council and the Disciplinary Board are independent of each other under the Legal Profession Act 1976.
"The Bar Council did not make that decision. It is the Disciplinary Board that has the powers to make any decision on the lawyer's fate," she added. - NST

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