The Court of Three Judges recently backed the Law Society’s findings on a lawyer’s gross misconduct and ordered a three-year suspension from practice.
Counsels Navasiwayam Kanasan Palaniandy and Abdul Muqtadir Haji Suhaime for the Law Society stated that Lim Chin Wah was found to have not recorded BND20,000 in payments from clients in July 2019 while also commissioning an unqualified person to procure legal work. The Court of Three Judges agreed with the Law Society disciplinary committee’s findings that there were inconsistencies in Lim’s evidence in regards to the payment. The use of the unqualified person to procure legal work was never credibly explained and was a blatant breach of rules, said the court.
“Both instances exemplified a disregard of professional duty and gross dereliction of proper professional behaviour and a dishonest arrangement to pay an unqualified third party a sum of money to the disadvantage of the client upon whose behalf fees were in fact paid,” said Chief Justice Dato Seri Paduka Steven Chong, sitting with Justices Conrad Seagroatt and Michael Peter Burrell. “Lim’s conduct was offensive to the profession and the public interest,” the court added before ordering Lim’s suspension and awarding costs to the Law Society. – Fadley Faisal
