Feedback Deadline Extended To 15 January 2020 | Rethinking the Legal Profession (Publicity Rules) 2001: A Consultation Paper

Dear Members of the Kuala Lumpur Bar,

The Kuala Lumpur Bar Committee Firms & Group Practice Reform Committee has been requesting for feedback to its consultation on reform of the Legal Profession (Publicity Rules) 2001 (“LPPR”) where we have made provisional recommendations to introduce a new, principle-based rules.

If our provisional recommendations are well-received, the Kuala Lumpur Bar Committee will then present the same to the Bar Council for their consideration. Our ultimate goal is to then forward a draft to the Attorney General to replace the LPPR Rules with the New Rules.

We urge members of the Kuala Lumpur Bar to provide your feedback by answering all of the questions we ask in Part C of our paper, which can be found here.

The Problem

The LPPR is intended to regulate the way advocates and solicitors in Malaysia publicise and/or advertise their practice. Since its inception, Malaysia adopts a distinctive set of publicity rules from other Commonwealth jurisdictions such as the United Kingdom, Singapore and Hong Kong.

The current publicity rules sets out a largely restrictive hold on publicity by legal practitioners by:

(a) limiting the types of information to be disseminated, such that only the 18 specified “approved information” would make its way in any publication; and

(b) restricting the scope of persons to whom publications may be sent, which in practice does not allow legal practitioners to publicise to the public at large.

The Consultation

We have prepared a Consultation Paper on reform of the LPPR – Rethinking the Legal Profession (Publicity Rules) 2001: A Consultation Paper. In the paper, we make provisional recommendations to introduce a new publicity rules (“New Rules”) with a principle-based approach coupled with a prescriptive approach in limited circumstances.

The purpose of the New Rules is to liberalise publicity rules for lawyers. Publicity should be allowed so long as it is accurate, not misleading and is not likely to diminish the trust the public places in the advocate and solicitor and in the provision of his/her legal services. The public is better served if there is a freer dissemination of information that will enable them to make an informed choice of counsel.

Next Steps

The consultation has been extended to 15 January 2020.

We recommend everyone to read the paper. Click here for a copy.

An executive summary is also available. Click here for a copy.

We encourage everyone to consider answering all of the questions we ask in Part C of our paper. There is no standard format of answering, kindly respond in any manner you are most comfortable with.

Comments and responses to the consultation can be sent to Melissa Linda Dass at melissadass@klbar.org.my.

Thanks & Regards,

New Sin Yew
Chairperson
Firms & Group Practice Reform Committee

Kuala Lumpur Bar Committee

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Kuala Lumpur Bar Committee
+603 2693 1440
klbc@klbar.org.my
Unit 4.02, Level 4
Wisma Badan Peguam Malaysia*
No. 2, Leboh Pasar Besar
50000 Kuala Lumpur