Published: Monday May 25, 2009 MYT 4:58:00 PM
Lawyer files RM160mil suit against Bar Council
By LISA GOH
KUALA LUMPUR: A lawyer has filed a RM160mil suit against the Bar Council for not allowing him to use their premises to launch his book entitled ‘Presumed Guilty’, seeking a declaration that their decision violated his rights to equality under Article 8 of the Federal Constitution.
Lawyer T. Vijayandran filed the writ of summons at the High Court Registry at 8.52am Monday and named the Malaysian Bar Council as the defendant.
He is also seeking a declaration that the council’s decision was unreasonable and null and void. He also seeks an order to compel the Bar Council to allow him to use its premises at a date of his choosing.
In his statement of claim, Vijayandran said he had met the Bar Council’s chief executive officer (stated in his statement of claim) on April 1 requesting for permission to use Bar Council’s premises for the launch of his book.
“Upon the chief executive officer’s advice, I had forwarded a copy of the synopsis for ‘Presumed Guilty’ together with a written request to rent the Bar Council premises,” he said.
He added that on April 13, the council had replied saying permission was denied because their Legal Profession Committee had been assigned to study his earlier book, ‘No Intention to Kill’.
This was to determine if there were any possible breaches of the Legal Profession (Publicity) Rules 2001, the Legal Profession (Practice and Etiquette) Rules 1978 and Bar Council Rules and Rulings 2008.
The book, ‘No Intention to Kill’, is based on a true story of an 18-year-old Indonesian maid who was charged for the murder of her employer who died on Aug 14 in 2001. Vijayandran was counsel for the accused.
Vijandran said that following the reply, he had written to the secretary of the Bar Council on April 19 and April 27, protesting the reasons given as “preposterous and unacceptable”.
He said that ‘No Intention to Kill’ was launched at the Bar Council auditorium in June last year, and the defendant had also sold and earned a commission from the sales of the books.
“They had also not raised any objections for a whole year,” he said.
He said that Bar Council premises were acquired through the contribution of all members of the Malaysian Bar, including himself, and was meant to be a facility for reasonable purposes of members of the Malaysian Bar.
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