This message is directed at first year law students (i.e. students who commenced the first year of their law degree in September 2005) who wish to pursue the Postgraduate Diploma in Bar Vocational Course with a view to being called to the Bar of England and Wales upon successful completion of the course and fulfilling the dining requirements of one of the four Inns of Court)

I quote from the message from the Under Treasurer of the Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn:

"...As most of you would know, this Inn has taken a stance against deferral of Call. This stems from many things, but those students on the first year of their law degree or their second year on a non-law degree to be followed by the CPE are already affected by deferral. In essence, no one will be Called to the Bar until they have completed their pupillage--starting with those on the BVC in September 2008.

The effect on the 1200 students who fail to get a pupillage will have to be seen. It is obvious however that numbers on the BVC are certain to fall--particularly as no alternative qualification is currently envisaged. Numbers applying for the Bar will fall. Those who can least afford to take the risk of coming to the Bar will not, and such an action will reduce the diversity of the Bar. Chambers will select who is called to the Bar and it is possible that those from the less well known universities will gain even fewer pupillages than they do now. Chambers will select from what they know. The overall effect of this could be to create an unintentional elite, but elite it will be and the government could very well take a dim view of that.

There will be an effect on overseas students, who I would suggest are lesslikely to come to train in England and Wales if they are unlikely to get the qualification they seek. Commercial and other work referred from abroad to the Bar of England and Wales, born out of the close link between overseas common law here, is likely to wither over time."

This new ruling would inevitably have a huge impact on aspiring law students who wish to be qualified as a barrister in England and Wales. As of now, a law graduate, upon successful completion of the Postgraduate Diploma in Bar Vocational Studies and fulfilling the qualifying terms as set down by the Inns of Court, would be eligible to be called to the Bar of England and Wales and to use the title-barrister.

By holding a barrister of one of the Inns of Court of England, a law graduate is exempted from taking the Certificate of Legal Practice (CLP) for purposes of admission to the Malaysian Bar. (applicable in West Malaysia and Sabah and Sarawak).

Therefore, there is no need for a law graduate to complete pupillage (training in the chambers of a barrister in England) before a law graduate can be called to the Bar.

However, with the current new ruling, anyone who pursues their Bar Vocational Studies beginning September 2008, would need to secure and complete their pupillage in England, before they can be called to the Bar of England and Wales.

This would inevitably reduce the numbers of students wishing to pursue the Bar Vocational Course in UK. Unlike Malaysia, where pupils are generally able to find firms willing to take on students for pupillage (or more commonly known as chambering in Malaysia), the same cannot be said of the chambers in England. Competition for pupillages are highly competitive and tough even for local British students. It would also mean that a foreign student would need to spend one more year in UK just to get called to the Bar before they can return to their home countries to practise.

Stringent immigration laws in UK also means that employers are less likely to apply for a work permit for a foreign pupil who needs to fulfil the pupillage requirement before he/she can be called to the Bar. Priority of course, would be given to local students. That is perfectly understandable.

However, it would also mean that less Malaysians would be willing to take the risk of investing in an expensive Postgrad education only to find that they are unable to secure pupillage, and therefore unable to gain the final qualification that they need to be admitted as law practitioners in their home countries.

Therefore, if you have any relatives or friends, who wish to pursue the Bar Vocational Course with a view to be called to the Bar of England and Wales, and they are now in their first year of the law degree, please spread the word around and let them have this piece of information so that they are not taken by surprise when they have completed their studies.

Under such circumstances, the alternative qualification for purposes of being admitted to the High Court of Malaya would be
:

Graduate of a local university;

Holder of a Certificate of Legal Practice (CLP) held by the Legal Qualifying Board of Malaysia

and in the cases of Sarawak, either

a graduate of a local university/holder of CLP/Australian graduate who has been called to the Bar.

It is rather sad, I have to say. Life at the Bar in England was more than just studying for a postgraduate degree. It was a year where I got to mingle with students all over England over the dining sessions, appreciating the history of the Inns, getting acquainted with senior members of the Inns of Court, and identifying myself as a potential member of the legal profession.

What a pity....