Sunday, 08 May 2011 17:34
Written by ABEL WEZZI
Has a lawyer not been honest with your money and you felt there was nothing you
could do about it? That may soon change as lawyers found to have misappropriated
clients’ money will face up to 10 years in jail.
Justice Duncan Tambala, of the Special Law Commission on the Review of the Legal
Education and Legal Practitioners Act, said their recommendations were arrived at after
considering what was going on in the country and elsewhere.
The sweeping proposals contained in the commission’s final report were announced
Friday by Tambala’s commission at a press conference in the capital Lilongwe.
The commission has also proposed the setting up of a fund that will be used to compensate
those who have fallen victim to unethical lawyers. It also happens that some legal practitioners
think they are so smart that they can bend rules in the course of their duties. Not anymore.
"Practising while struck off or suspended will attract $5 million in fines and seven years
imprisonment,” Tambala said. “Unlawfully acting as a legal practitioner will be punished
by a $5 million fine and imprisonment for 10 years."
could do about it? That may soon change as lawyers found to have misappropriated
clients’ money will face up to 10 years in jail.
Justice Duncan Tambala, of the Special Law Commission on the Review of the Legal
Education and Legal Practitioners Act, said their recommendations were arrived at after
considering what was going on in the country and elsewhere.
The sweeping proposals contained in the commission’s final report were announced
Friday by Tambala’s commission at a press conference in the capital Lilongwe.
The commission has also proposed the setting up of a fund that will be used to compensate
those who have fallen victim to unethical lawyers. It also happens that some legal practitioners
think they are so smart that they can bend rules in the course of their duties. Not anymore.
"Practising while struck off or suspended will attract $5 million in fines and seven years
imprisonment,” Tambala said. “Unlawfully acting as a legal practitioner will be punished
by a $5 million fine and imprisonment for 10 years."
The commission has also come up with another new rule. Tambala said there’s going to
be a minimum number of years before a lawyer can set up his or her own law practice:
five years.
Renewal licenses which are done annually will now require lawyers to do pro bono work
at the direction of the Law Society. If they are unable to provide the service, they will be
required to provide funds to a defendant to pay for legal services
"There’ll be minimum standards prescribed by the Law Society on how lawyers behave,”
said Commissioner Necton Mhura. “The idea is to maintain the integrity of the profession
whose existence is premised on trust."
Going forward, lawyers will also not charge for services arbitrarily. The proposed law
provides guidelines for minimum charges and clients will be free to change lawyers when
they feel that they're not being charged fairly.--maravipost
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