Marcus van Geyzel

A serious threat to the independence of the Malaysian Bar

Marcus van GeyzelLeave a comment

Serious threat to independence of Malaysian Bar

On 27 May 2016, the President of the Malaysian Bar issued a Circular to members of the Malaysian Bar (“Proposal to Amend the Legal Profession Act 1976 is a Severe Threat to the Independence of the Malaysian Bar“). The Circular informed members that the Bar Council had been notified by the Attorney General’s Chambers that the Government intends to pursue drastic amendments to the Legal Profession Act 1976 (“LPA”), and that those amendments “pose a serious threat to the independence of the Malaysian Bar, and are an unwarranted interference into the self-regulation and internal management of the Malaysian Bar”.

Continue reading →

AskTML: Productivity hacks for working professionals

Lee Shih5 Comments

AskTML - productivity tips

Since we launched The Malaysian Lawyer in October 2015, we’ve received a steady stream of requests to feature or write about particular topics.

We’ve decided to start a series called AskTML, and invite readers to submit questions on anything related to legal practice. You can submit your questions via any of the following methods:

  • Leaving a comment in the comments section of any AskTML post.
  • Tweeting us at @imleesh or @vangeyzel with the hashtag #AskTML.
  • Sending a LinkedIn message to Lee Shih or Marcus.

We look forward to receiving your questions!

To kick off the series, this post answers a question which we’ve been asked many times — “What are some productivity tips or hacks that you use in your day-to-day legal practice?”

Continue reading →

Malaysian employment law section on the Eversheds Global app

Marcus van Geyzel3 Comments

Eversheds app

I’m happy to share that I contributed the Malaysian content for the Eversheds Global employment law app.

Continue reading →

7 tips to make the most of your law firm internship

Marcus van GeyzelLeave a comment

7 tips for internships FB

It’s the season for law firm internships — the June to August ‘summer break’ for many law schools. A few years ago, a law graduate who had one or two internships on her CV would stand out. These days, internships are the norm, and a graduate who does not have any work experience is an anomaly.

An internship should be a very intense period of learning, with most interns only willing to commit a one-month period (I recommend at least two months for the best experience) to each internship — because they want holiday time, or to do more than one internship. One month can really fly by, and if you’re not intentional about squeezing the most out of that time, it will be over before you know it.

Here are 7 quick tips on how you can make the most of your law firm internship.

Tweet: 7 quick tips to make the most of your law firm internship. http://ctt.ec/1dSFe+

Continue reading →

Important changes to Malaysian law for employers and employees

Marcus van GeyzelLeave a comment

Important changes to Malaysian law for employers and employees

June and July 2016 will see two changes to Malaysian law which will have an impact on many employers and employees.

Continue reading →

Malaysian Bar Council’s scrutiny of Dragon Law continues legal innovation debate

Marcus van Geyzel11 Comments

Legal innovation in Malaysia image

On 1 June 2016, legal startup Dragon Law announced its entry into the Malaysian market, with a promotional launch offer of free access to their suite of legal documents for a limited time. Dragon Law first launched in Hong Kong in January 2015, and in Singapore in the second half of 2015.

For now, users in Malaysia will be able to find and customise legal documents, sign and share the documents electronically, and organise and store these documents in the cloud. Users in Hong Kong and Singapore have access to various other services, including personalised training, access to a legal drafting help desk and legal clinics, invitations to seminars and events, and legal support from the Dragon Law team and their network of lawyers. The subscription packages for Malaysia have not been announced, but the pricing in Singapore starts at SGD175 per month.

On 12 June 2016, a story in The Star (Legal start-up’s services scrutinised by Malaysian Bar) reported that Dragon Law‘s entry into Malaysia has come under the scrutiny of the Malaysian Bar. It was reported that Malaysian Bar President Steven Thiru has confirmed that Dragon Law‘s services were being studied.

Continue reading →