Lawyers have passed a resolution to oppose the over-emphasis of the judiciary in meeting the key performance indicators (KPIs), which among others, require judges to dispose cases speedily and thus compromising justice.

Bar Council president Ragunath Kesavan, when met after chairing a three-and-a-half hour meeting, said judges should ideally be allowed to dispose cases of between four to five cases a month.

He lamented that there are judges disposing up to 12 cases a month.

bar council planning law forum 140607 ragunath kesavan "If judges cannot meet the target of four to five cases every month, it is alright as we cannot expect them to meet the target every time.

"Judges must not only be judged based on by how fast they dispose their cases but, also based on their impartiality and the quality of judgment," he said.

Ragunath said Malaysia’s 13,000 lawyers are not on a collision course with Chief Justice Zaki Azmi in the introduction of the judicial KPIs, but they are concerned that this may have a negative impact on justice.

"Judges are rushing to expedite the disposal of cases just to raise their KPIs and their chances of promotion. As such, judges who wrongly interpret this to mean speedy disposals are compromising justice."

Ragunath said if possible, cases should be disposed within three years.

He noted that in the past, there were cases which took six to eight years before resolution. On appeal, it could last up to 15 years.

However, he said the backlog of cases faced by the judiciary and lawyers cannot be resolved immediately within “one month, or this year, or next year”.

“It may take one or two years to dispose the existing backlog of cases,” he said.

Two similar motions were tabled today - one by Ragunath and the other by senior lawyer Tommy Thomas. Thomas however, withdrew his motion after the floor agreed to incorporate his ideas into Ragunath's motion.

A total of 568 lawyers attended the EGM and a copy of today’s resolution would be handed to Zaki in the coming days.

Earlier, EGMs by the respective state bars were held in Johor and Penang where similar resolutions were passed.

Judges discretion to grant postponements

Ragunath stressed that judges should be allowed to use their discretion in granting trail postponements.

He said if a lawyer has a valid medical certificate, then it should be considered by judges in granting postponements.

“Similarly, if lawyers need to consult expert witnesses in criminal trials, then postponements should also be allowed,” he said.

The council chairperson said that while the introduction of the fast track and KPI system is good, the judiciary must ensure there is enough humanpower, for example deputy registrars and clerks, to handle the court cases.

“Some lawyers have to wait for hours for their matter to be heard,” he said.

Ragunath said the council and lawyers were willing to work with the bench to improve the disposal of cases.

“We recognise there will be amendments to the laws which would see foreign law firms to open up branches in Malaysia, and hence, lawyers and judges here have to take up the challenge to improve on the present state.”

The resolution today also called on the judiciary to exercise their “judicial discretion fairly, sensibly and courageously at all times”, and also call for qualitative justice by the judiciary without ever compromising on its independence in performing their duties.

Not smokescreen

To question whether the emphasis by the judiciary on the KPI system was just a smokescreen or a diversion from other pressing judiciary issues such as independence of the judiciary and judges, Ragunath agreed that the problem had been going on ever since the 1988 judicial crisis following the dismissal of Lord President Salleh Abas.

“The lawyers continuously want to see integrity in the judiciary and also for it to improve on its perception. Public confidence in the judciary has to be restored,” he said.

At the same time, Ragunath said the council's propose action against infamous lawyer VK Lingam for alleged misconduct would proceed.

“We are still waiting for the proper time to take action Lingam,” he said.