4/24/2012

Revolution needed in the legal system

With the ridiculously high court fees and legal fees to be paid to lawyers, the system of arbitration needs a rethink to prevent abuses of the legal system. Going to courts today, to be represented by legal counsels, can be a make or break situation where a person can be bankrupted or made to cough out tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars. As such, where are the safeguards for innocent but poor victims who are hauled to courts by the rich and powerful with their sharp and clever legal counsels paid to do the job?
Though there exists a parallel system now in the form of mediation and small claims tribunal to handle petty litigations, it is still not enough to prevent those with the means to get their way to brutalise the poorer victims by abusing the legal system and making the courts serve their private agenda, in the process, bankrupting a defendant even when the case is ruled in favour of the defendants. Settling out of court or through mediation etc or even winning a case is not good enough as the main purpose of the complainant could be to force the defendant to pay for all the legal fees and court fees and the hassle and the stress of going to court. That itself is a very heavy penalty, an injustice that is legal. The govt cannot allow this to go on without making changes to the legal system to make sure that such abuses are removed from the system of legal and social justice.

The main issue is to make the complainant who made spurious or unwarranted, unjustified complaints to pay dearly to the defendant. Also, the legal counsels representing the unreasonable complainant and filing spurious or unsubstantive charges must be made to pay as well, and not allowed to hide under the pretext of client’s advice or client’s instruction. When a case is unjustified in the name of the law, they must not pursue with the case. If there is no prima facie case they must not forced an issue to bring charges against a defendant. If they think they could get away with such accusations on the ground that it is a 50/50 case, let the judge be the final arbiter to decide if the legal counsel is taking advantage of the legal system, abusing the system, and be made to pay for the cost of wasting the court’s time and the time and stress on the defendant.

Let this be part of the judge’s responsibility to punish errant lawyers and their clients for attempting to make the court and the legal system as their hatchet man. Otherwise the courts will be filled with all kinds of nonsensical and petty suits when one party has an agenda or an axe to grind.

The court of law and its integrity must not be compromised and the institution must be respected especially by the legal community. Anyone who thinks he can pay to use the court and legal system to serve his private agenda and personal grudges must not be allowed to get away with it. And the legal counsel must not be accomplice to such distortion of the justice system.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

There will be too many judges if their workload is lightened with the frivolous cases removed from the system and if lawyers are penalised for bringing spurious cases to court, their income will be severely reduced from rejecting al those easy, very lucrative work. Where there is easy money, our system is to encourage more of that rather than to reject it.

Saycheese

Anonymous said...

Walau, more business for the legal fraternity and the Court oso mean more job for the professionals. When more professionals are gainfully employed, more money will be made.
Maybe the Judiciary and Legal Sector will become the next booming industry, who knows?

Anonymous said...

The court is a system of justice for the people. No one, esp the rich and powerful must be allowed to exploit the system to bully the poor and weak.

There is no place for unscrupulous lawyers to do anything for the sake of money to make a mockery of our justice system. And lawyers must respect the judges and the system and not to make a fool of them. They are there to dispense justice and they have important jobs to do to make life more fair to everyone. Don't abuse them.

Anonymous said...

If the State is not averse to it and
or see it as another lucrative industry, who can stop it?

Money is everything in Sin.

Anyway, foreign legal professionals are allowed to practice in Sin. Where are they going to get bizness
if there are no cases? They want to 'poa kah liow', prima facie, frivolous, civil, domestic, merchantile or whatever they are needed and wanted.

Maybe, Sin can be a legal hub on top of vice hub, financial and medical hubs etc.

Many many money for Sin, huat ah!

patriot

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

Hi Patriot,

We are all kinds of hub, property speculation hub, expensive medical hub, legal hub, but remember, who ends up paying.

Anonymous said...

Redbean;

that's a big question!

Lolx.......

patriot

Ⓜatilah $ingapura⚠️ said...

No competition = monopoly prices and cartel behaviour. Also govt controlled racket: law and lawyers.

I am a strong advocate of private law -- where arbitration and justice is decided by private court system, with firms COMPETING for business. No requirement for law degree to practice, although there might be private system of accreditation. i.e. lower barrier for entry, but higher professional standards

Then you see prices fall.

You let the govt run things, prices go out of control and quality suffers. Nothing but neck to neck competition brings out the best, over time of course.

Fierrovcet said...

There will be too many judges if their workload is lightened with the frivolous cases removed from the system and if lawyers are penalised for bringing spurious cases to court, their income will be severely reduced from rejecting al those easy, very lucrative work. Where there is easy money, our system is to encourage more of that rather than to reject it. Saycheese

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