AG backs reforms to curb misconduct, end touting in legal profession

Attorney General Anil Nandlall

Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall, says he supports calls by the judiciary for a review of the Legal Practitioners Act with stronger disciplinary action.
Speaking on the latest edition of his show Issues In the News, Nandlall also said touting in the legal profession must end, stressing that reforms are needed to address misconduct and strengthen discipline.

“Too many persons complain about the treatment which they receive at the hands of their lawyers. Too many persons complain of alleged negligent conduct by their lawyers” and “too many persons complain about alleged dishonest conduct at the hands of their lawyers,” Nandlall said.
While acknowledging the importance of the profession, the Attorney General said reform is necessary.
“The legal profession is a great profession. It’s built on nobility. It’s built on honour. As a legal profession, we have to be candid and we have to accept the need to reform ourselves,” he noted.
The Attorney General argued that the regulatory framework governing lawyers must be modernised, including stronger professional bodies, as he called for a clearer and more transparent disciplinary system.

He further warned against unqualified individuals performing legal functions, including Justices of the Peace and Commissioners of Oath to Affidavits.
“We have to take actions against doubts, people who are doubting, persons who are not qualified as lawyers but are performing legal functions,” he said.
“The intent is not to deny anyone of an income.

It is the persons who are not qualified and purports to administer legal advice and to draw people’s legal documents, and who are not trained to do so. They put those people’s lives in utter misery and confusion. They cause these people to lose their properties, lose millions of dollars because work is not done in accordance with the law. We cannot continue in a society that allows such fraudulent, false pretences to take place,” Nandlall stressed.
The Attorney General added that the law must be re-examined to protect the integrity of the legal profession and the public.
As such, he said he will be engaging the executive of the Bar Association on the issue over the next several months.