JUDGMENT

Collin Lawrence Sequerah JCA:

A) Introduction

[1] This appeal raises matters which are of critical importance to the legal profession in that it concerns the issue of whether a person who acts on behalf of an entity to appoint external legal counsel and performs functions normally associated with an in-house legal counsel for that entity, can claim the benefit of the fruits of litigation in the form of consultancy fees on a contingency basis in the event of a successful outcome of the litigation, whether in respect of a matter resolved favourably in court or by way of an out of court settlement.

[2] Consequently, this appeal also determines whether there results from the above factual matrix, a contravention of s 37 and/or s 40 of the Legal Profession Act 1976.

B) Pertinent And Material Facts

[3] The Appellant is an Advocate and Solicitor of the High Court of Malaya and practices at the law firm named Bhavanash Sharma in Kuala Lumpur.