Receiving my Short Call
When everyone else has done their pupillage midway or are nearly at the end of their 9 month stint, only did I step into a Seremban law firm to begin my pupillage. Why is another blogpost altogether and one that I shall write about on another date, but I digress.
I filed my Borang 1 & 2 at the Jalan Duta High Court on the 30th of May 2017. Little did I know due to an error in the filing system which was moving from Phase 1 to Phase 2 then, my application would expire and thus not be transferred to the current system.
I went on to file my Borang 3,4 & 5 at the Seremban High Court where I was given a new "Originating Summons" (OS) "Saman Pemula" number, which is unique to the Negeri Sembilan Bar Committee only.
Everything proceeded smoothly, I got my short call date just one month after starting my pupillage at my firm, received my "No Objection Letter"/"Surat Tiada Bantahan" from the Malaysian Bar Council soon enough, along with the required forms to fill up in order to begin my ethics course and so forth. Life couldn't be better, I had a good master who was willing to teach me the ropes, an encouraging bunch of colleagues who always assisted me whenever I needed help or advice, and a really comfortable office environment in which the positivity around me just made me want to work harder and better for the benefit of the firm and myself.
On my short call date, as my master was unable to attend as he had another important trial in JB, I was very lucky to have Miss Nicole Tan, an old family friend to move my call for me :)
Basically what happened was: we went to the wrong court in the beginning thinking we were before Tuan Zaki! (Important note: guys, please make sure you know which court you're supposed to appear before, and the judge presiding over your short call. You can find out these details at least one day before the actual date itself by asking the court interpreter.)
Luckily we managed to find my calling number and (another note here: be prepared to wait for some time before it's your turn to be called. Obviously the judge's priorities are on the other cases before her instead of your 2 minute audience to move your short call. Court opens at 9.00am but be prepared to wait til about 10.00am or so.)
When it was finally my turn, Nicole and I walked into the Chambers where Nicole bowed and I hastily followed suit. Just as the interpreter asked me for my IC my brain freezed over: how could I be so stupid as to not bring in my IC?! (Another important note guys: KEEP YOUR IC ON YOUR PERSON AT ALL TIMES.) So yes, I had to mumble my apologies, bow and run out to grab my wallet which luckily was under the keeping of Nicole's personal driver so it was alright, and hurry back to the Chambers.
Nicole proceeded to introduce herself as my firm's representative, and said she had no objections to moving my short call, followed by a representative from the State Bar Committee who said the same thing. And sure enough, in 2 minutes the whole procedure was over and I was led out of Chambers in mild shock, only registering later that all three parties did not sign my draft order for me. (Guys, it's important to take note about this, please remind all three parties to sign your draft order before you leave the court).
So I finally got my short call on the 13th of July 2017. Barely two weeks later on the 26th of July 2017, my master told me to go to the Magistrate's Court to receive a case judgment. ALONE. I was kinda nervous but reassured at the same time that I probably did not have to speak too much because it was just to receive judgment. Master also told me not to get my hopes up as our chances seemed slim but it was good exposure for me.
At the very end, he passed judgment and even though I had listened very attentively because it was all in BM, I was still doubting myself when I heard the verdict: We Won! But then, didn't my master say that our chances were slim? Let's not overreact and ask for clarification. Uponwhich I was pleasantly surprised to know that I heard correctly! We had indeed won!
I filed my Borang 1 & 2 at the Jalan Duta High Court on the 30th of May 2017. Little did I know due to an error in the filing system which was moving from Phase 1 to Phase 2 then, my application would expire and thus not be transferred to the current system.I went on to file my Borang 3,4 & 5 at the Seremban High Court where I was given a new "Originating Summons" (OS) "Saman Pemula" number, which is unique to the Negeri Sembilan Bar Committee only.
Everything proceeded smoothly, I got my short call date just one month after starting my pupillage at my firm, received my "No Objection Letter"/"Surat Tiada Bantahan" from the Malaysian Bar Council soon enough, along with the required forms to fill up in order to begin my ethics course and so forth. Life couldn't be better, I had a good master who was willing to teach me the ropes, an encouraging bunch of colleagues who always assisted me whenever I needed help or advice, and a really comfortable office environment in which the positivity around me just made me want to work harder and better for the benefit of the firm and myself.
 |
| Nicole and myself outside the court :) |
On my short call date, as my master was unable to attend as he had another important trial in JB, I was very lucky to have Miss Nicole Tan, an old family friend to move my call for me :)
Basically what happened was: we went to the wrong court in the beginning thinking we were before Tuan Zaki! (Important note: guys, please make sure you know which court you're supposed to appear before, and the judge presiding over your short call. You can find out these details at least one day before the actual date itself by asking the court interpreter.)
Luckily we managed to find my calling number and (another note here: be prepared to wait for some time before it's your turn to be called. Obviously the judge's priorities are on the other cases before her instead of your 2 minute audience to move your short call. Court opens at 9.00am but be prepared to wait til about 10.00am or so.)
When it was finally my turn, Nicole and I walked into the Chambers where Nicole bowed and I hastily followed suit. Just as the interpreter asked me for my IC my brain freezed over: how could I be so stupid as to not bring in my IC?! (Another important note guys: KEEP YOUR IC ON YOUR PERSON AT ALL TIMES.) So yes, I had to mumble my apologies, bow and run out to grab my wallet which luckily was under the keeping of Nicole's personal driver so it was alright, and hurry back to the Chambers.
Nicole proceeded to introduce herself as my firm's representative, and said she had no objections to moving my short call, followed by a representative from the State Bar Committee who said the same thing. And sure enough, in 2 minutes the whole procedure was over and I was led out of Chambers in mild shock, only registering later that all three parties did not sign my draft order for me. (Guys, it's important to take note about this, please remind all three parties to sign your draft order before you leave the court).
 |
| Seremban Court Complex |
So I finally got my short call on the 13th of July 2017. Barely two weeks later on the 26th of July 2017, my master told me to go to the Magistrate's Court to receive a case judgment. ALONE. I was kinda nervous but reassured at the same time that I probably did not have to speak too much because it was just to receive judgment. Master also told me not to get my hopes up as our chances seemed slim but it was good exposure for me.
I arrived early and proceeded to locate where my case would be heard. (Good previous experience with my short call). After much blundering, (I was so glad I reached so early), I finally made my way to the right court and sat down nervously in the public gallery as I dared not assume I could sit with the other lawyers immediately.
Thankfully, the opponent counsel managed to find me and told me to come up front in which I did. Immediately after, our case was summoned and the opponent graciously introduced himself and me as a pupil-in-chambers representing my firm. The judge, Tn Zaki was very kind to me, he ensured that I understood the procedure and instructed the opponent counsel to explain to me anything I didn't know about.
At the very end, he passed judgment and even though I had listened very attentively because it was all in BM, I was still doubting myself when I heard the verdict: We Won! But then, didn't my master say that our chances were slim? Let's not overreact and ask for clarification. Uponwhich I was pleasantly surprised to know that I heard correctly! We had indeed won!
Even though the only way I had actually contributed to this case was the written submissions, which was the first I have ever drafted, since I had to take over after a colleague left, it still felt amazing to have won :) My very first case! But the best part was when I texted my master outside the courtroom to tell him the good news :) His reply was: Good job! Which is more than I can ask for :)
Master is a strict man who only expects the best work you can prepare for him and so, even a small positive comment from him is enough :) Our firm celebrated my first taste of victory by, you guessed it: making pao XD hahahaha red bean paste this time. And I bought ice cream for the whole office since I was really on cloud 9 at that moment :) My mood was not dampened the whole day and I just had to end it with a cold bottle of beer and a bag of good crisps to end the day on a perfect note.
Here's to more interesting moments to come in my pupillage experience :)
Comments
Post a Comment