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(e) he is absent from three consecutive meetings of the Bar

Council without reasonable cause and the Bar Council

resolves that he be removed from office.

Powers of the Council

Powers and acts of Bar Council

56. The management of the Malaysian Bar and of its funds shall

be vested in the Bar Council; and all the powers, acts or things

which are not by this Act expressly authorized, directed or required

to be exercised or done by the Malaysian Bar in general meeting

may, subject to this Act or any rules made thereunder or any

resolution passed from time to time by the Malaysian Bar in

general meeting, be exercised or done by the Bar Council:

Provided that no such resolution of the Malaysian Bar shall

invalidate the previous exercise of any powers or the previous

doing of any act or thing by the Bar Council which would have

been valid if the resolution had not been passed.

Specific powers of the Bar Council

57. Without prejudice to the general powers conferred by section

56 or the specific powers to make rules conferred by any other

provisions of this Act the Bar Council shall have power--

(a) to make rules to provide for all matters not expressly

reserved to the Malaysian Bar in general meeting whether

the same be expressed amongst its powers or not;

(b) to answer questions affecting the practice and etiquette

of the profession and the conduct of members;

(c) to take cognizance of anything affecting the Malaysian

Bar or the professional conduct of its members and to

bring before any general meeting of the Malaysian Bar

any matter which it considers material to the Malaysian

Bar or to the interests of the profession and to make any

recommendations and take any action as it considers fit

in relation thereto;

(d) to examine and if it considers fit to report upon current

or proposed legislation and any other legal matters;

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(e) to represent members of the Malaysian Bar or any section

thereof or any particular member in any matter which

may be necessary or expedient;

(f) with the prior approval of the Malaysian Bar in general

meeting, to award prizes and scholarships for students of

law and to lay down the conditions for their award;

(g) to appoint officers, clerks, agents and servants for

permanent, temporary or special services as it may from

time to time consider fair and reasonable and to determine

their duties and terms of service;

(h) to purchase, rent or otherwise acquire and furnish suitable

premises for the use of the Malaysian Bar;

(i) to communicate from time to time with other similar

bodies and with members of the profession in other places

for the purpose of obtaining and communicating information

on all matters likely to be beneficial or of interest to

members;

(j) to institute, conduct, defend, compound or abandon any

legal proceedings by and against the Malaysian Bar or

its officers or otherwise concerning the affairs of the

Malaysian Bar and to compound and allow time for payment

or satisfaction of any debts due or of any claims or

demands made by or against the Malaysian Bar;

(k) to invest and deal with any moneys of the Malaysian Bar

from time to time in securities authorized for the investment

of trust funds by any written law;

(l) from time to time to borrow or raise money by bank

overdraft or otherwise by the issue of debentures or any

other securities founded or based upon all or any of the

property and rights of the Malaysian Bar or without any

such security and upon such terms as to priority or otherwise

as the Bar Council shall consider fit; and

(m) to exercise all such powers, privileges and discretions as

are not by this Act expressly and exclusively required to

be exercised by the members of the Malaysian Bar in

general meeting.

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Appointment of Committees

58. (1) The Bar Council may appoint one or more committees for

any general or special purpose as in the opinion of the Bar Council

may be better regulated or managed by means of a committee and

the Bar Council may delegate to any committee so appointed, with

or without restrictions or conditions, the exercise of any functions

of the Bar Council.

(2) The number and term of office of the members of a committee

appointed under this section, and the number of these members

necessary to form a quorum, shall be fixed by the Bar Council and

unless so fixed shall not be less than three.

(3) A committee appointed under this section may include persons

who are not members of the Bar Council.

(4) The Bar Council shall not delegate to a committee appointed

under this section any of its functions unless at least two thirds

of the members of the committee (including the Chairman thereof)

are members of the Council.

Rights to inspect file and copies of proceedings in bankruptcy

59. The Bar Council shall be entitled, without payment of any

fee, to inspect the file of proceedings in bankruptcy relating to any

advocate and solicitor against whom proceedings in bankruptcy

have been taken, and to be supplied with office or certified copies

of the proceedings on payment of the usual charge for such copies.

Power of Bar Council to accept gifts

60. (1) The Bar Council may on behalf of the Malaysian Bar

accept by way of grant, gift, testamentary disposition or otherwise

property or moneys in aid of the finances or purposes of the

Malaysian Bar on such conditions as the Bar Council may determine.

(2) Registers shall be kept of all donations to the Malaysian Bar

including the names of donors and any special conditions on which

any donation has been given.

(3) All property, moneys or funds donated to the Malaysian Bar

for any specific purposes shall, subject to the law relating to

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charities, be applied and administered in accordance with the purposes

for which they have been donated and shall be separately accounted

for.

Representation in court

61. The Malaysian Bar may be represented or appear in any

court by any advocate and solicitor whether he is a member of the

Bar Council or not.

Proceedings of the Bar Council

Meeting of the Council

62. (1) The Bar Council may decide to call a meeting at any time

and place and as often as may be necessary, and the Chairman of

the Bar Council may on his own or at the request in writing of

not less than one half of its members call an emergency meeting

of the Bar Council to consider any urgent matter.

(2) Nine members personally present at any meeting of the Bar

Council shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of any business.

(3) A decision of the majority of the members of the Bar Council

present and voting at any meeting of the Bar Council shall be

deemed to be a decision of the Bar Council.

(4) At any meeting of the Bar Council the Chairman shall have

a casting vote.

(5) Subject to any rules of the Malaysian Bar, the Bar Council

may regulate its own proceedings and in particular the holding of

meetings, the notice to be given of any meetings, the proceedings

at the meeting, the keeping of minutes and the custody, production

and inspection of the minutes.

Expenses of members

63. No fees shall be paid to any member of the Bar Council but

a member may be reimbursed from the funds of the Malaysian Bar

for travelling expenses incurred by him in relation to the affairs

of the Malaysian Bar.

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General Meeting of the Malaysian Bar

Annual general meetings

64. (1) The Bar Council shall each year convene an annual general

meeting of the Malaysian Bar to be held before the first day of

April.

(2) The Bar Council shall cause to be prepared and presented

to the annual general meeting--

(a) a report on the activities of the Malaysian Bar during its

term of office; and

(b) proper accounts, duly audited, of all funds, property and

a s s e t s of the Malaysian Bar for the twelve months

terminating on the 31 day of December immediately

preceding such general meeting.

General meeting

65. (1) The Bar Council may convene a general meeting of the

Malaysian Bar other than the annual general meeting at any time

the Bar Council considers it necessary or expedient.

(2) Any fifty members of the Malaysian Bar may at any time

requisition a general meeting by written notice in that behalf signed

by them and served on the President, Vice-President or the Secretary

of the Malaysian Bar; and the Bar Council shall convene a general

meeting to be held within thirty days of such service.

(3) The written notice shall specify the object or objects of the

proposed meeting.

(4) If the Bar Council fails to convene a general meeting in

accordance with the requisition within thirty days of the service

of such requisition, the requisitioning members may convene the

general meeting within sixty days of such service.

(5) If any member of the Malaysian Bar desires to propose any

motion to be considered at the annual or other general meeting to

be convened under this section, he shall not less than seven days

before the date of the meeting serve upon the Secretary of the

Malaysian Bar notice of such motion in writing.

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Voting

66. At every general meeting other than an annual general meeting,

every member present shall have one vote and the Chairman of

that meeting shall have a casting vote.

Quorum

67. (1) The quorum for a general meeting of the Malaysian Bar

shall be one-fifth of the total number of members of the Malaysian

Bar personalIy present of any greater number as shall be provided

under any rules made pursuant to paragraph 42(2)(d); and no

business shall be transacted at any general meeting unless a quorum

is present when the meeting proceeds to business.

(2) Any general meeting, whether convened on the requisition

of members pursuant to subsection 65(2) or convened pursuant to

subsection 65(4), shall be dissolved if a quorum is not present

within half an hour from the time appointed for holding the meeting.

(3) Any question at a general meeting of the Malaysian Bar

shall be decided by the votes of not less than two-thirds of the

members present and voting.

State Bar Committee

Combined Bar - State Bar Committee

68. (1) In this Part--

"combined Bar" means a State Bar which combines all the

members in any two or more States and recognized as such under

section 69.

(2) For the purpose of this Part, a member of the State Bar is

deemed to be practising in a State if he ordinarily practises in that

State. The opinion of the State Bar Committee shall be prima facie

evidence that the member ordinarily practises in the State.

(3) A member may ordinarily practise in more than one State

and all members practising in the Federal Territory shall be deemed

to be members of the Selangor State Bar.

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(4) Members practising in the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur

shall be entitled to establish a separate bar for the Federal Territory

of Kuala Lumpur to be known as the Kuala Lumpur Bar. The

decision to have a separate bar shall be made by a majority vote

of the members present at a general meeting called for this purpose.

(5) At the time of establishment of the Kuala Lumpur Bar any

member who had paid the annual subscription for that calendar

year to the Selangor State Bar Committee shall not be required to

pay a second annual subscription for the same year to the Kuala

Lumpur Bar Committee.

(6) The assets of the Selangor State Bar, which is commonly

known as the Selangor and Federal Territory Bar, shall, upon

establishment of the Kuala Lumpur Bar, be apportioned between

the Selangor State Bar and the Kuala Lumpur Bar in the proportions

that their respective memberships bear to the membership of the

former combined Bar.

Combination of members as State Bar

69. The combination of any ten or more members in a State or

of any ten or more members in two or more States for the purposes

of Part IV of the Ordinance shall be recognized as a State Bar for

the purposes of this Act provided that not less than ten of the

members representing the State Bar have been practising in the

relevant State or States for the whole of the period of the twelve

months immediately before the coming into operation of this Act.

Annual general meeting of State Bar

70. (1) The Secretary of each State Bar shall, before the first day

of March in each year, summon all members of the State Bar to

an annual general meeting to be held in that month at a time and

place to be fixed by him. Only members of the State Bar shall be

entitled to attend and vote at the meeting.

(1A) The State Bar Committee shall cause to be prepared and

presented to the annual general meeting--

(a) a report on the activities of the State Bar during its term

of office; and

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(b) proper accounts, duly audited, of all funds, property and

assets of the State Bar for the twelve months ending on

the 31 day of December immediately preceding such

general meeting.

(2) At every annual general meeting, the Chairman of the State

Bar Committee shall preside and in his absence the most senior

member present who is willing to preside shall preside, and the

quorum shall be one-third of the total number of members of the

State Bar. If a quorum is not present within half an hour from the

time appointed for holding the meeting it shall stand adjourned to

the same day in the week next following at the same time and place

unless otherwise notified to members by the State Bar Committee.

(3) Any question at that meeting shall be decided by the votes

of not less than two-thirds of the members present and voting and

the presiding member shall have a casting vote.

(4) The meeting shall elect from among the members of the

State Bar a Chairman and not less than four and not more than six

members to form the State Bar Committee.

(5) The Chairman and the members of the Committee so elected

shall hold office until the conclusion of the next annual general

meeting of the State Bar.

(6) Every State Bar Committee shall appoint a Secretary who

shall be a Member of the State Bar.

(7) After the election of the State Bar Committee the meeting

shall elect one member of the State Bar (who need not be a

member of the State Bar Committee) to represent the State Bar on

the Bar Council:

Provided that where the Chairman of the State Bar Committee

elected pursuant to subsection (4) is also the current President or

Vice-President of the Malaysian Bar, the meeting