PUTRAJAYA: The Federal Court today upheld a Court of Appeal ruling that the Legal Profession Qualifying Board had acted ultra vires in abolishing the articled clerkship programme.
A three-member bench led by Chief Justice Datuk Seri Utama Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh dismissed the LPQB’s application for leave to appeal.
The court also ordered the LPQB to pay costs of RM80,000 to the respondents.
The articled clerkship programme, established under the Legal Profession Act 1976, provides a pathway for individuals to qualify as lawyers without undertaking full-time law school.
The matter originated in 2022 when Muhammad Khairul Anwar read an article titled “Law Degree Good, Article Clerkship Better” on the blog “From the Bar Stool”.
He subsequently applied to and was accepted by Fahri, Azzat & Co as an articled clerk.
However, the LPQB rejected his application to enrol in the programme on Aug 5, 2022.
Following the rejection, the law firm and Muhammad Khairul Anwar filed for a judicial review at the High Court.
The High Court dismissed their application on Nov 16, 2023.
Last year, the Court of Appeal overturned the High Court’s ruling, stating the LPQB had acted beyond its powers by deciding to abolish the articled clerkship programme.
The appellate court found that such a significant change to the qualification framework could only be effected by Parliament, not the Board.
Consequently, it quashed both the LPQB’s original 1985 decision to abolish the programme and its 2022 rejection of Muhammad Khairul Anwar’s application.
Counsel K Shanmuga informed Bernama that the articled clerkship programme remains a valid pathway to qualification following today’s Federal Court decision.
His client can now submit a fresh application to the Board. – Bernama