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CONFLICT OF INTEREST

(1) Litigation Involving A Body Of Which Advocate And Solicitor Is A Member

(a) Corporation or organization
An advocate and solicitor who is a member of the Board of Governors or Directors of any corporation or organization shall not appear on behalf of the corporation or organization in any litigation or on behalf of any other party to such litigation.

(b) Bar Council and State Bar Committee

1. A serving member of the Bar Council or State Bar Committee is precluded from appearing in any contentious legal proceedings (including disciplinary proceedings under the Legal Profession Act 1976) when the Bar Council or State Bar Committee (as the case may be) is a party or in any way interested in such proceedings unless otherwise resolved by the Bar Council in special circumstances.
2. A Bar Council member who has been approached by a member of the Bar who is the subject matter of discussion in the Bar Council shall disclose the fact that he has been so approached and the subject matter in discussion before participating in the deliberations of the Bar Council.

(2) Litigation Involving A Company Of Which Advocate And Solicitor Is A Shareholder Or Director

(a) An advocate and solicitor who is only a shareholder can appear on behalf of the company in any court proceedings, provided that his professional independence is not affected. His professional independence shall be deemed to be affected if the said Advocate and Solicitor is a substantial shareholder as defined in the Companies Act 1965.

(b) An advocate and solicitor who is a director of a company shall not appear as counsel in any litigation involving the company whether he appears on behalf of the company or any other party.

(3) Advocate and Solicitor Acting In Dual Capacity

An Advocate and Solicitor shall not, pursuant to a power of attorney, issue any proceedings on the client's behalf, and thereafter appear as counsel in the ensuing litigation.

(4) Advocate And Solicitor Acting For Another Advocate and Solicitor In Same Firm

There is no breach of r 3(b)(ii) of the Legal Profession (Practice and Etiquette) Rules 1978 when a firm acts for one of its partners or legal assistants in respect of a personal claim by or against that person.

(5) Litigation Against An Existing Client

(a) This is permitted notwithstanding that the firm may be representing the client in other pending matters.

(b) It is not objectionable for an advocate and solicitor who acts for a party in various existing civil suits to act for another party against the former in an unrelated suit unless the former can show that specific information is being used by that advocate and solicitor leading to a conflict of interest.

(6) Litigation Against A Company For Which Advocate And Solicitor Is A Panel Lawyer

Subject to any express retainer to the contrary, it is permissible for an advocate and solicitor who is a member of a panel of lawyers for any company, body or organization to act in a matter against that company body or organization, provided that before he does so or as soon as it becomes apparent that he will have to act against that company, body or organization, he informs his client that he is on the panel of lawyers for that company, body or organization and advises his client that it may be in the interest of the client to engage another Advocate and Solicitor, and if the client nonetheless desires that the Advocate and Solicitor represent him then in such case the client shall make a statutory declaration or other statement in writing confirming that he has been advised accordingly, but nevertheless still wishes to be represented by the particular Advocate and Solicitor.

(7) Consultation By Opposing Parties

(a) It is unprofessional conduct for an advocate and solicitor to appear or continue to appear in any matter where it is drawn to his attention that another lawyer in the same firm had discussed facts in dispute with opposite party, even though no payment was received for the consultation and the lawyer appearing did not know of the contents of the discussion between his colleague and the other party.

(b) An advocate and solicitor who becomes aware of any suggestion of a conflict at any stage (even at the final stage) should immediately withdraw from the case for the sake of maintaining his professional independence and the dignity of the profession even though no information was divulged to his partner or assistant acting for or consulted by the opposing party. All firms should have a good internal mechanism for cross-checking to find out whether a partner or assistant is already on record for or has been consulted by the opposing party.

(8) Advocate And Solicitor Involved In Transaction Before Dispute Arose

(a) An advocate and solicitor who acts for both parties in an agreement cannot act for either of the parties later on in the event of dispute. Neither can the advocate and solicitor brief another solicitor to act for that party.

(b) An advocate and solicitor who witnesses the signature of a party to an agreement may not appear as an advocate and solicitor in a dispute regarding the signature.