A SPEECH BY THE RIGHT HONOURABLE TUN RAUS SHARIF, THE CHIEF JUSTICE OF

IN CONJUNCTION WITH

UniSZA INNS AND GRADUATION DINNER 2018 FACULTY OF LAW AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS (FUHA) UNIVERSITI SULTAN ZAINAL ABIDIN TERENGGANU

17 MARCH 2018 / 8.30 P.M PRIMULA BEACH HOTEL, KUALA TERENGGANU

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Bismillahirahmaanirahim

Assalamualaikumwarahmatulahiwabarakatuh dan Salam Sejahtera

Yang Berbahagia Professor Datuk Dr. Ahmad Zubaidi Abdul Latif Naib Canselor Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA)

Yang Berbahagia Professor Dr. Zuhairah Ariff Abdul Ghadas Dekan Fakulti Undang-Undang dan Hubungan Antarabangsa, UniSZA

Yang Arif Dato’ Haji Zainal Azman Abdul Aziz Hakim Mahkamah Tinggi Kuala Terengganu

Yang Arif Dato’ Ahmad Bache Pesuruhjaya Kehakiman Mahkamah Tinggi Kota Bharu

Yang Berusaha Tuan Mohammad Haldar Abdul Aziz Pengarah Mahkamah Negeri Terengganu

Encik Mohd Hayyatuddin Muhammad Wakil Jawatankuasa Peguam Negeri Terengganu

Miss Li Ling A Representative of Bangor University, Wales

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Pegawai-Pegawai Kehakiman, Pensyarah-pensyarah, kakitangan dan pelajar Fakulti Undang-Undang dan Hubungan Antarabangsa (FUHA), UniSZA.

Dif-dif kehormat, hadirin dan hadirat yang saya hormati sekalian,

1. Terlebih dahulu, saya memanjatkan syukur ke hadrat Allah Subhanahu Wataala kerana dengan limpah izin-Nya, dapat kita semua bertemu pada malam ini sempena UniSZA Inns and Graduation Dinner 2018, Fakulti Undang- Undang dan Hubungan Antarabangsa, Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin, Terengganu.

2. Saya difahamkan, UniSZA Inns adalah Inns yang pertama sekali ditubuhkan dari kalangan enam Fakulti Undang- Undang, Universiti Awam di negara kita. Tahniah kepada UniSZA Inns.

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Hadirin yang saya kasihi sekalian,

3. Saya diberitahu bahawa pada malam ini, tujuan utama saya dijemput hadir di Majlis ini adalah untuk meraikan pelajar undang-undang tahun akhir dan pelajar Diploma Undang- Undang, yang akan melengkapkan pengajian mereka menjelang bulan Jun tahun ini. Dengan itu saya diminta untuk memberi kata-kata semangat dan nasihat kepada pelajar-pelajar ini.

So dear graduating students,

4. You are about to complete one phase of your life, that is, “the student life”, and you will embarking on to another phase which I call “the real life.” You will soon realise that the real life is very different from your student life. Your care-free student life is over. Gone. Bye-bye!

5. In real life, you will find that, things you never thought were important, are important. You will find that, at times, you will have to be pragmatic rather than idealistic. You will find that, most of the time, you do not have the right to choose your boss but you will have to put up with him. And you have to remember that “Bosses” are always right. If you

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do something wrong, you hold your hand up, apologise. Do what it takes to make it right and move on.

6. In real life, you will find that knowing the law is not enough if you do not have clients. So, be prepared for some culture shock and make adjustments from the way you do things during your student life to the way you should do things in real life. The faster you make the adjustments, the better.

7. But do not despair or feel scared to face the real life. The good thing about graduating with a law degree is you have more options to choose when it comes to your career. With a law degree, you can do many things. You are more marketable.

8. Upon graduation, you can join the Judicial and Legal Service or the Civil Service (PTD). You can choose to practise law. In order to be qualified to practise, you will need to undergo chambering and be called to the Bar. You can also join the corporate world, the banking and financial sector. You may start your own business, become a politician, or do nothing. In short, you have plenty of options as to what you want to pursue as your career when you have a law degree.

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9. I give you an example. When I graduated in 1976 as the first batch of law graduate from the Law Faculty, University of Malaya, straight away I joined the Judicial and Legal Service. You may ask, why the Judicial and Legal Service? I had no choice at the time, as I was a government scholar, bonded by the scholarship contract to serve the Government for 10 years.

10. In the Judicial and Legal Service, I started as a Magistrate. I served as a Magistrate in and thereafter, at various towns in such as Pontian, Kluang, Batu Pahat and Muar. In Kluang and Muar, I was designated as the President of Sessions Court at that time.

11. After three years, I was promoted to become the Deputy Public Prosecutor for the States of Kelantan and Terengganu. After two years, I was again promoted and became the Legal Advisor in the Ministry of International Trade and Industry. Two years after that I became a State Legal Advisor for . On my third year as the State Legal Advisor of Malacca, I have by then completed my 10- year contract with the Government. It means I was free to leave the service. In fact, during that period, there were number of offers for me to join legal firms and also the

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corporate sector. Financially, it was attractive, but I decided against it. Instead, after four years as the State Legal Advisor of Malacca, I decided to do my masters at the London School of Economics (LSE). With that I was further bonded by a contract to serve the Government for another two years.

12. When I came back, I served as a Legal Advisor to the Pension Division of the Public Service Department, at the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Home Affairs. Thereafter, I was appointed as a Legal Advisor to the State of Kelantan. After two years, I was transferred back to Kuala Lumpur upon my appointment as the Treasury Solicitor at the Ministry of Finance. I served as the Treasury Solicitor for four years before I was elevated to the Bench as a Judicial Commissioner in 1994. In total, I served for 18 years in Judicial and Legal Service. That constitutes the first part of my real life.

13. Why I am telling you all these? The reason is, I hope it gives you some inspiration or guidance as to what you want to do in your real life. As you may have observed, my career path in the Judicial and Legal Service may look impressive. That is what I think. But, it was not all plain-sailing. I had

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my ups and downs while I was in the Service. There were time I was bypassed by my juniors in terms of promotion. Of course, I was disappointed when it happened, but it did not distract me for too long.

14. As you may have noticed, within the 18 years of my employment in the Judicial and Legal Service, I was transferred from one place to another, no less than 14 times. Whenever I received my transfer order, sometimes at short notice, I never ever protested or complained. As a true government servant I pledged to the slogan “Saya Yang Menurut Perintah”. Wherever I go, I treated my bosses with respect, and I did my work diligently and to the best of my ability.

15. During those 18 years, I had the opportunity to work with Tun for two years when I was at the Ministry of Home Affairs; with Tengku Ahmad Rithauddeen, when I was at the Ministry of International Trade and Industry and later at the Ministry of Defence; with Tan Sri Abdul Rahim Thamby Chik when I was the State Legal Advisor of Malacca; and with Tok Guru Nik Aziz when I was the State Legal Advisor of Kelantan, and with Dato’ Seri for four years when I

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was the Treasury Solicitor at the Ministry of Finance. At the time, my immediate boss, Tan Sri Abu Talib Othman, was the then the Attorney General of Malaysia.

16. The experience of working with these people was something I will treasure for the rest of my life. May be one day I will write a book for all of you to read - My Story.

17. Alhamdulillah, all of my efforts as an officer in the Judicial and Legal Service were noticed by my bosses and, at the age of 42, I was appointed as a Judicial Commissioner. Less than two years later, I was confirmed as a High Court Judge. As a High Court Judge, I have served in the Criminal Division, Civil Division, Commercial Division and the Appellate and Special Powers Division of the High Court in Kuala Lumpur.

18. In addition, I also served as a Judge in the High Court Shah Alam, , Penang, and Muar, Johor. I served for 12 in total years as a High Court Judge before I was appointed as a Court of Appeal Judge on 28 July 2008. I served at the Court of Appeal for one year and three months before being appointed as a Federal Court Judge on 14 October 2009. On 12 September 2011, I was appointed as the President of the Court of Appeal, the second highest post in the

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Judiciary. I served as the President of the Court of Appeal for 5 years. And on 1 April 2017, I was appointed as the Chief Justice of Malaysia. In total I have served close to 25 years as a Judge of the Superior Courts.

19. Some of you are probably wondering, why I am blowing my trumpet? It is just to tell you, if you decide to join the Judicial and Legal Service, you may have the chance to one day to be the Chief Justice of Malaysia. So, dare to dream. Work hard to make that dream materialise!

20. As I mentioned earlier, I am the first batch of law graduates from the Law Faculty of the University of Malaya in 1976. 45 of us graduated that year. Half of us joined the Judicial and Legal Service. Half way, some left to set up their own legal practice and some joined the corporate world. Of those who remained, two ended up as Judicial Commissioners, three as High Court Judges, two as Court of Appeal Judges, four as Federal Court Judges, one as a President of the Court of Appeal and I ended as the Chief Justice. Not bad at all!

21. So, you have endless choices and possibilities. It is not compulsory for you to join the Judicial and Legal Service in

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order to become a Judge or one of the top Judges. There were also lawyers who became Judges and subsequently served as Chief Justices. But the fact is that, out of the 14 Chief Justices of Malaysia after Merdeka, only two came from the Bar. The rest were from the Judicial and Legal Service. For that matter, the majority of our Judges now, are from the Judicial and Legal Service. So, if you have that burning desire to become a Judge, join the Judicial and Legal Service. You have a better chance of becoming a Judge.

22. However, if you decide not to join or you do not get selected to join the Judicial and Legal Service, you can practice. As you should know, to practice, you have to first do chambering, a compulsory nine-month term of practical training under the supervision of a senior lawyer, you call “your Master”. The most important thing during chambering is, you must learn as much as possible from your Master. Gain as much knowledge as you can in relation to how he runs the office and manages the finance. Learn the culture of being a lawyer. Follow your Master to court, observe the way he handles Judges and opposing counsels. Whenever possible, try to impress your Master by helping

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him with the cases and giving your opinion. If you are lucky, he may offer you a job in the legal firm.

23. If you are not that lucky, then after you are called to the Bar, I would suggest that you work as an associate in an established legal firm. Work in the firm for three to five years before starting on your own. I have no experience in this area but I am told, if you are willing to work hard it can be financially rewarding.

24. Another avenue you may wish to explore, is the corporate world. Visit the website of any reputable corporation, company or agency, and you will find that there will always be a legal counsel or legal advisor in their management team. Legal advisors or in-house counsels, as they are better known, are basically lawyers who do not to come to court. You will find that most companies have established an in-house legal department to oversee compliance with laws, the legality of transactions, and the vetting of agreements. There are plenty of opportunities for growth within the relevant commercial sector. For example oil and gas, banking, finance, insurance, shipping etc. Who knows,

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after climbing the corporate ladder, one day, you may end up on the board or as the CEO of the company.

25. If you are running a company, you may want to follow the business philosophy of Tan Sri Tony Fernandes, i.e: (i) A company must be able to adapt to change; (ii) A company must be disruptive. It must create models that were not there before; and (iii) A company must have the right people.

26. You must remember that, when a company is not innovating, it will die.

27. Another path you may want to venture down is to become a politician. If you are lucky, you may end up as a Member of Parliament or a member of the State Legislative Assembly or a Minister or even the Prime Minister. Presently, there are quite a number of the Malaysian Cabinet and Members of Parliament who are lawyers.

28. You should know that there is no short cut to success. You cannot become the Chief Justice, Prime Minister, a Minister or a successful lawyer overnight. It needs lot of hard work,

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perseverance, patience and dedication in order to reach that pinnacle. And of course, with a little bit of luck and Dengan Izin Allah jua.

29. At this young age, you must try to gain as much as experience as possible. At the same time, learn from the experience of others. One way of learning from other people’s experience is by talking to them. Another way is by reading. Read the biography by these successful people. On management, you may read this book “Flying High, My Story: From AirAsia to QPR- Tony Fernandes. It is a story of how Tony Fernandes started AirAsia and turned it into what it is today. From the book, you can learn a thing or two about management and how Tony Fernandes accomplished amazing things. You can also read the book on Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary, to understand how he started his business and built his business empire, through hard work and perseverance.

30. From the Judiciary, we have the book Tun Abdul Hamid Mohamad : “I Will Never Beg”. A very interesting book to read on the life and journey of Tun Hamid Mohamad who ended up as the Chief Justice against all odds. We also have the book Tun Zaki: “No-nonsense”. In Tun Zaki’s book,

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there are a few chapters on the Judicial Reform programme he introduced that helped to clear the backlog of cases. The latest book you should read is entitled “No Wrong Door: The Story of Sidek Hassan”. The story of a Kampung boy from Cherok Paloh, Pekan, , who became the Chief Secretary to the Government of Malaysia, and how he managed to transform the government delivery system.

31. As law graduates, you have to read. Through reading, you can expand your knowledge and keep abreast with the

development of the law. For example, as law graduates, you are expected to know our legal system. You must know the hierarchy of our courts and the jurisdiction of each court. When asked, you must be able to explain about the structure as well as the hierarchy of our courts. I am telling you this because there are many people out there, including top civil servants who are not aware of our courts’ structure.

32. As you know, the law is never static. If you stop reading, you will be outdated. Even for us, Judges; the learning process is continuous. We have the Judicial Academy established for the purpose of training Judges. Now, every

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month a group of Judges attend seminars and workshops. They are trained by senior Judges and we call this initiative, “Judges Training Judges”. The senior Judges share and impart their knowledge and experience to the junior Judges. So, we never stop learning.

33. Among the most important skills that law graduates should have are good communication and listening skills. In order to argue convincingly in the courtroom before judges, to negotiate with the other parties, and to explain the law to your client. These skills are essential. You must be able to analyse what your clients tell you, or to follow a complex issues raised during the proceedings in court and at meetings. You must also have a good command of language, be it English or Bahasa Melayu.

34. Another skill that applies to everyone is effective time management. Whatever career you want to pursue you must manage your time properly. As lawyers, time is always of the essence. Punctuality is a must, be it in court, a business meeting or whatever work we are doing. Stick to the time frame. I was in Japan recently to attend a seminar. I was very impressed by the punctuality and time

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management of the Japanese. If the programme is scheduled to start at 8.30a.m, it will start at 8.30a.m. If a speaker is allocated 15 minutes to speak, he will get 15 minutes. If the Question and Answer session is for 10 minutes, you will get 10 minutes and not one minute extra.

35. This effective time management and punctuality is a culture that we should develop, and I am trying to do so within the Judiciary. My principle is that, if the court notice says, the court will sit at 9.00a.m, everybody expects the Judge to sit at 9a.m. So lawyers and litigants have to be there before 9.00a.m. If a meeting is fixed at 3.00p.m, I expect everyone to be there at 3.00p.m sharp. So, we do not waste our time waiting.

36. Dear graduating students! I think I have said enough. Let me not worry all of you too much on this happy occasion. Challenges and problems there will be, in whatever you do. Face them as they come. Dare to dream and work towards achieving your dream.

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Ladies and Gentlemen,

37. In closing, I would like to extend my appreciation to all lecturers and administrative officers of the Faculty of Law and International Relations, UniSZA for your success in producing qualified graduates. Congratulations to the Organising Committee for their efforts in making this event a successful one and thank you for inviting me to this memorable occasion.

38. Once again, I would like to say, “Congratulations!” to all the graduating students; my best wishes are always with you! I wish you all success in whatever you choose to do.

With that, thank you very much.

Wabillahi taufiq wal hidayah, wassalamu ‘alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.

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