Only legal firms in green zones can operate twice a week

KUCHING: Only legal services within Green Zones are allowed to operate during the movement control order (MCO), according to guidelines issued by the Prime Minister’s Department’s Legal Affairs Division and cited by online news portal Malaysiakini.

“These firms must be within the Green Zone (of the MCO) whereby they could then offer face-to-face service with clients who are also from the same zone; and that such clients are not allowed to cross a zone if they were from a non-Green Zone,” the news report said yesterday..

This is part of standard operating procedures (SOPs) on the operation of legal firms during MCO. Malaysiakini quoted a spokesperson from the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of legal affairs as saying that the guidelines were made to facilitate legal advice access by industries that received an exemption from the International Trade and Industry Ministry (Miti) to operate during the MCO.

It also reported that the guidelines stated the operating hours for these legal services are limited from 10am to 4pm on two days of the week, namely Tuesday and Thursday.

“The only legal firms allowed to operate are those involving conveyancing and corporate matters linked to the industries that are allowed by Miti to operate during MCO.

“The guidelines emphasised that legal firms involved in litigation and others are not the legal services mentioned in the SOP,” it said.

The report added that the government SOP also stated that for legal firms with 21 staff and above, only 20 percent of staff are allowed in the premises; for firms with 10 to 20 staff, only 30 percent; and for firms with less than 10 staff, only three people are permitted.

“The legal firms are directed to not only record the attendance of staff by making them sign their attendance and write their names, time entering premises and sign out when leaving, among others, but this requirement also applies to clients coming to the firms. The attendance records are directed to be kept for at least six months.

“Permission to operate does not include meetings with clients, and consultation with clients are to be only for pressing matters, and limited to one client at a time,” the guidelines said.

On April 10, Miti had announced that legal services are among some industries to be allowed to apply to recommence operations during the MCO.