a. Anyone can be a middle man but if you insist to sign in front of a lawyer, of course the lawyer must oblige and allow you do so. The problem is that Malaysians don't like to waste time and effort so if there's a runner who's willing to collect all the documents, they are more than happy. So, yes, it is a normal process but if you feel that you want to sign in front of a lawyer, by all means go ahead and request for it.

b. optional but it is recommended to do so.

You have appointed a law firm to act for you who was the law firm acting for the vendor in his capacity as purchaser for the same unit?

I'm sure that in your tenancy agreement, there would be a clause which states that all costs/charges/fees/taxes in relation to your business as tenant will be borne by yourself.

Even if there is none, common law is such that it is you who has to bear for it yourself, since these are requirements set by the licensing authority before they allow you to set up your tuition centre. A normal shoplot as it is does not require such additional fixtures since there is no application for such license.

You want to set up such business in the premises, so you have to pay for it. That is my legal opinion.

Conflict of interest on the part of the lawyer. He cannot act on YOUR behalf AGAINST his former client for the SAME property. It is unethical, unprofessional and against the code of conduct set by Bar Council.

On your part, just pause and think a bit - you're appointing a lawyer who used to act for the vendor. Now you expect this lawyer to act in your best interests, when in fact, he has acted for the vendor previously? Unless your lawyer is a robot, I seriously doubt if he can be impartial (hence the ruling regarding conflict of interest).

You can even read posts in v1 and v2 of other forummers who have faced problems with lawyers who are supposed to act for them but who are most 'sympathetic' and 'close' to the vendor instead.

I suggest that you appoint your own lawyer. Read the post in the first page of this thread for more info on appointing a lawyer. Unless of course if your only concern is cheap legal fees. If so, then perhaps you can go ahead and keep your fingers crossed that nothing will go wrong.

What is the nature of your business?

Should be alright. Perhaps to be considerate and not raise any suspicions, bring in the tools after office hours/night.

The thing is - am not sure if they would allow you to put up a signboard outside the unit, or whether the signboard has be within the boundaries of the unit, like outside the main door but on the wall which is in the interior. Hard to put it in words but I hope you know what I mean. You might want to check that with the management.

What deposit is this? You did not explain. Is it the earnest deposit?

I think I have explained to you that the history of the lawyer already puts you at a disadvantage, so if you remain with the lawyer, the disadvantage is still there. I can't add anything more. It's quite obvious.

My dear, there's like 100 things that can go wrong in a transaction. Even the drafting of the SPA itself, which has to favour you, can go wrong. I have no idea how the lawyer is going to draft one against his former client for the same property.

Perhaps your lawyer is a robot after all.

The description of your business is suitable to a concept of a SOHO. Even lots of law firms are set up in SOHOs. A service-based business fits the use of a SOHO.

As long as there is no commercial trade, physical selling of products, etc, then it should be ok.

Why did you pay the 10% deposit before signing the SPA?

You can request for it back, in any event. SPA not signed yet. Only the earnest deposit has to be paid.

I don't think anyone will be running away with the house , so yes, surely you would get the house.

True, I agree with you, but there's nothing much you can do but to wait for the vendor.

In the interim, have you got your loan approved? Has a lawyer been appointed? Or same lawyer as SPA?

Has your loan lawyer called you to execute the loan documents?

If you have signed the loan documents then that is the most 'optimum' progress on your side and once the SPA is signed and dated, the loan lawyer can fill up the blanks and send it in for execution.

Until that is done, this delay may still well be a good thing for you,mate. Gotta look at the positive side of things.

Boss, I did not only advise on the disbursements. Read my post properly please. I told you to read my previous advice to the forummer before you who asked the same question as you did and my advice to you was the same which I gave to him. Legal fees for your MOT is not scaled fees according to the SRO. It is a reasonable amount not less than RM300. The firm can charge anything they feel is reasonable. You don't accept, you go ask another quotation from another firm.


Yes you can. They would ask for proof of disposal. You can have a copy of the Borang 14A and title after the transfer to show that you have disposed it out of love and affection.

Jury trials were abolished from 1 Jan 1995. Before that, all criminal trials where the accused faced the death penalty were conducted before a jury.

The official reason given by the Govt for abolishing the system was that the cost of assembling and paying jurors were too high. The truth of the matter, for what I believe anyway, was that the prosecution found it difficult to get convictions for cases, especially for murder cases.

Malaysians generally are a superstitious bunch and a lot of jurors at that time were suspected of letting accused off the hook not because they were convinced of his innocence, but because they 'pantang' to sentence another person to death. This was prevalent among the Chinese and Malay jurors. Worse still if the accused was of the same race.

This may sound like a laughing matter but in truth, if you think about it, you can't rule out the possibility. The reason of high costs cannot be accepted. This is the question of people's life at stake, not just liberty. How can costs even be considered ?

Basically, now that the judge has ultimate power, the conviction rate for capital offences in Malaysia is very high. A lot of judges are now known as Hanging Judges because even if you have a good defence, they would sentence you to hang. Judicial decisions from the 1980s and early 1990s which favours the accused and places a higher burden of proof upon the prosecution has all been overruled and replaced by decisions which are so pro-prosecution. Makes you wonder whether the burden of proof is upon the prosecution to prove guilt, or upon the accused to prove that he is innocent.

PS: The TBH video you saw is just an Inquest. It is not a criminal trial. An inquest is to determine the cause of death of TBH and the person responsible for the said death. Witnesses are called to assist the Court. There is no finding of guilt and no sentence is passed at the end of an inquest. Only a finding is made by the Coroner (the Magistrate)

This post has been edited by dariofoo: Sep 28 2012, 12:01 PM

I think the developer is following the standard Schedule G or H agreement which states that stamp duty and fees are to be paid by purchaser. Same goes for Deed of MC. As long as they are not collecting upfront from you then it should be ok. To confirm - check with the developer and lawyer again.

With regard to the other promises, where is it stated? If just in the advertisement or brochure given to you before you sign the SPA, then it is not binding upon them if they don't deliver in the future. It should be included in the schedule to the SPA. You should bring this up with them if you feel that you don't trust them and want it to be in writing.

Can you scan the doc n put it up here? Need to take a look at it before advising further.

DOA is for assignment without title. MOT is for tranfer of ownership with title.

By right you should be billed for CKHT. I hope you lawyer knows that even for disposal without SPA, CKHT needs to be submitted by both parties.

1. No, for SPA and loan, it must follow the scale, so if RM150k property, then the fees are RM1500.00. Fixed. The above queries were for transfer out of love and affection via MOT without an SPA. That is why it cannot follow the scale, because the work done is little compared to a full-blast SPA transaction. So, Bar Council gives the flexibility to the lawyers to set the fees according to what they think is reasonable, but not more than the actual scaled fees (according to market value) and not less than RM300k, in any event.

2. It is not wrong in the eyes of Bar Council for a lawyer in active practice to have another business, as long as:

a) It is legitimate
b) It does not conflict with the legal profession
c) It does not affect the image of the legal profession.

Acceptable examples include opening up a restaurant or pub. A lot of lawyers own pubs and bistros around the Klang Valley.

You can also be a director in a company and collect director's fees. Of course, the nature of the business must not contravene (a)-© above.

3. How can you even prove the alleged bribery?

Both

What loss did you suffer?

According to the Budget 2013 announcement, the rebate remains at 50% but the ceiling has been raised from RM350k to RM400k. It remains only for residential properties only.

If all has failed then the next step would normally be to issue a legal letter of demand.

Depends on the cause of the leak and who is responsible for the leak. It's not as easy as pointing the finger at the owner of the above unit.

By right management should inquire further by engaging a plumbing expert to figure out the source of the problem. You should insist on that, if it is within the defect liability period.