Tip of Borneo

UMS Aquarium

Sea horse…

Yupe, that’s it, “THE” UMS Aquarium is just a very big fish tank!

Basically, the picture below shows the entire premise…

No wonder it’s free entrance!

Alice in Wonderland & Caramel

Matching colors… perfect combination,
great pleasure!

Just can’t help it, after reading Peter Pan… I went on a classics frenzy… so I bought another story book today and started reading it as soon as I can.

Moving Office

Moving into a new office… more pictures coming soon after “complete occupation”.

Sunset through LX3

Amazing right?
This picture was taken inside a moving car!
With such clarity… I can only say BROVO LX3!

The Genuine Passion

Err… Really not much different from a MyVi!
So if you are driving one, please forgive me,
because I would think you are driving a MyVi in disguise as a Toyota!

Sky 618

The clouds were dancing today…

Pictures snapped with LX3 on AI Mode… while driving on the way home from work.

One of the photos has the LX3 imprinted…

My grandma passed away and went to heaven today,
I’m sure she’s at a better place now…
and look at the beautiful sky,
it was like the clouds were welcoming her return to the heaven!

Cute Bicycles

How I wish I could have one of these…
but I don’t think any of the baskets are big enough to carry Little Dan… like ET…

 

Peter Pan

Bought a copy of Peter Pan (illustrated) from Popular Bookstore @ City Mall.

 

I never had the privileges of reading Peter Pan and other wonderful stories like Alice in Wonderland, Wizard of Ox etc. So I tried to compensate the lost by getting these story books one by one.

I’ve just started reading the first chapter and already finding it difficult to read! So many unfamiliar words… and twisty sentences!

I read it over and over again still can’t figure out what was the author trying to say… :(

For eg: what’s a sweet mocking mouth?

Cheap Lawyer

In West Malaysia, as there is a No Discount Rule issued by the Bar Council, lawyers can “terang-terang” say to their clients that they are unable to give any discount further than 30% (conditions apply).

In KK, if we say we are not supposed to give discount (there is our Advocates Remuneration Ordinance which provides a formula for legal fees)… the client will say, “I’ll get quotation from another firm”.

In West Malaysia, there is also a rule that lawyers cannot charge miscellaneous charges for disbursements beyond RM50. But lawyers can charge RM100 for printing and photocopying, RM150 for transportation, RM80 for telephone, fax and postage, which totals up to RM330 on top of the misc of RM50…

That’s RM380 for misc!

In KK, we only charge one miscellaneous fee of RM100 (some times can be forced to reduce further), which include printing, photocopying, telephone, fax & postage etc!

That’s why I feel so cheap!

Evening Walk with Little Dan

Photos taken with my SE K550i on 8th May 2009.

 

That’s LD vaporising! :p

SLA AGM 2009

How was it?

Well,

The food was nice…
The company was great…
The election was fine except for one silly question made by a politician.

Making a Will

Many people if not all, thought that having a will made (apart from being a bad omen) will be costly.

The fact is, a will only costs you RM200 if you have it drafted by a legal firm in Kota Kinabalu. Because it is such a simple document, lawyers are generally shy to charge you more than that. To me, it’s one of those “community service” expected out of a lawyer.

The frame of a will sound like this:

I, (NRIC No. ) of do hereby REVOKE ALL FORMER WILLS AND OTHER TESTAMENTARY DISPOSITIONS made by me and I declare this to be my last WILL AND TESTAMENT and is to take effect according to the laws of Sabah, Malaysia and I further declare that my domicile is Sabah, Malaysia.

1. I appoint my beloved husband/wife/son(s)/daughter(s), (NRIC No. ) also of and/or (NRIC No. ) of to be the Executor(s)/Executrix(es) and Trustee(s) of this my WILL AND TESTAMENT.

2. I DIRECT my Executor(s)/Executrix(es) and Trustee(s) to pay all my just and lawful debts, if any, and all my funeral and testamentary expenses from the monies that I have at the time of my demise.

3. Subject to Clause 2 hereof, I give devise and bequeath unto the following persons in equal proportion all my estate real and personal of whatsoever kind and wheresoever situate of which I shall be possessed to which I shall be entitled or over which I shall have any disposing power at my death:

(a) Name1 (NRIC No. …);

(b) Name2 (NRIC No. …); and

(c) Name3 (NRIC No. …).

IN WITNESS WHEREOF I have hereunto set my hand to this Will AND TESTAMENT at Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia this …

 

Not many people realise also that you need not actually have a lawyer to prepare the will for you. It’s just a matter of prudency because if you have the will done in a legal firm, the firm will keep a copy of the will for you. So that your beneficiary later, if they can’t find the will that you’ve hidden “too well”, they could resort to the legal firm.

Secondly, signing in a legal firm ensures that your will is properly signed and witnessed. A will that is signed at home not witnessed properly could be challenged of its validity.

Properly signed and witnessed refers to the legal requirement that a will must be signed by the testator/testatrix (ie the person making the will) in the presence of TWO person, who witnessed the signing of the will at the SAME TIME. In simple words, four eyes looking at your signing hand.

Making a will is simple, all the court procedure, distribution of estate and transfer of property came AFTER the death of the testator/testratrix. At this state, you or rather your descendant, will need to appoint a lawyer.

I will write another blog about administration and distribution of estate.

How much a private jet cost?

Bro A sent me a link to this blog alleging that our CM is missing…
(Ritz is not gonna be held responsible for the content of that blog)

We happened to be on our way to the airport last Sunday, and was … at the arrogance of the patrol police “stopping” all cars to the left side of the road to give way to some “black cars”. Yes, all cars were STOPPED, not allowed to move at all. Normally you just wave the cars to the left to make way for one lane, but in this case, all cars were ordered to MATI TEPI JALAN.

Both me and my brother were so curious what kind of VIP would be heading to KKT2, flying with Airasia? When we finally reached the KKT2, we saw a private jet parked at the VVIP lot… oh! PRIVATE JET!

Wow, if a there is a Sabahan who owns a private jet here, I sure would like to know who and how to achieve one :)

Anyone, for those who would like to know just how much a private jet cost, click here.

This is such a nice picture!

The Success Story of a Not So Bright Girl

Below is the long call speech I prepared for my call at Kuala Lumpur which was adapted for the call in Sabah but found out it was not necessary, as here, we don’t need to do the background speech as at Kuala Lumpur. My original long call speech in KL was given by Pn H who gave her own version of it using the facts from the speech I drafted. She gave the speech in such a lovely soft-spoken sincere voice that I myself was deeply touched by my own story told through her mouth as if it was another person’s story.

 

The Applicant, Ms FV, the eldest daughter to Mr VTP and Mdm HBE, came from Kampung Kionsom – a village near Inanam. Her father is a farmer while her mother is a home maker. She grew up in a simple “kampung” environment deprived of all the luxuries enjoyed by most children at her age at that time. Nevertheless, she is determined to be successful in her life and has never given up hope to pursue a degree in law despite all odds.

After completing her secondary education in 1993, she started applying for the Biasiswa Kerajaan Negeri Sabah (State Government Scholarship) from the Jabatan Perkhidmatan Awam Negeri Sabah or JPA every year. In the first few years while waiting anxiously for the JPA’s grant, she worked as a bank teller, legal secretary and even as a court interpreter at the High Court in Kota Kinabalu.

Finally, in the year 1997, the Applicant was granted the long awaited scholarship and with that financial aid, she is able to graduate with the LL.Bs from the University of London via external program at Kuala Lumpur in the year 2000.

Thereafter, the Applicant came back to Kota Kinabalu to fulfil her bond with the Sabah State Government but JPA decides to release her of the bond as there was no appropriate government position for her at that time. She then returned to West Malaysia and worked with a legal firm in Kuala Lumpur shortly before she was offered a position in the Malayan Law Journal Sdn Bhd and has worked there as a legal editor for 3.5 years.

In the year 2004, the Applicant decided to take up CLP course and passed the CLP examination the following year. She then underwent 9 months of pupillage at Messrs BSS & Co and Messrs MKP in Kuala Lumpur.

After her pupillage in West Malaysia, the Applicant feels that it is her obligation to serve the people who has made it possible to fulfil her dream, so she returned to Kota Kinabalu and continued a further 3 months of pupillage at Messrs SYLTCC & Co.

The Applicant would like take this opportunity to express her appreciation to the State Government that has financed her legal education without which she would not be standing here today.

She would like to thank her parents who has been supportive in her long pursuit of higher education despite the family’s financial difficulties and would have preferred if she had started work right after her secondary education to help support the family.

The Applicant is also greatly indebted to her Masters, Mr BSS, Mr PK, Ms NT and all the partners, lawyers and staff at SYLTCC & Co who has given her guidance and encouragement all through her long pupillage journey which started in December 2005 at Kuala Lumpur.

Kompleks Veterinar

Brought Little Dan to the Vet to open up the stitches…

There’s a huge tree behind the complex…
it would surely be spooky to look at at night :p

 

Little Dan from the car to the vet

 

Little Dan exploring the surrounding…

LD messing up room!

He hopped onto my bed, slipped himself in between the pillows…
gave me that look (that he thinks is cute),

and then took his nap… on my bed!

That means I have to wash my bed sheet, pillow cases again today!
That’s LD before taking his weekly Saturday bath…

What motivates you to be a lawyer?

Coming June 15 will be my second anniversary of being called to the Sabah Bar, but when I was asked to answer the question at the Cocktail Reception (no cocktail is served) – a welcoming party for the new ‘callees’ – I went blank!

As I was driving back from the party, I was still thinking if I should have said something more meaningful than babbled about never having thought to be a lawyer and was there all by fate…

But I’ve found out that what I said was really the truth!
The truth is, I really never aspired to be a lawyer…

I happened to pick up law as one of my A Levels subject simply because an uncle of mine suggested I took the subject since my language subjects were stronger (oh, my physics, A-maths results are like 7788), and then it happened that during my A-level year, I was frolicking and never studied seriously (had suffered too much of TTSS for the SPM and UCSE), and got a BEE for the A Levels! Yupe, a B for law! That leaves me no choice but to take up a law degree!

I did enjoy studying law, but all through the LLB course, it never occurred to me that I’d be a lawyer one day. Right after my LLB, I didn’t give CLP any thought, and went straight to the world of employment, earning my first real money!

Then, I get bored with the job (I get bored easily) and thought why not give CLP a try. Everyone says its so difficult but I won’t know just how difficult without attempting it myself right?

So I took half a year off from work, took out money from my EPF, spent all my savings of RM10k (my first 10k hisk hisk hisk)… and miraculously got through CLP at first try (well I flunked Civil Paper, and sat for the paper again in December, but I got through it same year!).

Even after passing CLP I have not thought of practising, I went back for an interview at my old employer’s office… but they actually turned me down and suggested that I give practice a try leaving me with no choice but to proceed with pupilage. And that’s how I became a lawyer… where’s the motivation?

Well, if I have to give a reason, that would be:
I need a job!

 

JID to be stood down

The court recently issued a circular instructing all cases where any party involved is not present to be stood down for a period of time to be called again. The reason being, to give time for any party who might be late due to any inevitable circumstances.

This morning, while I was in court with many other learned friends, we could see from the empty public gallery that none of the defendants or debtors are present. Nevertheless, the court started calling the cases and when the court was informed of the absence of the defendant, all our cases are stood down. After one big round of standing down all our cases, the interpreter tirelessly called up the cases again from the top of the list.

What a waste of sorry time!

This circular came about, I guess, after I JID’d (well, technically, it was the judge that has entered the judgment against him, anyway…) a defendant who claimed he was in court the other day!

It happened that day when the SAR was sitting in place of the Magistrate who were on leave that day. Instead of calling the cases in open court, all the JID matters were conducted in chambers. So when my case was called, the interpreter called out to the public gallery, the name of so-and-so. No one responded, so I proceeded into the chamber and asked for a judgment in default of appearance which was granted.

Half way back to the office, I was called by the Firm’s staff to return to the Magistrates Court. I walked back to the court, and was informed by the court interpreter that the Defendant has insisted for the case to be called again. At that point of time, a judgment has been entered, so I explained to him that unless the sitting judge willing to get back on his judgment I can’t do anything about the JID against him. Of course, the guy was furious, but the SAR refused to rehear the case so I advised him to engage another lawyer to set aside the judgment if he feels that the judgment has been wrongly entered. (he told me he planned to admit the claim anyway)

Then the following week, I was informed that the court set another date to rehear his case, apparently, he had complained of the matter up to Kuching High Court! And then this court circular came about!

Fact is, I fit the court circular ridiculous. As long as the debtor/defendant is duly served (or deemed duly served), why should we give time to the late/absent defendants? If they were late due to any good reason, however inevitable, they could still apply to the court to have the judgment set aside. Why should the plaintiff/plaintiff’s solicitors be deprived of precious time, just to wait for a debtor/defendant who might or might not show up? As long as the name is called out and there were no respond from the public gallery, he/she is already in default of appearance. Simple as that!

This morning there were not many cases, imagine there were 200 over debt cases (most of them are JID), the court is expected to call all the cases one time then only come back to enter judgment? That’s not efficient!

Update LX3 to Ver 1.3!

For instructions, click here.

The the new software, there should be:

1. Improved auto white balance performance.
2. Improved auto white balance performance in sunset mode.
3. Improved recovery operation from unremoved lens cap.
4. Improved operation of MF ASSIST/AF area selection.
5. Improved display of Manual Exposure Assistance.

Whatever…

Lok Kawi Wildlife Park

It was cloudy, and was not blue sky sunny… yet visiting the Wildlife Park was still a very sweaty sticky experience! I was there mainly to test my photography skill but found out that I got nothing interesting to shoot, maybe I was blind to beauty? Sigh!

I also miss the Otters so much… and since heard they have had a baby Otter recently, so I decided to pay them a visit, but… they were not found… don’t know who took them away? Hisk hisk hisk!

And I missed the animals show, double sighs!

PS: I drove my dad’s Hilux there and bumped the Hilux to a lamp post! The rear bumper is now dented… triple sighs!