The President Ratifies The Second Amendment Brought To The Legal Profession Act

Yesterday, President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih ratified the second amendment brought to the Legal Professions Act (Act No. 5/2019). The bill was passed by the parliament last Wednesday on 19^th October 2022 during the 24^th sitting of the third session for this year.

The passed bill stipulates revisions to the rules dictating disciplinary proceedings conducted by the Bar Council of the Maldives as well as the guidelines on formulating the council’s budget and spending. In addition to this, the bill also focuses on the mandatory training for lawyer license applicants. As per the 2^nd amendment, sections 31(d) and 31-1(e) are repealed and a new section is added to the Act under Section 53.

The revisions brought to the bill also allow provisionally licensed lawyers to apply for permanent permits without having to sit for the bar exam. Once the bill was ratified, it was published in the Government Gazette.