(July 14): The Bar Council has issued a show cause letter to Umno lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah for alleged professional misconduct after he went on a road show to discuss Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's sodomy conviction, sources said.

The Malaysian Insider understands that the show cause was sent 2 weeks ago, and the senior lawyer has until the end of the month to reply.

Council president Steven Thiru confirmed that a letter was sent but declined to elaborate.

"I cannot reveal the contents of the letter as this is confidential," he told The Malaysian Insider.

Lawyers familiar with procedures on misconduct said the council could only decide whether to lodge a complaint against Shafee to the Advocates and Solicitors Disciplinary Board if it was not satisfied with the explanation.

Steven first mentioned the possibility of referring Shafee to the board at a news conference on March 14, soon after he was elected as the new Malaysian Bar president.

That position also makes him chairman of the council which administers the day to day affairs of the Bar.

If referred to the board and depending on the seriousness of the alleged offence, Shafee faces the possibility of being struck off the rolls.

Shafee was given the licence by the Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail to lead the prosecution team to overturn a High Court ruling which had initially freed Anwar of a charge of sodomising his former aide.

However, the Bar Council felt that Shafee had overstepped his boundaries, when after securing a conviction in the Federal Court, the lawyer went on a roadshow allegedly revealing evidence in camera.

Senior lawyers were aghast with Shafee's behaviour and filed a motion to discuss his conduct at the Malaysian Bar annual general meeting on March 14.

Shafee, however, countered this move and filed a defamation suit as well as an injunction to stop lawyers from discussing his conduct at the Bar AGM.

Steven said the suit was a separate matter.

On June 23, the Kuala Lumpur High Court dismissed an application by the Bar and 2 senior counsels to lift an injunction obtained by Shafee to stop discussion on his professional conduct.

Judge Datuk Asmabi Mohamad instead allowed Shafee's application to extend the injunction until the disposal of his defamation suit against the Bar, former Malaysian Bar chairman Christopher Leong, lawyers Tommy Thomas and Tan Sri V. C. George.

Thomas and George, two senior members of the Malaysian Bar, had urged the Malaysian Bar to act against Shafee over his conduct following Anwar's sodomy conviction by the Federal Court in February.
 
Steven said the Bar had filed its notice of appeal in the Court of Appeal, against the granting of the injunction.

Thomas and George said that from the time the Federal Court convicted Anwar on February 10, Shafee had behaved in a repugnant and obnoxious manner which brought the legal profession into disrepute.

In their motion submitted for the AGM, the two lawyers also urged the incoming council for the 2015-2016 term to lodge a report against Shafee with the board.

They said steps had to be taken to further prevent Shafee from bringing the legal profession into disrepute.

Shafee is said to have violated the Legal Profession (Publicity) Rules 2001 which prohibits lawyers from publicising themselves or their practice in any manner.

The Malaysian Insider is still awaiting a response from Shafee. – The Malaysian Insider