Before we get into the topic of how many types of lawyers in Malaysia, let us go through some general information and common fact of the legal industry in Malaysia.
According to the lawyer statistical data from Malaysian Bars, the number of our legal practitioners or lawyers in Malaysia had increased from 13,672 to 20,384 from year 2011 to year 2021. Amongst these 20,384 lawyers, 9,190 of them are male’s lawyers and 11,194 are female’s lawyers.
4 Types of Lawyers in Malaysia
The lawyers are generally classified into four main types and they may specialize in any role of the lawyer’s type listed below:
- Civil lawyer in Malaysia
- Criminal lawyer in Malaysia
- Conveyancing lawyer / Real estate lawyer in Malaysia
- Corporate lawyer in Malaysia
Civil Lawyer
What is Civil Lawyer?
A civil law lawyer is an attorney that specializes in non-criminal litigation of civil cases, such as dispute arise between individuals, organizations and private or public entities involving questions of money damages or equitable relief.
The civil law is a system of legal rules and principles that govern behavior between individuals, corporations and other entities. It addresses disputes that causes injury to another person or entity. The consequences include monetary awards or injunctions.
The civil lawyer requires specific knowledge on civil laws and rules which governing who may file a claim, when and where it must be filed and how to file the legal dispute pertaining to the following area of law practices:
- Personal injury law
- Family law
- Real estate law
- Employment law
- Business and finance law
- Landlord and tenant law
- Immigration law.
- Others
2. Criminal lawyer
What is Criminal Lawyer?
Criminal Law is a branch of law that deals with the punishment of individuals who have committed crimes. When it comes to criminal law, there are two main parties involved – the state and the individual. A criminal lawyer acts for one of these parties in court either prosecuting or defending someone accused of a criminal offence.
What Does a Criminal Lawyer Do?
Criminal lawyer’s area of practice includes bail bond hearings, plea bargains, mitigation, trial and appeals. Below are the standard processes of a criminal defense lawsuit:
- Assignment of the case
- Interview about the case
- Investigate the case
- Collect evidences and conduct analysis
- Contact & communicate with client
- Plea Bargaining
- Trial Participation
- Sentencing
3. Conveyancing Lawyer / Real Estate Lawyer
What is a Conveyancing Lawyer?
Conveyancing lawyers facilitate and attend to the process of transferring a property title from one individual to another, works on all matters concerning a property sale or purchase and provide legal advice to ensure their clients have the best protection under the law when purchasing or selling the property.
What is the Standard Conveyancing Process?
Step 1: Instruct a Conveyancing Lawyer
Step 2: Enquire and search
Step 3: Apply and secure your mortgage loan
Step 4: Sign the agreement
Step 5: Exchanging agreement
Step 6: Completion
4. Corporate Lawyer
What is a Corporate Lawyer?
The role of a corporate lawyer is to make sure corporations are in compliance with the rules and company laws, and to advise corporations of their rights, responsibilities and duties.
Corporate Lawyers Craft Transactions or Deals
The duties of corporate lawyers are to structure transactions, draft documents, negotiate deals, attend meetings and make calls toward those ends. Corporate lawyers will make sure that the provisions of agreement are unambiguous and clear to avoid problems to their client in the future.