UiTM's Professor Neville Carter, an Australian who taught at the then MARA Institute of Technology in Shah Alam for a year in 1985-86, claims that he identified and cured "gaps" in Malaysian legal practice (not just legal training) while at MARA, now known as UiTM.
Nevilla Carter had worked in a number
of small firms, including one he owned with
three others, before arriving in Malaysia
in 1985.
Carter says on his Linkedin profile:
I was seconded (between 85-86 for one year) from the College of Law, to UiTM in Malaysia to create a fourth advanced year of study that would enable law graduates to secure legal practice skills and qualify for immediate admission to legal practice. The course successfully addressed gaps in law practice in Malaysia.
The issue of Carter's pivotal role in changing the course of Malaysian law practice( not merely MARA's legal courses) comes back into focus given a recent visit to UiTM, to mark a renewal of ties between UiTM ,Carter and the College Of Law in Sydney,Australia.
The reaction from lawyers in Malaysia has been one of amusement.None, except a few who were at MARA in the 80s, have ever heard of him. His name was certainly not one that was heard mentioned among KL and Selangor legal circles, but then even Van Gogh was not known outside his village when he painted his multi-million dollar masterpieces.
Be that all as it may, Carter and his College are about to unleash even more ground breaking programs in Malaysia, Singapore and the region. As this writer has recently reported:
EN D
Neville Carter
Board Director at The College of Law Australia
Experience
- - Executive leader of the disaffiliation process by which College separated from UTS in 1996 and quickly secured the College as an independent, commercially autonomous higher education provider. Managed the College through various accreditations including meeting QL IV standards and ISO 9000. Introduced e-Learning in 1997, positioning the College as pioneers in educational design.
- Established the College of Law New Zealand (2004), College of Law Victoria (2006), College of Law Queensland (2005), College of Law Western Australia (2007), Master of Applied Law Programs (2008), College of Law South Australia (2013) and College of Law Asia (2016).
- Founded new lines of business for education consulting in South East Asia. These have proved to be a rapidly expanding area for the College, and will be a key focus in the coming years.
- Built an international alliance with the College of Law of England and Wales (2001)
- Contributed to policy development through advocacy for the creation of an all-state common approach to a nationally regulated legal profession
- Established the College of Law Alumni Association in 2011 to engage with the College’s many graduates
- Created the online Jobs Board (2000) as a free service to both students and employers. This popular page receives over 40,000 views per month and advertises roles for law graduates and lawyers - In 2009 the College of Law sought orders in the Supreme Court of NSW to support major constitutional change recasting it as an Australasian entity ultimately owned by its stakeholders within the legal community across Australia and New Zealand. The College sought out and secured board members who have established frameworks that ensure the College’s position as the world leader in legal education. The board continues to manage and oversee the Corporate Governance Charter, the College’s Constitution, and the operations of the College.
- The College of Law at this time was affiliated with the University of Technology Sydney, and my role was bicameral – reporting to the Board of Governors of the College, and to the Law Society. I established operating principles to fit within the university framework and was appointed to various senior roles within the University. Also co-authored a report and contributed to the shaping of reforms that regulated the 1994/5 NSW legal admitting authority.
- Established a national school of legal practice and a new national pre-admission curriculum, sponsored jointly by the NZ Law Society and the NZ Council of Legal Education with support from the Ministry of Justice. The program achieved full accreditation by the admitting authorities and government within 12 months of inception; the organisation and its core curriculum (which was based on a then-novel conception of pedagogy) is still successfully in place thirty years later.
- Created a new curriculum and teaching strategy to accommodate escalating numbers of law school graduates. Appointed to various committees. Represented the College in the reference group to the Commonwealth Governments ‘Pierce Review’ of the legal education sector.
I was seconded from the College of Law, to UiTM in Malaysia to create a fourth advanced year of study that would enable law graduates to secure legal practice skills and qualify for immediate admission to legal practice. The course successfully addressed gaps in law practice in Malaysia. More than thirty years later, the Advanced Diploma in Law is now a full LLB qualification, still successfully providing students with skills that benefit the broader law-consuming public.
During my time in Malaysia I produced the inaugural Legal Practice Handbook with instructional details, materials and resources for Malaysian law and practice and also mentored an elite pilot group of 20 students who became the first cohort of UTM graduates admitted to legal practice in the Malaysian legal profession.- Established Barnett Nicol & Carter in partnership with two Canberra-based colleagues, and in association with a Brisbane-based practice. Intending to commence a career at the Bar, I transferred the practice as an ongoing concern with sale for good return.
- Established as William Arnott & Poole in 1890, this reputable firm changed its name in 1995.
- Part time employment while completing law studies
