Tommy Thomas (barrister)

Yang Berbahagia Tuan
Tommy Thomas
Attorney General of Malaysia
Assumed office
4 June 2018
Monarch Muhammad V
Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad
Preceded by Mohamed Apandi Ali
Personal details
Born 1952 (age 65–66)
Kuala Lumpur
Spouse(s) Anna Lype
Education Victoria Institution
Alma mater University of Manchester (LLB)
London School of Economics (MSc)
Profession Barrister (Middle Temple, London)

Tommy Thomas a Malaysian barrister and the current Attorney General of Malaysia.[1][2] He is the first practising barrister to be appointed directly from the Malaysian Bar to be the Attorney General,[3] and the first non-Malay and non-Muslim Malaysian to hold this post after the formation of Malaysia in 1963.

Early life and education

Tommy Thomas was born in Kuala Lumpur in 1952 and graduated from Pasar Road English School and Victoria Institution. He obtained his law degree at the University of Manchester in 1972 and was called to the bar at Middle Temple in 1974.[4] He obtained his M.Sc. in International Relations at the London School of Economics in 1975.[5]

Career

Thomas was a Director of the Malaysian Institute of Corporate Governance from 1995 to 2001. He was appointed Senior Consultant to the Corporate Governance Initiative of the United Nations Development Programme in 2000. He was editor of the report Corporate Governance in Asia: Lessons from the Financial Crisis, published in 2002.[6][7]

In 2001 and 2010, Thomas represented PAS-led Terengganu and Kelantan governments in two separate lawsuits against Petronas over its failure to pay state oil royalty.[8][9]

In 2007 and 2008, he acted for the Securities Commission Malaysia to obtain a landmark High Court judgement ordering the Swisscash operators to pay US$ 83 million for compensating the investors in the Swiss Mutual Fund, which is known as an Internet-based worldwide Ponzi scheme hatched in Malaysia.[10][11]

In 2013 and 2014, he represented Penang government in its attempt to restore local government elections.[12][13]

Further in 2016 and 2017, he represented 76 next of kin of the passengers on board MH370 to ask Malaysia Airlines to release 37 documents including investigative reports on the missing flight MH370.[14][15]

He is a life member of the Malaysian Economic Association and the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society.

Thomas was elected Attorney General of Malaysia in 2018. He gave his first speech in Malay as Attorney General on July 4 and received many praises. The video of his speech went viral.[16]

Publications

Thomas has written 2 publications - Anything But the Law (Essays on Politics & Economics) and Abuse of Power (Selected Works on the Law and Constitution).[17][18]

Launched simultaneously in 2016, both books contained collections of essays he had written over the past 34 years on the Federal Constitution, law, politics and economics and that had been published by online portals and by the Malaysian Bar.[2]

Controversies

Thomas has previously represented Chin Peng, the leader of the Malayan Communist Party, in appealing to the government to allow his body to be buried in his hometown, Sitiawan. His appeal was denied.[19]

Thomas had also been accused of labelling Malaysia as a secular nation.[20]

The appointment of the new Attorney General has divided Malaysians with two petitions online, one supporting his appointment as the Attorney General, with the other petition opposing his appointment due to his faith.[21] Subsequently another petition was launched to urge the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to remove him from Attorney General due to his poor command of the Malaysian language in the wake of his asking the court for permission to proceed in English when leading a prosecution against former Prime Minister Najib Razak.[22]

References

  1. ↑ "With Thomas as AG, Malaysia's finest barrister to lead 1MDB litigation, says his law firm". The Star. 5 June 2018. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  2. 1 2 "Ex-employee raves about 'best boss' on FB - Nation | The Star Online". www.thestar.com.my. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  3. ↑ "Malaysian Bar extends full cooperation to new AG Tommy Thomas". The Edge Markets. 5 June 2018. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  4. ↑ http://www.malaysianbar.org.my/press_statements/press_release_%7C_malaysian_bar_congratulates_tommy_thomas_on_being_appointed_as_the_new_attorney_general_of_malaysia.html
  5. ↑ "The Malaysian Bar - Press Release | Malaysian Bar Congratulates Tommy Thomas on Being Appointed as the New Attorney General of Malaysia". www.malaysianbar.org.my. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
  6. ↑ Corporate Governance in Asia: Lessons from the Financial Crisis. United Nations Development Programme. 2002. ISBN 9789834099503.
  7. ↑ Webmaster, MT. "15 Facts About Tommy Thomas That Every Malaysian Should Know – Tommy Thomas Is The King – Malaysia Today". www.malaysia-today.net. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
  8. ↑ "Kelantan sues Petronas for oil royalties". The Edge Markets. 2010-08-30. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  9. ↑ "PAS 'wholeheartedly' accepts appointment of Thomas as AG". www.thestar.com.my. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  10. ↑ "Swisscash: Landmark judgement for the SC- Monies overseas to be traced and repatriatedSecurities Commission Malaysia | Securities Commission Malaysia". www.sc.com.my. Retrieved 2018-06-18.
  11. ↑ https://www.sc.com.my/wp-content/uploads/eng/html/enforcement/civil/SwissCash_SealedMarevaOrder.pdf
  12. ↑ "Federal Court allows Penang govt to commence petition on local elections - Nation | The Star Online". www.thestar.com.my. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  13. ↑ "Parliament cannot abolish local government elections, Federal Court hears - Nation | The Star Online". www.thestar.com.my. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  14. ↑ hermesauto (2016-09-09). "Court orders Malaysia Airlines to hand over documents on MH370 to passengers' next of kin". The Straits Times. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
  15. ↑ "Appeals court upholds order that MAS releases documents to MH370 next-of-kin - Nation | The Star Online". www.thestar.com.my. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
  16. ↑ "AG delivers speech in Bahasa Malaysia".
  17. ↑ Thomas, Tommy (2016). Anything But the Law: Essays on Politics and Economics. Strategic Information and Research Development Centre. ISBN 9789670960111.
  18. ↑ Thomas, Tommy (2016). Abuse of Power: Selected Works on the Law and Constitution. Strategic Information and Research Development Centre. ISBN 9789670960081.
  19. ↑ "Some misgivings over Thomas' nomination as AG". The Mole. 2018-06-04. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
  20. ↑ "Tommy Thomas believes Malaysia is a secular state and can't help the King preserve Islam, says group". The Star. 3 June 2018. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  21. ↑ Chu, Mei Mei (2018-06-03). "Tale of two petitions shows Malaysians divided on Tommy Thomas as AG". The Star Online. Star Media Group. Retrieved 2018-06-07.
  22. ↑ "Petition Launched To Demand AG's Tommy Thomas Removal For Weak BM - Rais Yatim Urged AG To Strive For A Serviceable Command of BM - The Coverage". thecoverage.my.
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