A check by FMT on the Malaysian Bar website revealed lawyers listed as attached to the firm were Faezul Adzra Patail Abdul Gani Patail, the son of the former attorney-general, as well as former Solicitor-General Azailiza Mohd Ahad, who left the government service after optional retirement in April, and Anati Kasahi.

Gani, who left in July last year, retired from the judicial and legal service three months later.

In January, Gani had filed a petition for admission to the Bar in the High Court to begin chambering under lawyer Ragunath Kesavan, a former Malaysian Bar president.

Ragunath said that Gani was still his student but had submitted the legal papers to be formally admitted to the Bar.

“After obtaining his practising certificate, he can join another firm or set up his own practice,” he told FMT.

Gani, who was in the service for 35 years, could have written to the present AG Mohamed Apandi Ali for exemption from doing his pupillage before being called to the Bar, but did not do so.

Under the Legal Profession Act (LPA), the AG can issue a certificate of exemption to a former member who had been at least a year in the service (judicial and legal service).

Gani, who served as AG for 13 years from 2003, was removed from office on July 27 when he was part of the multi-agency special task force investigating 1MDB and the RM2.6 billion donation channelled into the private accounts of Prime Minister Najib Razak.

Meanwhile, Bar Council Secretary Karen Cheah Yee Lynn said Faezul Adzra submitted an application on Aug 5 to start a legal firm under the name.

“The application was approved on the same day based on our discretion and guidelines under section 85 of the Legal Profession Act 1976 ,” she said.

Cheah said that the provision entitled a lawyer to use his/her name or any part of his/her name of a law firm.

“So, the applicant has not contravened the law.”