Many people dread going to the lawyers as it means forking out hundreds if not thousands of ringgit in legal fees for their service.
However, Malaysians wishing to prepare uncontested wills and probate, documents on tenancy agreement, purchase or transfer of property, or even divorce petitions can be spared the dreaded trip to legal firms soon with the "Do-it-yourself law" set to become a reality, Nanyang Siang Pau reported today.
The "DIY law", which will be available free of charge online, will change the way how common legal matters can be dealt with.
According to the report, Bon Advocates, which has been pushing for "DIY law", is coming out with template agreements, allowing consumers to prepare wills and handle property purchases, loan agreements and divorces without relying on lawyers.
For example, the standard legal fee for a sale and purchase agreement for a property valued at RM150,000 is RM1,500.
With the DIY law, a property buyer can save this amount by filling out the relevant forms made available online.
Similarly, for wills, one can save between RM300 and thousands of ringgit the DIY way.
Edmond Bon of Bon Advocates told the daily that lawyers should be fighting for justice and rights of the people and not make profits from petty legal matters.
"Making wills, tenancy agreements, property purchases and transfers, etc can be done using template documents provided online, without the help of lawyers," said Bon, whose firm has been working with some law students on the DIY law on pro bono basis.
Bon said DIY law is a new concept in Malaysia, but it is common in the United States, United Kingdom and Singapore.
US and UK's Rocket Lawyer and the Law Canvas of Singapore are common DIY law, the human rights lawyer pointed out. - By The Sun Daily
