The Supreme Court has issued a suspension order, barring an attorney-at-law from practicing for eight months as a consequence of professional misconduct. The attorney, Nizam Mohammad Shameem, has been suspended for aiding a Moulavi in using a mobile phone to record a portion of the proceedings during the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (PCoI) into the Easter Sunday attacks, which violated the PCoI's procedural rules.
A three-judge bench of the Supreme Court, composed of Justices Buwaneka Aluwihare, S. Thurairaja, and Mahinda Samayawardhena, has mandated the eight-month suspension, which will take effect from January 1, 2024.
The Chairman of the PCoI referred this case to the Supreme Court to evaluate whether the attorney had breached the Rules regarding the 'Conduct of and Etiquette for Attorneys-at-Law.' During the inquiry, the attorney pleaded guilty to the rule violation.
The attorney, who represented the All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama (ACJU) during the proceedings held on September 9, 2020, is accused of bringing Moulavi Murshid Marsa Mullaffar's mobile phone into the venue of the PCoI proceedings and helping him record a portion of the proceedings when Ven. Galaboda Aththe Gnanasara Thero was testifying before the Commission. Mullaffar requested the attorney to hold his mobile phone, as he was not permitted to bring it into the premises; only attorneys-at-law were allowed to have mobile phones within the premises.
The respondent attorney faced a rule violation for breaching Rules 60 and 61 of the Supreme Court (Conduct of and Etiquette for Attorney-at-Law) Rules 1988."
