Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1472486
4 NEWS maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 6 JULY 2022 4 NEWS KURT SANSONE THE mental health commission- er is looking into controversial guidelines that require lawyers to divulge physical or mental health problems to obtain their warrant. Denis Vella Baldacchino said he will be seeking a meeting with the committee that drew up the 'fit and proper test' to understand the reasoning be- hind the guidelines and ques- tionnaire that lawyers have to fill. The committee for lawyers and legal procurators is head- ed by former chief justice Silvio Camilleri, which falls under the purview of the Commission for the Administration of Justice, a constitutional body. It was set up after changes to the law last year. "I want to understand the committee's reasoning behind such guidelines and the rela- tive questionnaire that lawyers have to fill. I have to make sure that there is no discrimination against anyone who discloses any such personal informa- tion," Vella Baldacchino told MaltaToday. The proposed test is at the heart of a stand-off between the committee and Justice Minis- ter Jonathan Attard, who is ob- jecting to some of the invasive questions. The guidelines have to be approved by the minister. Attard told parliament last week that he sent back the guidelines with some observa- tions and changes. The impasse is holding back the warranting process for more than 100 lawyers and le- gal procurators, who are oblivi- ous as to what the test contains. The Justice Minister told this newspaper on Friday that he has not received feedback from the committee to changes he has proposed. "Unfortunately, the Commit- tee for Lawyers and Procura- tors has not replied back to the reservations raised and chang- es proposed by the ministry," Attard said. The minister called an urgent meeting last week with law student organisations, repre- sentatives of the law faculty at the university and the Univer- sity Students' Council, to keep them abreast of developments. "During the meeting, I gave an overview of the situation and there was agreement on the concerns raised by the minis- try over the guidelines," Attard said. "I am willing to take every step possible to not only ensure that this fit and proper test is concluded successfully, but al- so that the awarding ceremony for warrants is held as quickly as possible." The test, seen by MaltaToday, contains a section on health issues in which lawyers are ex- pected to declare current and past physical or mental health problems spanning a 10-year period. Another probing question is whether they have a drug, al- cohol or gambling addiction, or whether they had one in the previous 10 years, irrespective of whether they have recov- ered. The revelations have raised eyebrows among lawyers who cannot complete their warrant- ing process. Lawyers have to take written and oral exams before filling in the new fit and proper ques- tionnaire. The written and oral compo- nents of the warranting pro- cess were completed a couple of months ago and lawyers are now waiting for the latest im- passe to be resolved. "We have absolutely no idea what this fit and proper test contains but it is disquieting to learn, thanks to the newspaper, that it requires us to declare any mental or physical issues," one lawyer told MaltaToday. Divulging personal health matters should be at appli- cant's discretion Opposition justice spokes- person Karol Aquilina said he does not have visibility of the draft guidelines but expressed confidence that the committee is carrying out its duties "dili- gently and professionally and that its proposals are meant to elevate the standards of the le- gal profession and improve the administration of justice". Aquilina said he expected the ministry to publish the guide- lines for public consultation. Basing his comments on what has been reported by MaltaTo- day, Aquilina said most of the questions appear to be in line with the discussions held dur- ing the parliamentary process leading to the setting up of the Committee for Advocates and Legal Procurators. "However, it is to be noted that the fit and proper test was always intended to be a bench- mark and not an exam one has to pass. On this basis, it would be ludicrous to request appli- cants to specifically mention any medical or psychological conditions they suffer from when applying for their war- rant. The ultimate responsibili- ty on whether such information is passed on to the committee at application stage should be entirely at the applicant's dis- cretion," Aquilina said. Mental health commissioner looking into controversial lawyer warrant guidelines RESIDENTS in Birkirkara and Santa Venera have been out of electricity since Monday evening, after multiple faults developed on an underground cable. In a statement on Tuesday morn- ing, Enemalta said that a fault de- veloped on an 11kV underground cable in the area. It added that supply was restored after the af- fected customers were switched to an alternative source, however another fault developed on this source as well. Residents that reached out to MaltaToday lamented on the du- ration of the power cut, which for some has lasted more than 10 hours. Enemalta said that excavation works were carried out through- out the night, so that its techni- cal team was able to carry out the necessary repairs to resolve the issue. It said that another team is working on connecting substa- tions to generators. "While we apologise for any in- convenience caused, we under- stand that not having electricity supply is frustrating. Our techni- cal team which worked tirelessly through the night is doing its ut- most to resolve this issue and re- store electricity supply as soon as possible," Enemalta said. Malta has been experiencing high temperatures, increasing electricity demand as people switch on airconditioning units to keep cool. Birkirkara, Santa Venera residents without electricity for more than 10 hours Committee does not respond to Justice Minister's concerns over controversial guidelines to declare mental health status for lawyer warranting