‘Servants of the public’

YOU’RE servants of the public.

These were the words of Acting Chief of Justice Salesi Temo to 36 recent law graduates who were admitted to the Bar of the High Court of Fiji yesterday.

He said being a lawyer was all about hard work, and honesty must come from the heart.

“You’re now formally lawyers, (it) gives you a lot of rights, gives you a lot of responsibilities as well,” Mr Temo said.

“After years of hard work, sweat, tears and toil, you have now become formally members of the legal institution. “Obviously, your friends and family are proud of your achievements.

“From those of us who have been through the journey that you’re about to start, law is nothing but hard work.” He reminded the graduates that lawyers were continuously scutinised by society.

“You’ve got to have a thick skin.

“People will gossip about you, you have to have the fortitude to go on.

“So, your behaviour in the courtroom, you must always put on the best behaviour.”

Hemant Rao, 52, said he took up law because he noticed that every profession he worked in “involved the law”.

He said studying to be a lawyer at a mature age had its challenges but “otherwise it was a plus point because you come up with a whole lot of real-life experiences”.