Fighting for the rule of law "Asian Legal Business"
When former Indonesian President of Suharto launched a civil suit against TIME Magazine in 1999 for alleged defamation, it was Lubis,Santosa & maulana that took up the defence of TIME against Suharto in the Indonesia courts and won. The firm's motivation was not more fee income or the publicity of a controversial case, but a firm belief in freedom of the press, based on the solid integrity of its members. "That is why clients come to us ,"Lubis, Santosa & Maulana founding partner Todung Mulya Lubis says. "The reason companies come to us is because we believe in integrity and the rule of law, we are not like many other firms in Indonesia who are bribing judges or doing other dirty work. We are bound by strong ethical standards." Lubis, Santosa & Maulana has built up an impeccable reputation among international clients, to the point that 90% of its clients are international and only 10% domestic. "If you look at expertise, these foreign clients can get that from a lot of other firms as well,"he says."But as far as integrity is concerned, I can assure you, that we are one of the very few firms that maintain this high level of integrity in Indonesia. A legal reformer Lubis himself is an extremely well respected, high profile legal commentator and activist in Indonesia, who is known as a legal reformer on many fronts. A side from the Suharto case, he has not been afraid to speak up on controversial cases against the government if necessary thanks to a firm belief in the right of his cause. An example is his public criticism of the Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono administration for not settling long outstanding arbitration awards against Indonesian entities, in cases such as the one involving Karaha Bodas, in which the construction of a power plant was cancelled. He has been strongly vocal on the issue of enforcement of arbitration awards in Indonesia, as well as on minimising court interference in the enforcement of these awars. Lubis has championed corporate social responsibility, recently in connection with the popullation in East Java, Indonesia from an oil company, PT. Lapindo Brantas. He has called for responsible enviromental management by corporations to protect the Indonesian environment. He has also directed criticism at his legal peers and the judiciary for corruption and unethical behaviour, (see the excerpt from the Jakarta Post), and has encouraged reform in the legal Industry to ensure that foreign investment is is strengthened. Not only has Lubis been vocal on such issues, but he has actively persued progress through his involvement in a long list of proactive organisations throughout his entire career. He has held a wide array of positions from member to founding director on bodies dedicated to progress on human rights, corruption, election reform democracy education and victims of violence, and has also been active in a number of legal industry specific groups. Founding the firm Lubis Santosa & Maulana had a social conscience from the beginning, when it was founded by Lubis and like-minded lawyers Lelyana Santosa and Insan Budi Maulana ini 1991. Lubis began the practice of law in 1971, and was a legal aid lawyer in Indonesia until 1987, rising to the position of national chairman of the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation. At this time he was also a lecturer at the University of Indonesia;however his criticism of tge goverment at that time led him to being silenced by being discharged in 1985. He left Indonesia in 1987 to attend Harvard Law School where he gained his Masters, having already attained his US qualifications at The University of California, Berkly Berkeley in 1978. After returning to Indonesia, Lubis decided to form the law firm in 1991. Santosa and Maulana had been working with him for some time, and were loyal partners with similar ideals, so they decided to establish the firm together. The three came from different legal practice backgrounds. Lubis had more experience on the corporate side, and began to build the firm's now sizable corporate practice. Santosa's practice was in litigation,while Maulana's focus was IP. However, Lubis has recently become known more as a litigation lawyer due high profile cases he has represented. These practice areas are still the three pillars of the firm's business today, thought it has grown over the years into a much larger, full service law firm. The firm today Lubis Santosa & Maulana now has five partners, a total of 27 lawyers, and over 50 support staff to work on deals and cases. Partners who have since joined the firm are Eman Achmad Sulaeman, head of its corporate partner. This reflects the significant expansion of its corporate department, which now boasts 15 lawyers. The firm's three main practice areas re business, IP and dispute resolution. Betweeen them,they encompass almost the entire gamut of legal services. The business division handles all corporate, banking investment and finance, and commercial services, for both international and domestic clients. IP acts largely for international clients in the enforcement of their IP rights in Indonesia, a sensitive issue in the jurisdiction for some time. In dispute resolution, the firm is well known domestically and internationally as having one of the best litigation teams in Indonesia, and it is also highly experienced in international arbitration work. The international respect the firm has garnered is evident in its impressive client list. On the media side, although its most celebrated client has been TIME Magazine, it has also been retained by The Asian Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post. as well as high profile domestic media outlets Tempo and The Jakarta Post. Banking and finance clients include many well known names, including HSBC, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, CItibank, Asian Decvelopment bank, SG, Mitsui and Merrill Lynch. Lately the firm has been doing a lot of work for mining companies. "Indonesia is very rich in natural resources, so that is why they are all here,"Lubis explainss."We are the lawyers for them in most of their litigation. We also do some corporate work some legal advice and consultation so not just pure litigation." Clients include BP Indonesia, Total Oil,Newmont, Exxon Mobil, Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton. However, the firm does not only pusue lucrative work from international corporations with operations in Indonesia. True to the values of its founding partners, it still undertakes a lot of pro bono work, continuing its passion for social justice. The TIME case Lubis, Santosa & Maulana's defence of TIME Magazine against the defamation action by Suharto is one of the most widely celebreted and symbolic cases it has undertaken. "This is because Suharto for the first time in his life considered defeat when he was still one of the most powerful people in Indonesia despite not being President at the time,"Lubis says. The case stemmed from a report in the May 24, 1999, edition of TIME Magazine's Asian publication, which reported that Suharto and his family had amassed US$15bn in foreign assets during his 32 years in power, and alleged the existence of overseas bank accounts. Suharto denied the allegations and sued TIME. The US magazine approached Lubis Santosa & Maulana to take up its defence. "I think they came to us because they know us, because our firm is known as a firm that plays by the rules this is not a hanky panky firm we have integrity,"Lubis says. After testimony from mass media and language experts, the court ruled that the report was not defamatory and dismissed the case against TIME. "I managed to convince the judges that TIME's report covered both sides [of the story], and was very professional in their checking and re checking of facts. I also convinced them to acknowledge that public figures like Suharto are some what public property,"Lubis comments. In similar case, the government sued Indonesiaan business man. "Its is the most popular news magazine and since we believe in freedom of the press, we are pleased to get the honour of defending them in court,"Lubis says. The good fight During the TIME case, and at other times, Lubis and his team have had to face fears for their own preservation, yet have continued despite the risks. "Yes, I've had my office broken into, and all the files taken from my office and those of my associates. I had intimidation from many people at that time,"Lubis says.During the case, there was also a suspicious office fire, and Lubis was forced to take on body guards for his own safety. "But that is part of it in this country I don't regreat that,"he says. And Lubis and his partners have not mellowed over the years. He says the plan is to continue to drive legal reform in Indonesia for the benefit of its economy. "I think we will continue in the way our firm has been fighting for the rule of law in the country , and feel the firm has a corporate responsibility to do this," he says. "I think that is the number one law, I will not compromise. We all have the same culture, we are very strict in our ethical standards, I don't compromise on that."
