U.S. lawyer denies working illegally

U.S. lawyer denies working illegally

JAKARTA (JP): One of two American lawyers recently questioned
by police over their practice here has denied that he worked
illegally.

Mark A. Nelson said Thursday he had a work permit as a
technical advisor from the Ministry of Manpower and that his firm
PT Mitra Laksana Buana Indonesia (ML&B Indonesia) was registered
with the Ministry of Trade and Industry as a consultant firm.

"PT ML&B Indonesia is 100 percent owned by two Indonesians. I
just worked there," he said.

He said the company gave advice to clients on business
matters, such as on international finance, company restructuring
and joint-venture agreements.

"We usually cooperate with Indonesian law firms if our clients
need legal opinions. I never go to local courts to handle cases
and I never go to government offices to handle our clients'
business," he said.

Nelson, and his friend Michael W. Gleba, both U.S. citizens,
and five local employees were questioned by police last week
after 14 local lawyers reported them for allegedly working here
illegally.

Nelson's lawyer, Frans Hendra Winarta, said Thursday the
dispute started when a lawyer named Michael Hooton resigned from
the local law firm Makarim & Taira S. and joined Morgan, Lewis &
Bockius of Singapore.

Frans said Hooton took his personal files when he left the
local firm but then returned them.

"But the case was blown out of proportion and became a
national issue about foreign lawyers working illegally," he said.

Nelson said Hooton and Makarim & Taira S. should be at the
center of dispute, adding that PT ML&B Indonesia and Morgan,
Lewis & Bockius of Singapore were unrelated.

"It's unfair that police questioned me and investigate PT ML&B
Indonesia," he said.

He said there are about 12 companies in Indonesia which offer
international business consultancy.

Frans said Nelson's team of lawyers had sent a letter to
Minister of Justice Muladi asking him to order police to stop the
questioning.

He said the lawyers would send a letter to the National Police
chief Gen. Dibyo Widodo, protesting the actions of police
officers who seized his client's documents without a court
permit.

Separately, Hotman Paris Hutapea, a lawyer of Makarim & Taira
S., said Hooton left the firm in December last year, taking with
him company documents.

"If Hooton dares to come here, we will report him to the
police for stealing our files. Only a few of the files were
returned to us. But that's not the issue," he said.

Hotman, along with several other lawyers, including Amir
Syamsoeddin, Todung Mulya Lubis and Kartini Mulyadi, reported the
foreign lawyers and PT ML&B Indonesia to the police.

"We supported our report to the police with evidence," he
said.

According to Hotman, police have also summoned a Singaporean
to Jakarta as a witness in the foreign lawyers' case.

He said the Indonesian lawyers association had complained for
many years about foreign lawyers working illegally. (jun)