Who Is Tun Laila, The Eloquent Lawyer Making Waves On Social Media?
The Sarawakian was registered as a lawyer by the High Court of Malaya in 2023.
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TikTok has become a go-to platform for content creators, either solely for the purpose of entertainment or to disseminate information (or even misinformation).
Recently, videos by lawyer Tun Laila Tun Rafaee have been going viral as she provided an explanation on the much-talked about court case of a mother and daughter duo who challenged 18 provisions under the Kelantan Syariah Criminal Code 2019.
In the explainer, Tun Laila detailed the case and why the panel consisting of nine judges ruled 16 provisions under the Kelantan syariah law as unconstitutional.
The reason for this was that the state law has no right to enact the 16 provisions as it is already within the Federal provision.
She also explained in the video that the subjects covered by the jurisdiction of the Parliament and state legal authorities were specified in the Ninth Schedule of the Federal Constitution and this case, the 16 provisions enacted under the Kelantan Syariah Criminal Code 2019 were already listed in the Federal list which comes under the jurisdiction of the Parliament.
@yarafaee undang-undang syariah terbatal? law student, comment tanda hadir ✋ #lawknowledge #kelantan #lawyer ♬ original sound – tun.
Her eloquent and easy to understand explanation has garnered 5.2 million views on her TikTok account.
Who is Tun Laila?
Many people who watched the video may have wondered who Tun Laila is.
The 26-year-old is a lawyer, having been called to the bar in October last year. She is from Miri, Sarawak and is currently based in Selangor.
She completed her law degree at University Teknologi Mara (UiTM) Shah Alam, Selangor, and was registered as a lawyer by the High Court of Malaya last year after completing her chambering period for nine months.
@yarafaee 27/10/2023 ; the chambering student is now a lawyer, congratulations Tun Laila. #longcall #calledtothebar #behindthescenes ♬ original sound – tun.
The reason she chose to become a lawyer is because she was interested and passionate about it.
“Law (rules) are already in our lives. I chose a career as a lawyer based on interest. I want to know what can and cannot be done. Being a lawyer, I learned a lot. From one’s rights to others,” she once said, as reported by mStar.
Tun Laila became a Tiktoker in the year 2022 and has grown to be a well-known social media influencer. At press time, she has almost 700,000 followers.
She also started receiving paid reviews from many well-known brands in Malaysia.
“I also received a lot of reviews from several brands such as Coffee Bean, Sports Direct and Secret Recipe. Although it is difficult to maintain life as a lawyer as well as an influencer, I am grateful that my employer understands my ‘double life’. In addition, he is an idol who supports a lot of what I do,” she said.
Currently, she shares much information about the law in Malaysia and many of her sharings may have benefited many people in terms of knowledge.
Being the seventh child among eight siblings, she advises the younger generation to follow their heart.
“My advice is don’t care what people want to say about you. The important thing is not to disturb others. Don’t pick on yourself because how you talk to yourself is reflected in how people want to talk to you,” she said.
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