TODAY I appointed a legal councilor for the bank, despite the existence of a Legal department at the bank that is subsidiary to me directly, presided by a manager and consisting of six lawyers who answer the inquiries of the branches, review the contracts as well as the authorisations and write their notes on the documents that the bank uses from a legal point of view. They plead for the bank in the cases filed against the bank, they also attend the sessions in which the bank is an adversary, whether he was the plaintiff or the defendant, they also attend the meetings convened with the clients for the preparation of settlements and the rescheduling. The Legal Department is also represented by a member in most committees such as the credit committee, the doubtful debts committee and the examination of debt committee, etc. As to why I assigned a legal councilor for the bank despite the fact that the Legal Department does all the functions I mentioned? The reason for that is that the Legal Department in all its employees and the burdens placed on them, its responsibilities and functions became integrated in the bank's structure and one of its sectors that form the organisational structure of the bank as a whole. Its functions are almost executive in terms of the legal audit of the documents, the drafting of contracts and some of the other executive legal affairs even if it also answers any legal inquiry after resorting to the competent references and provisions issued in this regard. As to the legal councilor who I was fully convinced of the necessity of assigning him in addition to the Legal Department, for his pure legal opinion has its significant effect in the extent of the continuance in taking some of the decisions or amending them or even annulling their issuing consideringthat this opinion is neutral and is not subjected at all to the considerations of thesemi-executive post. Besides, he cares for nothing but the law, the legislation and their applications as well as his relations with the institutions of the government and his full knowledge of their orientation. I used to be very happy while meeting with the legal councilor whom I had chosen with a long legal expertise, for he was about seventy years old, his talking was charming, profound, does not lack the echo of the expertise available in all areas of life surrounded by a legal flavour. His answers were ready about all matters and I was guided by his opinion whenever I set out to enter a new product to the bank. In fact, he brought up aspects we have never brought up at all about the subject of this product. He was well versed in English and French languages contrary to most of the crew of which the Legal Department of the bank consists, and he referred in his justification of matters to many of the foreign references. It happened that the bank had to file up a case against one of the banks abroad concerning his paying the value of shipping documents for a documentary credit despite that the conditions of the credit require that reference must be made to our bank first before paying to the exporter abroad. The bank was inflexible when it was demanded to return the amount that it deducted from our account at our correspondent abroad. I was compelled to travel with the legal councilor and the official responsible for the foreign sector to attend one of the important sessions on this case in which the legal councilor did very well whether in his briefing or pleading in a correct language, solid legal basis and careful study of the case circumstances and the bank's clear right in it. After a long suffering, the verdict was in favour of the bank. I have never regretted the assigning of the legal councilor despite the existence of the Legal Department at the bank, because what he did in that case only would have cost the bank many times as much as his salary for several years if the bank had to authorise a Legal Counseling Institution abroad to do what he did. It is really beautiful that the person in charge be surrounded by competent consultants and experts, so that whenever you ask for advice, they respond with plot, experience and an alert conscience. They never fear the blaming of critics… or the upper hand of a ruler as long as they defend justice!
