Tan Sri Mohtar Abdullah was a Malaysian lawyer

Lawyer

A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...

 and judge. He was the Attorney General of Malaysia

Attorney General of Malaysia

The Attorney General of Malaysia, also referred to as the A-G , is the principal legal adviser to the Government of Malaysia. The Attorney General is also the highest ranking public prosecutor in the country and is also known as the Public Prosecutor, or simply PP. The powers with regards to...

 from 1994 to 2000 and also served as a judge in the High Court and Federal Court

Federal Court of Malaysia

The Federal Court of Malaysia is the highest court and the final appellate court in Malaysia. It is housed in the Palace of Justice in Putrajaya...

.

Mohtar's term as Attorney General was marred by the controversy surrounding the 1998 sodomy trial

Anwar Ibrahim sodomy trials

The Anwar Ibrahim sodomy trials are a source of considerable political controversy in Malaysia. The first trial was held in 1998, and resulted in former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim being convicted, and given a nine-year prison sentence. This verdict was overturned in 2004, resulting in...

 of former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim

Anwar Ibrahim

Anwar bin Ibrahim is a Malaysian politician who served as Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister from 1993 to 1998. Early in his career, Anwar was a close ally of Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad but subsequently emerged as the most prominent critic of Mahathir's government.In 1999, he was sentenced...

.

Biography

Mohtar studied at the University of Singapore. He entered the judicial and legal service in 1971. He served as a judge on the High Court from 1990 to 1994 before being appointed Attorney General. After his tenure as Attorney General, he was appointed to the Federal Court in January 2002.

Less than three months into his term, he suffered a stroke. After surgery to remove a blood clot in his brain, Mohtar fell into coma for a nearly year. He died on July 7, 2003 in Kuala Lumpur Hospital aged 59.