Law Society Meets IPTO | Law Fraternity Games 2000 | Bowling Tournament 2000 | Seminar on Developments in the Administration and Practice of Muslim Family Law | Law Society thanks Committee Members | Fujian Province Attorney-General's Chambers' Officials Visit Law Society | Lunch with the Chief Justice of Sudan
The Law Society Meets IPTO
The Tour The afternoon started with a tour of IPTO's office, which is situated at Maxwell Road in the URA Building. IPTO is responsible for the administration of the following units:
The Systems IPTO has, over the years, taken steps to provide a number of services via the Internet at the website: www.gov.sg/milaw/ipto. The Internet services provided include:
The Dialogue After a demonstration of IPTO's Internet services and a tour of the office, the representatives were invited to tea at the Conference Room. Over tea, various issues were discussed. Firstly, the Official Assignee, Dr Chandra Mohan, began the session by introducing the IPTO officers to the representatives from the Law Society. This was welcomed as both sides were able to put faces behind people who existed only as names during dealings. He next provided a quick insight into the current statistics relating to the insolvency position in Singapore. Next, the representatives were informed that as part of its measures towards increasing efficiency, IPTO is involved in the 'Business Town' portion under e-Citizen, which is a Government initiative to set up a one-stop Website. The intent is to identify ways in which bankrupts and creditors can be better served through the Internet. Once set up, the system would allow for, inter alia, Proofs of Debt to be filed through the Internet for a prescribed fee. Dr Chandra Mohan added that except for confidential information, most information would be on the Internet. Dr Chandra Mohan also indicated that in line with the Government's move to go cashless, IPTO has made it compulsory from this year for all moneys paid out in Motor Accident matters to be done electronically via the Financial Electronic Data Interchange ('FEDI'). This was introduced initially as a voluntary system in June 1999. The representatives were also advised that Solicitor & Client costs and payments to clients will be electronically remitted to the Clients' accounts. Dr Chandra Mohan also reminded the representatives about their new Trust Management System and Motor Accident System, launched in 1998 and introduced to members of the Law Society via Practice Circular (No 1 of 1998). In this regard, he said that submissions via the Internet reduced processing time and also dispensed with the submission of certain documents. The role of the Public Trustee in Motor Accident Matters was next briefly discussed. The question posed was whether there was a need for the Public Trustee to continue to be a watchdog for accident victims as regards solicitor and client costs. The representatives suggested that as there was greater public awareness and people have other avenues of recourse in the event they are overcharged, the practitioners should be able to settle with their clients. However, the representatives recognised that the role of the Public Trustee in such matters needed greater consideration by the Law Society.
Conclusion In all, both sides agreed that in future, more dialogue sessions will be conducted between the IPTO and the Law Society. The session was found to be very helpful, and will likely pave the way for greater interaction, perhaps even with specialist committees from the Law Society, eg the Continuing Legal Studies, the Civil Practice and the Corporate Law Practice Committee. Kala Anandarajah |
Law Fraternity Games 2000
Seven sports were chosen for this year's Law Fraternity Games and the outcome of the matches were as follows:
The Law Fraternity Games 2000 ended with a buffet dinner at the Faculty Club of the University and our President, Mr Palakrishnan, was at hand to give out prizes to the winners. New friends were made over dinner and many of the students took the opportunity to ask practitioners wide-ranging questions about legal practice and working life. Camaraderie among the Law Fraternity - the Games show that it exists. Yeow Joo Yun |
Bowling Tournament 2000 The overwhelming response to this year's tournament, with a total number of 29 teams participating, reflected the increasing popularity of bowling. A total of 145 bowlers signed up for the tournament but, regrettably, some teams had their late entries rejected due to the unavailability of lanes. On the day of the tournament, close to 200 bowlers, supporters and family members from various law firms gathered at the bowling alley. The atmosphere at the bowling alley was indeed carnival-like with teams in fancy outfits and supporters all 'geared up' like cheerleaders added colour to the scene. The tournament commenced at about 2pm and the cracking sounds of bowling balls striking pins as well as the cheering of supporters continued unabated until 6.30pm. After bowling a four games series, the results are as follows:
The tournament ended with the presentation of souvenirs to every bowler by the Law Society's Sports Committee chairman, Mr Tan Siah Yong. Mr Rajan Nair, the chief co-ordinator of the Law Society Shield Tournaments, gave out the prizes to the winning teams and bowlers. Yeow Joo Yun |
Seminar on Developments in the Administration and Practice of Muslim Family Law
Mr Noor Mohamed Marican, a senior practitioner with more than 25 years of experience at the Bar and the Syariah Court, delved into recent developments in the issues of custody and the division of matrimonial assets in the Syariah Court. He commenced with a lively, detailed and interesting account of the background leading to the recent amendments in the Administration of Muslim Law Act with regards to the issues of maintenance, custody and division of matrimonial assets. Mr Marican's informative presentation was easily understood by lay persons and evoked occasional laughter from the audience. After a sumptious tea break, the participants settled down to hear the Registrar of the Syariah Court, Mr Shaiffudin Saruwan, speak on the impact of the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Rules 1999 on administration and practice in the Syariah Court. The Registrar gave a multi-media presentation on the developments in the administration and practice of Muslim family law, the changes effected with amendments to the Muslim Marriages and Divorce Rules 1999, such as the introduction of pre-trial conferences, affidavit evidence, discovery of documents, interim custody, care, control and access. He also informed the audience that the Syariah Court is looking at harnessing IT advancements to streamline procedures and make the Syariah Court more accessible and efficient. A lively exchange followed between the speakers and the audience during the question and answer session. All in all, the seminar was enlightening and beneficial as it cleared areas of doubt and provided insights into Muslim law, matrimonial rights and the administration of justice in the Syariah Court. The Muslim Law Practice Committee would like to express its appreciation to the speakers and the participants for their support and attendance. Chu Sooi Yoon |
Law Society thanks Committee MembersThe Law Society hosted a tea reception on Wednesday, 20 September 2000, to thank all our hardworking members who served on the Law Society's Committees in the year 2000. On behalf of the Council of the Law Society, our President, Mr Palakrishnan, expressed sincere thanks to our Committee Members, who have sacrificed their valuable (and billable!) time to volunteer their services to the Law Society. Committee Members gave updates on the work which their committees have been doing in the course of the year. They also provided suggestions for improvements to assist both Committee Members and the Law Society in working together more effectively. Finally, there was also an appeal by our younger Committee Members to the senior partners of all law firms to be more receptive to the idea of their junior lawyers volunteering in the Law Society and to allow junior lawyers some flexibility in contributing their time to the Law Society's activities and projects.
Fujian Province Attorney-General's Chambers' Officials Visit Law SocietyOur Vice-President, Mr Goh Phai Cheng SC, together with representatives from our International Relations Committee, met with a delegation from the Fujian Province Attorney-General's Chambers on Friday, 29 September 2000. The delegation consisted of the Divisional Directors of the Fujian Provincial Attorney-General's Chambers, as well as the Deputy Chief Procurators of the Fuzhou, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, Sanming, Nanping and Longyan Municipal Attorney-General's Chambers, as well as the Ningde District Attorney-General's Chambers. As many of the delegates did not speak English, the meeting was conducted in Mandarin. Our representatives were impressively fluent and there was a lively exchange on issues such as the lawyer's role in criminal investigations in an adversarial system of law, the practice standards required of a lawyer and the functions and activities of The Law Society of Singapore.
Lunch with the Chief Justice of SudanRepresentatives from the Council, as well as our Intellectual Property and International Relations Committees, were at the Law Society Building on Tuesday, 19 September 2000, for an informal lunch meeting with His Excellency Hafez Al-Sheikh Zaki, Chief Justice of Sudan, and the Honourable Justice Abdul Dayem Mohamadein Ali Zamrawi, also hailing from Sudan. Our distinguished guests were in Singapore to study our legal system, in particular, the practice of Intellectual Property Law in Singapore.
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The Internet Insolvency Search Service, in particular, proved to be very useful. Still little known amongst the legal circle, it makes conducting bankruptcy and winding-up searches much more convenient. The searches are instantaneous and cost exactly the same as if they had been done manually at the Registry. The searches are also updated very regularly so that they remain current and accurate. Lawyers who are familiar with the services offered by DP Services Pte Ltd would appreciate the usefulness of the service offered by
IPTO.
The Law Fraternity Games 2000 was held on 16 September 2000 at the NUS Sports and Recreation
Centre. Various members of the law fraternity like the National University of Singapore
(NUS), Temasek Polytechnic, Legal Service, the Postgraduate Law Course and the Law Society came together to participate in a sporting carnival aimed at building bonds and bridges in a casual and fun atmosphere. 
Under the hot sweltering sun, players from the various teams played their hearts out and some even picked up an injury or two. The Temasek Polytechnic team brought along their cheerleaders and supporters by the busloads and helped to raise the decibel level and enhance the carnival atmosphere. The energy level shown by the younger players from Temasek Polytechnic and NUS reminded the players from the Law Society of their 'seniority' in age. Nevertheless, the Law Society's players proved that despite their age, they were still more than able to match the fitness and skills of their younger opponents. The Law Society's teams managed to win most of the games as well as to finish top in the overall standing.
The Law Society of Singapore Bowling Tournament 2000 was held at the Pasir Ris Bowl at the newly upgraded NTUC Resort, Downtown East on
24 September 2000.
