24 January 2003

Review of the Practice Direction of Council on Photocopying Charges
Council after a debate agreed to revise its Practice Direction to $0.15 per sheet. The decision was made after the Council noted that in the last 10 years, there had been a reduction in the costs of photocopying machines.

Report of the Practice Structures Committee 2003 on De-linking PCs
Council requested the Practice Structures Committee to report early on its work to implement this concept. The CEO would present a report on her meeting with the Supreme Court regarding possible amendments to the Legal Profession Act to enable PCs to be de-linked.

Dialogue Session with Members on the Future of Conveyancing Fees After the Abolition of Scale Fees
Council discussed how the Law Society should conduct the dialogue session with members, held on 27 January 2003, chaired by Mr Gan Hiang Chye, on the future of conveyancing fees, after the abolition of scale fees.

Mr Gan advised the Council that he would describe the current scale fee structure and discuss a possible voluntary fee guideline after 1 February 2003. He would circulate a survey form to obtain members’ feedback if they would support the idea of a voluntary scale set by the Law Society after the abolition of scale fees.

Proposal to Introduce a Scheme under Section 15A of the Subordinate Courts Act (Cap 321) for Selected Lawyers and Their Staff of Law Practices to Act as Bailiffs
Council agreed that there were issues of ethics, in particular conflict of interest and professional indemnity that must be considered if lawyers or their support staff were to act as Bailiffs. These concerns would be raised at the dialogue session to be held between members and with the Subordinate Courts. Council noted that Mr Lawrence Teh from the Civil Practice Committee would attend the feedback session as the Law Society’s representative.

Fixing a Special Meeting of Council to Consider Premium Rates for Professional Indemnity (‘PI’) Policy
Council agreed that a special meeting be held on 29 January 2003 to consider the premium rates for the PI policy.

Report of the Publications Committee on the Law Society Directory 2003/2004
Council approved the concept for the Directory, which was similar to last year, save for minor changes. Council also requested the Publications Committee to consider allowing members the option of listing their personal e-mail addresses in the Directory.