We have endeavoured to remember in a personal way, each member of our professional family on their passing in the pages of the Singapore Law Gazette (‘SLG’). In this issue, we remember my friend and fellow member of Council, Pala, who was President of the Law Society from 2000 to 2002.

Pala chaired the Publications Committee from 1997 to 1999. As Chairman and during his term as President, he worked tirelessly to make our flagship publication what it is today; a fresh and relevant magazine for the profession. In this issue, we remember Pala fondly in words and pictures.

His legacy continues with a team of dedicated members in our Publications Committee chaired by Elizabeth Wong, Malathi Das from Council and the Secretariat’s Publication Department headed by Sharmaine Lau. Several members of the Committee, who served with Pala, continue to contribute as experienced and invaluable members, Looi Teck Kheong, Rajan Chettiar, Gregory Vijayendran and Stanley Jeremiah.

Taking the time to read the SLG and our weekly newsletter, EJus News, helps us keep in touch with our legal family. It takes only a few moments once a week to peruse EJus News or a few minutes every month to flip through the pages of the SLG.

Communication is key to the success of any family, and our legal family is no different. We need to talk to one another and understand each other’s perspectives, responsibilities and concerns. We need to be informed on issues that affect us and participate.

The late President John F Kennedy’s famous words at his inauguration speech were, ‘Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country’ rings true for the Society too.

Council is as strong and effective as you help us to be. Each Monday, a member of Council makes himself available at lunchtime to hear your views. Every Tuesday, EJus News is disseminated to you electronically. Our seminars, feedback sessions, surveys and roundtable discussions are other opportunities for you to communicate with us.

In these times, we need more than ever to work together. A key to surviving challenging times is to ensure that we continue to improve and innovate on how we deliver competent and diligent legal services and how to run effective businesses. Most of us know that referral work is how much of our business is developed and if we strive to consistently give our clients quality service, they will be our most loyal supporters.

The Law Society will continue to organise and teach skills to help you plan your business in these difficult times. The Law Society is studying how our ethical rules can be liberalised to help us innovate the way we deliver our legal services.

You would have noticed the increase in volume and variety of our continuing professional development programmes this year, ably organised by our Continuing Professional Development Committee (‘CPD’) chaired by Thio Shen Yi and his dedicated committee with the Secretariat’s Training Department headed by June Tan. Fellow members, other professionals and the Secretariat are involved in teaching programmes for all our law practices and their support staff.

Our ‘Nuts and Bolts’ series ensure that you are on top of the changes in the core areas of the law you practise, while our practice skills and personal development courses give you the edge to manage and forward plan your law practice.

To help small firms, we developed our innovative Small Firm Practice Management seminars (four in the series) in the month of June, which saw overwhelming support from over 70 participants from small firms. In August, our first personal development seminar, ‘Why Lawyers Should Eat Bananas’, was another success.

Our Information Technology Committee chaired by Jim Lim has spearheaded teaching and general knowledge education of the various IT tools available to the legal industry. The $1 IT luncheon talks held in July were a runaway success, as we saw nearly 100 members come to learn about new innovations in the IT field.

We hope to visit Sri Lanka in September 2003, as part of a legal mission. As we travel together and enjoy the sights, sounds and delights of the ‘Pearl of the Orient’ we will make new friends and renew old acquaintances. As we improve our camaraderie, we will also learn to talk with and listen to each other. Many of us will fondly recall our successful missions of the early 90s, to India, Vietnam, Myanmar and China. I must thank the Social and Welfare Committee, chaired by David Nayar, for organising this mission to Sri Lanka.

Let us, as part of our legal family, learn to be gentle with each other, and be willing to listen, and to enjoy each other’s labours, joys, aspirations and achievements.

Arfat Selvam
President
Law Society of Singapore