Council Update   

9 November 2005

First Dialogue Session with Small Law Firms

The first dialogue session with small law practices was held on 7 November 2005 at Chinatown Point and was attended by seven members. Although the group size was small, the Council noted that the members present raised a wide range of issues affecting small firm practitioners. Council agreed to continue to hold such dialogue sessions next year with more small firms near to their office buildings.

 The Council would also continue dialogue sessions with larger law practices that commenced in 2005 and would continue into 2006.

Society’s Workplan 2006

The annual Workplan meeting would be held on 26 November 2005 at Changi Meridien Hotel. Several chairs of committees were invited to be part of the Workplan discussion in addition to in-coming and out-going members of the Council 2005/2006. The Workplan meeting, from 9.00am to 6.00pm, would focus on improving representation of the profession and identifying the key projects for 2006. The programme would also set aside two hours to review how the profession was reported in the print media for 2005.

The Annual General Meeting (‘AGM’) of 24 October 2005

Council reviewed the matters raised at the AGM, in particular, various views on the future of the Society’s Building levy that would be put before members for a resolution in 2006.

 
Improving the Mandatory Legal Practice Management Course

The Council adopted the recommendations of the Practice Management Committee (‘the Committee’) to improve the course that lawyers who were called after March 1997 had to undertake in order to practise as a sole proprietor or partner in a law practice under the requirements of s 75C of the Legal Profession Act. The recommendations were to extend the training time on the requirements of the Solicitors’ Accounts Rules; introduce a module on PrimeLaw, the Society’s Voluntary Practice Management Excellence standard; and review the ethics module of the course.

 The Committee also made recommendations to improve s 75C of the Act that were adopted by the Council and would be forwarded to the Ministry of Law for its consideration.
 

Introduction of Limited Liability Law Partnerships (‘LLPs’)

Council noted that the Society’s Practice Structures Committee (‘the Committee’) had in June 2005 drafted LLP Rules for the profession and they would be reviewed by the Committee in the light of the recent Legal Profession (Amendment) Bill. The Society would work to request that the Amendment Act come into force sometime in 2006 to enable member law practices to form LLPs.

9 December 2005

Limited Liability Law Partnerships

Council accepted the recommendation of the Society’s Practice Structures Committee that the Society launch LLPs on 1 July 2006 in order to give sufficient time for the profession to prepare for the change, including issues relating to tax and GST that the Society has sought answers to from appropriate authorities on behalf of the profession.

Dialogue Session with the Police Force

Mr Chia Boon Teck, the Council representative of the Criminal Practice Committee (‘the Committee’) advised the Council on the recent dialogue session hosted by the Chairman of the Committee, Mr Edmond Pereira, with the Police. The session was attended by senior members of the Police Force, members of the Committee and invited criminal law practitioners.

 The session was a fruitful one and the Society would continue to hold more dialogues with the Police so as to give feedback and raise concerns of the Criminal Bar.

 
Criminal Responsibility of Persons with Mental Disabilities or Illnesses

Council agreed to publish in the Singapore Law Gazette the article written by Mr N Sreenivasan on criminal responsibility of disadvantaged persons which was first presented at the LawAsia Child & Law Conference 2005 hosted by the Society.

 
A Law Society Lecture

Council decided to launch a biennial Lecture with the first Lecture to be held in the first quarter of 2007 with a prominent lawyer invited to speak to members on current issues relevant to the legal profession. The International Relations Committee would be tasked to oversee the organisation of this event.

Quarterly Financial Report of the Society (1 August 2005 to 31 October 2005)

Ms Malathi Das as Treasurer presented the quarterly financial report and advised that the Finance Committee of the Council of 2006 would look at the investment of the Society reserves with its Fund Managers, UBS Wealth Management, to better improve the Society’s returns.

 
Attendance at the Young Lawyers Summit during the IBA Biennial conference in Prague 2005

Ms Jacintha Thannimalai who had attended the summit with the other co-chair of the Young Lawyers Committee, Mr Anand Nalachandran, presented a written report on the first young lawyers summit meeting. The report showed that the issues faced by the young lawyers in Singapore were similar to those experienced by lawyers in other parts of the world. The Young Lawyers Committee will consider organising a conference for young lawyers when the Society hosts the next meeting of the Presidents of Law Associations of Asia Pacific (‘POLA’) Conference in Singapore in August 2006.

Nominees to the Senate of the Singapore Academy of Law 2006

The Council nominated the Vice Presidents of the Society for 2006, Ms Malathi Das and Mr Yap Teong Liang, for the Honourable the Chief Justice’s consideration to serve on the Senate of the Academy.