Today-Jan 9
The last few years have seen a “troubling rise” in breaches of professional standards among lawyers and an increase in disciplinary tribunals, said Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon on Monday (Jan 9). In his speech to mark the opening of the legal year at the Supreme Court auditorium, Chief Justice Menon spoke about how the pandemic meant that there had inevitably been the loss of some mentoring opportunities. He added that any diminution of mentoring opportunities, whether remotely or in person, could have some serious and lasting ramifications, including “a degradation in ethics and professional standards”. Hence, he said he has asked two legal figures to develop a strategy aimed at “re-establishing the moral center and the values of our profession” for existing practitioners and fostering this among new entrants. This came in the wake of the rising number of disciplinary tribunals appointed from 2018 to 2021: 12 were appointed in 2018, 13 in 2019, 16 in 2020 and 25 in 2022. Last April, 11 trainee lawyers were found to have cheated in the Part B Bar exams in 2020, which graduates have to pass in order to be qualified to practice law in Singapore. In his speech, Chief Justice Menon made reference to the cheating case when speaking about how being a lawyer was not just a way to earn a living but rather “a calling to participate in the administration of justice”. He added that being a lawyer was about character first and competence second. Referring to the rise in disciplinary tribunals, he said that three trends can be discerned from the cases: A drop in client care standards, poor professional standards, and a disregard for the court process, he added. Read more at: https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/chief-justice-sets-group-lawyers-moral-centre-troubling-rise-professional-breaches-2086186
