INCORPORATION OF LEGAL PROFESSION IN SINGAPORE

Mr Shriniwas Rai asked the Minister for Law whether he will consider allowing incorporation of the legal profession in Singapore.

Prof. S. Jayakumar: In January this year, the Law Reform Committee of the Singapore Academy of Law submitted to the Attorney-General a report recommending that law firms be allowed to corporatise on a voluntary basis. Amongst the reasons stated by the Committee were that, with corporatisation, law firms can be reorganised into larger corporate units to share resources and take advantage of economies of scale. This will enhance their ability to cope with the faster pace, heavier workload and greater range of work. With growth, there would be scope for concomitant specialisation. The corporate structure will also promote globalisation of Singapore law firms.

After discussing with the Attorney-General the advantages and disadvantages of the proposal, I gave my in-principle approval to the Law Reform Committee to work out the details. I emphasised the importance of ensuring that there are adequate safeguards to protect the interests of clients against the negligence and incompetence of law corporations.

The Law Reform Committee and Law Society are currently working together to consider the details of the proposal. When they submit their detailed proposal, my Ministry will study it with the Attorney-General's Chambers bearing in mind public and national interests.

The corporatisation of law firms will help Singapore law firms to be more competitive. Hong Kong has already amended its legislation to allow corporatisation of law firms. Allowing professionals such as lawyers to corporatise is not something new in Singapore. Architects, engineers and land surveyors were allowed to do so in 1991.