Committee proposes new regulatory authority for legal services in Singapore

A committee tasked with a review has proposed the establishment of a new regulatory body to oversee the law firms, the Ministry of Law said on Monday. The proposed Legal Services Regulatory Authority, which will come under the Law Ministry, will take over the functions of the current Law Society of Singapore and the Attorney-General's Chambers. The Law Society of Singapore regulates law practices in Singapore, while the Attorney-General's Chambers regulates foreign law practices and the registration of foreign lawyers. The ministry said it welcomes the recommendations by the committee, which was tasked in January 2012 by the Law Minister to review the regulatory framework of the legal services sector. The ministry said that it will be looking to table the proposed changes to the Legal Profession (Amendment) Bill before the end of this year. The changes could take effect next year. The proposed Legal Services Regulatory Authority will also oversee law firms that wish to adopt Alternative Business Structures. The high-level committee made up of largely of judges and lawyers proposed that non-lawyer managers and employees can own equity and share in the profits. Law firms are traditionally owned only by lawyers. Beh Swan Gin, permanent secretary at the Ministry of Law, said that the legal sector is evolving to meet the changing and increasingly varied needs of international trade and business. "We believe that the recommendations will enable Singapore's regulatory regime to keep pace with and where possible, anticipate these changes so that the legal sector maintains its high professional standards even as it continues to grow as a high- value segment of the economy," Beh said. The committee also proposed that a common set of professional conduct rules and the same disciplinary process be applied for both Singapore-qualified lawyers and foreign-qualified lawyers. However, when foreign-qualified lawyers face the disciplinary process, the committees and tribunals at every stage will include one foreign-qualified lawyer. Currently, some 20 percent of the 5,260 lawyers in Singapore are foreign-qualified.