THE LAW SOCIETY OF SINGAPORE v SYN KOK KAY
Key facts
| Court | High Court (General Division) |
|---|---|
| Decided | |
| Judges | Steven Chong, Sundaresh Menon, Tay Yong Kwang |
| Charges / claim | Legal Profession |
| Counsel | Selvam LLC, Wee Swee Teow LLP, Faustina Joyce Fernando, Giam Chin Toon, Sean Francois La’Brooy, Teo Hui Xian Astrid |
Source: [2023] SGHC 7, High Court (General Division), decided — eLitigation. Updated .
Catchwords
Practice Areas
Counsel (6)
Case Significance
Law Society of Singapore v Syn Kok Kay [2023] SGHC 7 was an application (Originating Application No 2 of 2022) heard by the Court of Three Judges, comprising Sundaresh Menon CJ, Tay Yong Kwang JCA and Steven Chong JCA, on 11 October 2022, with Steven Chong JCA delivering the judgment on 10 January 2023. The Law Society applied under s 83(1) of the Legal Profession Act 1966 (2020 Rev Ed) to sanction the respondent, Mr Syn Kok Kay, for overcharging a client by billing $1,340,000 for work later taxed at $288,000, and for failing to deliver a bill of costs for taxation for more than a year without just cause. The court found due cause for sanction and imposed a term of suspension of three years and nine months. The judgment consolidated principles on the overcharging of solicitor's fees, considerations for sanctioning non-compliance with a court order, and whether a bankrupt solicitor's suspension should commence immediately or on discharge.
[2023] SGHC 7 explained
THE LAW SOCIETY OF SINGAPORE v SYN KOK KAY ([2023] SGHC 7) is a Singapore judgment decided by the High Court (General Division) on 10 January 2023. It is categorised under Legal Profession. Within this corpus it has since been cited by 1 other reported Singapore judgment, a measure of how often later decisions have referred to it. This page summarises what the reported decision covers and links the primary sources — the full judgment, the statutes it cites, and the other cases it engages with — so the decision can be read in context. It is reference information, not legal advice, and it does not state the outcome or any holding beyond what the official judgment records.
What is [2023] SGHC 7 about?
THE LAW SOCIETY OF SINGAPORE v SYN KOK KAY ([2023] SGHC 7) is a High Court (General Division) decision from 2023. Its published catchwords are “Legal Profession — Disciplinary proceedings”, which indicate the subject matter the judgment addresses. The full reasoning and orders are in the judgment itself, linked below.
Which legislation does [2023] SGHC 7 consider?
The judgment refers to Legal Profession Act (Cap 161). The statutes cited are listed in full on this page, each linking to its primary text.
How influential is [2023] SGHC 7?
Within this corpus, [2023] SGHC 7 has been cited by 1 later reported Singapore judgment. That count reflects references from other decisions held in this corpus only and is a conservative lower bound on how often the case has actually been cited.
What did the court decide in Law Society of Singapore v Syn Kok Kay [2023] SGHC 7?
The Court of Three Judges, in a judgment delivered by Steven Chong JCA on 10 January 2023, found due cause to sanction Mr Syn Kok Kay under s 83(1) of the Legal Profession Act and imposed a term of suspension of three years and nine months.
What overcharging was alleged against Syn Kok Kay ([2023] SGHC 7)?
The Law Society alleged that Mr Syn Kok Kay overcharged a client by billing $1,340,000 for work that was later taxed at $288,000, and separately that he failed to deliver a bill of costs for taxation for more than a year without just cause.
Statutes Cited
Cases Cited (14)
Related cases
Other Singapore judgments involving the same parties or counsel.
Referenced in
Statutes interpreted in this judgment
Legal concepts & references
Judgment
Read the full judgment on the official Singapore Courts portal.
Read on eLitigationSource: eLitigation ([2023] SGHC 7)