Eversheds Harry Elias Consultant Hee Theng Fong was quoted in the Straits Times article titled “Law Ministry considering new payment system for lawyers: Shanmugam”. The article was first published on 9 August 2019.
Law Ministry considering new payment system for lawyers: Shanmugam
The Law Ministry is considering whether to introduce a form of payment agreement in which lawyers get paid only if their client’s claim is successful, said Law Minister K. Shanmugam yesterday.
Known as Conditional Fee Agreements (CFAs), they could include a success fee on top of the usual legal fees. Such agreements are being considered for “specific categories of proceedings”, said Mr Shanmugam, without elaborating.
This would be a “fairly radical change” to the industry, he said at the launch of the Maxwell Chambers Suites, an extension wing of the dispute resolution complex Maxwell Chambers.
Below is an excerpt from the article which features comments from Hee Theng Fong:
Lawyers interviewed described the move as an interesting development that could put Singapore’s legal system on a par with other countries, where similar fee agreements are already being used.
Examples of such countries include China and the United States, said lawyer Hee Theng Fong from law firm Eversheds-Harry Elias.
“In that sense, maybe this might attract more businesses,” he added.
Full article can be found here.
Source: The Straits Times
Author: Cara Wong