13. The principal Act is amended by inserting, immediately after section 82, the following section:“Disciplinary proceedings against legal officers and non-practising solicitors |
82A.—(1) This Part, with the exception of this section and sections 82, 90, 91, 98 to 102, 104, 105 and 106, shall not apply to any legal officer or any advocate and solicitor who does not at the time of the misconduct have in force a practising certificate (referred to in this section as a non-practising solicitor).(2) All legal officers and non-practising solicitors shall be subject to the control of the Supreme Court and shall be liable on due cause shown to be punished in accordance with this section. |
(3) Such due cause may be shown by proof that a legal officer or a non-practising solicitor, as the case may be —(a) | has been guilty in Singapore or elsewhere of such misconduct unbefitting a legal officer or an advocate and solicitor as an officer of the Supreme Court or as a member of an honourable profession; or | (b) | has been adjudicated bankrupt and has been guilty of any of the acts or omissions mentioned in section 33(6)(a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (f), (h) or (i) of the Bankruptcy Act (Cap. 20). |
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(4) No application for an order to show cause under this section shall be made unless leave has been granted by the Chief Justice for an investigation to be made into the complaint of misconduct against the legal officer or non-practising solicitor concerned. |
(5) An application for such leave shall be made by ex parte originating summons and shall be accompanied by an affidavit setting out the allegations of misconduct against the legal officer or non-practising solicitor. |
(6) Where the Chief Justice is of the opinion that the applicant has made out a prima facie case for an investigation into his complaint, the Chief Justice may grant such leave and appoint a Disciplinary Committee under section 90. |
(7) The Disciplinary Committee shall hear and investigate into the complaint and submit its findings of fact and law in the form of a report to the Chief Justice. |
(8) A copy of the report shall be supplied to the legal officer or non-practising solicitor concerned, and to the Attorney-General if the report relates to a legal officer. |
(9) Where the Disciplinary Committee finds that no cause of sufficient gravity for disciplinary action exists under this section against the legal officer or non-practising solicitor concerned, the Chief Justice shall dismiss the complaint. |
(10) Where the Disciplinary Committee finds that cause of sufficient gravity for disciplinary action exists under this section against the legal officer or non-practising solicitor concerned, the Chief Justice may appoint an advocate and solicitor or a legal officer to apply by motion in the same proceedings for an order that the legal officer or the non-practising solicitor concerned be struck off the roll, prohibited from applying for a practising certificate, censured or otherwise punished, and section 98 shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to such application. |
(11) On completion of the hearing of the application under subsection (10), the court may —(a) | censure the legal officer or non-practising solicitor; | (b) | prohibit him from applying for a practising certificate for such period not exceeding 5 years as it may specify; | (c) | order that his name be struck off the roll; | (d) | order him to pay a penalty of not more than $5,000; or | (e) | make such other order as it thinks fit. |
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(12) The costs of and incidental to all proceedings under this section shall be in the discretion of the judge or of the court before whom the hearing has taken place. |
(13) Subject to this section, the Rules Committee may make rules for regulating and prescribing the procedure and practice to be followed in connection with proceedings under this section and in the absence of any rule or rules dealing with any point of procedure or practice, the Rules of the Supreme Court (Cap. 322, R. 1) may be followed as nearly as the circumstances permit. |
(14) For the avoidance of doubt, nothing in this section shall prevent any legal officer from being subject to disciplinary action by the Legal Service Commission for any act or omission which constitutes a disciplinary offence under this section.”. |
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