No. S 207
Legal Profession Act
(Chapter 161)
Legal Profession (Solicitors’ Accounts) (Amendment No. 2) Rules 2007
In exercise of the powers conferred by section 72 of the Legal Profession Act, the Council of the Law Society of Singapore, with the approval of the Chief Justice, hereby makes the following Rules:
Citation and commencement
1.  These Rules may be cited as the Legal Profession (Solicitors’ Accounts) (Amendment No. 2) Rules 2007 and shall come into operation on 15th July 2007.
Amendment of rule 2
2.  Rule 2(1) of the Legal Profession (Solicitors’ Accounts) Rules (R 8) (referred to in these Rules as the principal Rules) is amended —
(a)by inserting, immediately after the definition of “client’s money”, the following definitions:
“ “conveyance” and “land” have the same meaning respectively, as in section 2 of the Conveyancing and Law of Property Act (Cap. 61);
“conveyancing money” means client’s money held or received by a solicitor for or in connection with the conveyance, transfer or grant of any estate, interest or right in respect of land, and includes client’s money held or received by a solicitor for or in connection with —
(a)the sale, purchase or assignment of any estate, interest or right in respect of land;
(b)the grant of a lease, licence or tenancy in respect of land; or
(c)the grant of a mortgage of or charge on land, or the redemption or discharge thereof;”; and
(b)by inserting, immediately after the definition of “Public Accountants Oversight Committee”, the following definition:
“ “signatory”, in relation to a client account, means a solicitor who is authorised to sign a cheque or other instruction effecting a withdrawal from the client account;”.
Amendment of rule 8
3.  Rule 8 of the principal Rules is amended by deleting paragraph (5) and substituting the following paragraphs:
“(5)  No sum exceeding $5,000 shall be drawn from a client account except upon a cheque (or other instruction effecting the withdrawal) signed by 2 solicitors.
(6)  Paragraph (5) shall not apply if —
(a)the solicitor has engaged a book-keeper for the purposes of rule 11 (8); and
(b)the sum to be drawn does not exceed $30,000.
(7)  A solicitor shall not sign a cheque or other instruction effecting a withdrawal from a client account if —
(a)the solicitor has been —
(i)in practice as a solicitor in Singapore for less than 3 years in aggregate; or
(ii)employed as a legal officer for less than 3 years in aggregate;
(b)the solicitor is not holding a current practising certificate; or
(c)the practising certificate of the solicitor is subject to any condition imposed under section 25A or 27A of the Act prohibiting the solicitor from signing such cheques or instructions.
(8)  For the avoidance of doubt, a solicitor shall comply with the requirements of these Rules in respect of the withdrawal of money from a client account notwithstanding that the leave of a Judge of the High Court has been obtained in respect of that withdrawal for the purposes of paragraph (4).”.
Amendment of rule 11
4.  Rule 11 (7) of the principal Rules is amended by deleting the words “holds a current practising certificate” and substituting the words “is not a person prohibited under rule 8 (7) from signing a cheque or other instruction effecting a withdrawal from a client account”.
Amendment of rule 11A
5.  Rule 11A of the principal Rules is amended —
(a)by inserting, immediately after sub-paragraph (i) of paragraph (2)(a), the following sub-paragraph:
“(ia)stating whether the person to be appointed to provide book-keeping services to the solicitor on behalf of the accounting firm has completed any course specified under paragraph (2A) and, if that person has not completed such a course, undertaking that that person will complete the course within 12 months of being so appointed;”;
(b)by inserting, immediately after sub-paragraph (i) of paragraph (2)(b), the following sub-paragraph:
“(ia)stating whether the person to be appointed to provide book-keeping services to the solicitor on behalf of the accounting corporation has completed any course specified under paragraph (2A) and, if that person has not completed such a course, undertaking that that person will complete the course within 12 months of being so appointed;”;
(c)by inserting, immediately after sub-paragraph (i) of paragraph (2)(ba), the following sub-paragraph:
“(ia)stating whether the person to be appointed to provide book-keeping services to the solicitor on behalf of the accounting LLP has completed any course specified under paragraph (2A) and, if that person has not completed such a course, undertaking that that person will complete the course within 12 months of being so appointed;”;
(d)by inserting, immediately after sub-paragraph (i) of paragraph (2)(c), the following sub-paragraph:
“(ia)stating whether the person to be appointed to provide book-keeping services to the solicitor on behalf of the firm or body corporate has completed any course specified under paragraph (2A) and, if that person has not completed such a course, undertaking that that person will complete the course within 12 months of being so appointed;”;
(e)by deleting sub-paragraph (i) of paragraph (2)(d) and substituting the following sub-paragraphs:
“(i)stating that he is not an employee or immediate family member of the solicitor;
(ia)stating whether he has completed any course specified under paragraph (2A) and, if he has not completed such a course, undertaking that he will complete the course within 12 months of being engaged by the solicitor as a book-keeper;”;
(f)by inserting, immediately after paragraph (2), the following paragraph:
“(2A)  The Council may specify one or more courses for the purposes of paragraph (2)(a)(ia), (b)(ia), (ba)(ia), (c)(ia) and (d)(ia) by publishing the particulars of the specified courses on the website of the Law Society.”;
(g)by deleting the word “or” at the end of paragraph (4)(b);
(h)by deleting the comma at the end of sub-paragraph (c) of paragraph (4) and substituting the word “; or”, and by inserting immediately thereafter the following sub-paragraph:
“(d)any undertaking under paragraph (2)(a)(ia), (b)(ia), (ba)(ia), (c)(ia) or (d)(ia), relating to the completion of any course specified under paragraph (2A), given by a book-keeper or in respect of a person appointed to provide book-keeping services on behalf of a book-keeper, as the case may be, has not been complied with,”;
(i)by deleting the word “or” at the end of paragraph (8)(b); and
(j)by deleting sub-paragraph (c) of paragraph (8) and substituting the following sub-paragraphs:
“(c)the solicitor has received or held conveyancing money in contravention of rule 11B (1); or
(d)the solicitor has failed to respond to such query from the book-keeper as is necessary to enable the book-keeper to carry out his duties referred to in sub-paragraph (a), (b) or (c).”.
New rule 11B
6.  The principal Rules are amended by inserting, immediately after rule 11A, the following rule:
“Receipt and holding of conveyancing money
11B.—(1)  A solicitor shall not receive or hold conveyancing money unless the solicitor —
(a)has at least 2 signatories to his client account;
(b)has notified the Council of the signatories to his client account and their particulars in accordance with this rule;
(c)reasonably believes that the signatories to his client account are not persons prohibited under rule 8(7) from signing a cheque or other instruction effecting a withdrawal from a client account; and
(d)has furnished to the Council a statutory declaration —
(i)identifying the signatories to his client account in such manner as the Council may require; and
(ii)stating that he reasonably believes that the signatories to his client account are not persons prohibited under rule 8(7) from signing a cheque or other instruction effecting a withdrawal from a client account.
(2)  The solicitor shall, within 7 days of any change in any matter stated in a statutory declaration furnished by him to the Council under this rule, furnish to the Council a further statutory declaration notifying the Council of the change.”.
Miscellaneous amendments
7.  The principal Rules are amended —
(a)by deleting the words “or employ” wherever they appear in the following provisions:
Rules 11(8) and 11A(1), (2) (2nd line), (3) (2nd line) and (5);
(b)by deleting the words “or employed” wherever they appear in the following provisions:
Rule 11A(4) (penultimate line), (6) (a) and (10);
(c)by deleting the word “difficulties” wherever it appears in the following provisions and substituting in each case the word “issues”:
Rule 11A(2)(a)(ii), (b)(ii), (ba)(ii), (c)(ii) and (d)(ii), (4)(b), (8) (1st line) and (9); and
(d)by deleting the word “difficulty” wherever it appears in rule 11A(14) and substituting in each case the word “issue”.
[G.N. Nos. S 466/2001; S 109/2004; S 660/2006; S206/2007]

Made this 11th day of May 2007.

PHILIP JEYARETNAM
President,
Council of the Law Society of Singapore.
[LS/52A/07; AG/LEG/SL/161/2002/1 Vol. 6]
(To be presented to Parliament under section 131 of the Legal Profession Act).
Singapore Statutes Online
© 2024 Attorney-General's Chambers of Singapore,
Last updated 28 Apr 2024
Singapore Statutes Online is provided by the Legislation Division of the Attorney-General's Chambers of Singapore.