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No. S 480

Legal Profession Act

(CHAPTER 161)

Legal Profession (Law Practice Entities)
(Amendment) Rules 2018

In exercise of the powers conferred by sections 136, 150, 166, 184 and 184B of the Legal Profession Act, the Minister for Law makes the following Rules:

Citation and commencement

1. These Rules are the Legal Profession (Law Practice Entities) (Amendment) Rules 2018 and come into operation on 1 August 2018.

Amendment of rule 2

2. Rule 2(1) of the Legal Profession (Law Practice Entities) Rules 2015 (G.N. No. S 699/2015) (called in these Rules the principal Rules) is amended —

(a)

by inserting, immediately after the definitions of “conveyancing account”, “conveyancing (CPF) account” and “conveyancing money”, the following definition:

“ “equity holding director”, in relation to a law corporation or a foreign law practice constituted as a corporation, means a director of the law corporation or foreign law practice who holds equity interests in the law corporation or foreign law practice (as the case may be);”;

(b)

by deleting the words “separate licensed foreign law practices (each being a sole proprietorship or a partnership)” in the definition of “foreign group practice” and substituting the words “licensed foreign law practices”; and

(c)

by deleting the words “separate law firms” in the definition of “Singapore group practice” and substituting the words “Singapore law practices”.

Amendment of rule 11

3. Rule 11 of the principal Rules is amended by deleting the words “telephone and fax numbers” in paragraph (d) and substituting the words “telephone number”.

Amendment of rule 19

4. Rule 19 of the principal Rules is amended by deleting the words “telephone and fax numbers” in paragraph (d) and substituting the words “telephone number”.

Amendment of rule 31

5. Rule 31 of the principal Rules is amended by deleting the words “telephone and fax numbers” in paragraph (d) and substituting the words “telephone number”.

Amendment of rule 40

6. Rule 40 of the principal Rules is amended —

(a)	by deleting the words “law firms” in paragraphs (1) and (2)(a) and (b) and substituting in each case the words “Singapore law practices”; and
(b)	by deleting paragraph (3).

Amendment of rule 41

7. Rule 41 of the principal Rules is amended —

(a)	by deleting the words “sole proprietors and partners” in paragraphs (1), (9) and (16) and substituting in each case the words “sole proprietors, partners and directors”;
(b)	by deleting the words “law firms” wherever they appear in paragraphs (1), (5)(a), (9), (12), (14) and (16) and substituting in each case the words “Singapore law practices”; and
(c)	by deleting the words “law firm” wherever they appear in paragraphs (1)(b), (5), (8), (10) and (12) and substituting in each case the words “Singapore law practice”.

Amendment of rule 42

8. Rule 42 of the principal Rules is amended —

(a)	by deleting the words “law firms” in paragraph (1) and substituting the words “Singapore law practices”; and
(b)	by deleting the words “law firm” wherever they appear in paragraphs (2) and (3) and substituting in each case the words “Singapore law practice”.

Amendment of rule 43

9. Rule 43 of the principal Rules is amended by deleting the words “law firm” in paragraphs (3) and (4) and substituting in each case the words “Singapore law practice”.

Amendment of rule 44

10. Rule 44 of the principal Rules is amended —

(a)

by deleting paragraph (1) and substituting the following paragraph:

“(1) A Singapore group practice may be managed by a person (called in this rule and rules 45 and 46 the manager) who —

(a)	need not be any Singapore law practice in the Singapore group practice; and
(b)	need not be a sole proprietor, partner or director of any Singapore law practice in the Singapore group practice.”;

(b)

by deleting the words “law firms” in paragraph (2) and substituting the words “Singapore law practices”; and

(c)

by deleting the words “law firm” in the definition of “management services” in paragraph (3) and substituting the words “Singapore law practice”.

Amendment of rule 45

11. Rule 45 of the principal Rules is amended —

(a)	by deleting the words “law firms” in paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) and substituting in each case the words “Singapore law practices”; and
(b)	by deleting the words “law firm” in paragraph (3) and substituting the words “Singapore law practice”.

Amendment of rule 46

12. Rule 46 of the principal Rules is amended —

(a)

by deleting the words “law firm” wherever they appear in paragraphs (1) and (2) and substituting in each case the words “Singapore law practice”; and

(b)

by deleting the words “manager of and other law firms in the Singapore group practice, and their respective estates” in paragraph (1)(b) and substituting the words “manager (if any) of and other Singapore law practices in the Singapore group practice, and the estates of the manager (if any) and of every sole proprietor or partner of any other Singapore law practice (being a law firm) in the Singapore group practice”.

Amendment of rule 47

13. Rule 47 of the principal Rules is amended by deleting the words “another law firm” and substituting the words “another Singapore law practice”.

Amendment of rule 51

14. Rule 51(2) of the principal Rules is amended —

(a)	by deleting the words “directors of such corporation” in sub‑paragraph (c) and substituting the words “equity holding directors of the foreign law practice”; and
(b)	by deleting the words “directors of such law corporation” in sub‑paragraph (e) and substituting the words “equity holding directors of the law corporation”.

Amendment of rule 52

15. Rule 52(7) of the principal Rules is amended —

(a)	by inserting the word “or” at the end of sub‑paragraph (a)(ii);
(b)	by deleting sub‑paragraph (iii) of sub‑paragraph (a);
(c)	by deleting the word “; and” at the end of sub‑paragraph (b)(ii) and substituting a full‑stop; and
(d)	by deleting sub‑paragraph (iii) of sub‑paragraph (b).

Amendment of rule 54

16. Rule 54(1) of the principal Rules is amended —

(a)	by deleting the words “directors of such corporation” in sub‑paragraph (c) and substituting the words “equity holding directors of the foreign law practice”; and
(b)	by deleting the words “directors of such law corporation” in sub‑paragraph (e) and substituting the words “equity holding directors of the law corporation”.

Amendment of rule 55

17. Rule 55(2) of the principal Rules is amended by deleting the words “, or a solicitor registered under section 36F of the Act,”.

Amendment of rule 57

18. Rule 57 of the principal Rules is amended by deleting paragraph (5) and substituting the following paragraph:

“(5) The number of solicitors registered under section 36E of the Act to practise Singapore law in a Qualifying Foreign Law Practice must not at any time exceed 4 times the total number of foreign lawyers registered under section 36B or 36C of the Act who practise in the Qualifying Foreign Law Practice.”.

Deletion of rule 61

19. Rule 61 of the principal Rules is deleted.

Amendment of rule 62

20. Rule 62 of the principal Rules is amended by deleting the words “sole proprietors and partners” in paragraphs (1) and (9) and substituting in each case the words “sole proprietors, partners and directors”.

Amendment of rule 65

21. Rule 65 of the principal Rules is amended by deleting paragraph (1) and substituting the following paragraph:

“(1) A foreign group practice may be managed by a person (called in this rule and rules 66 and 67 the manager) who —

(a)	need not be any licensed foreign law practice in the foreign group practice; and
(b)	need not be a sole proprietor, partner or director of any licensed foreign law practice in the foreign group practice.”.

Amendment of rule 67

22. Rule 67(1) of the principal Rules is amended by deleting the words “manager of and other licensed foreign law practices in the foreign group practice, and their respective estates” in sub‑paragraph (b) and substituting the words “manager (if any) of and other licensed foreign law practices in the foreign group practice, and the estates of the manager (if any) and of every sole proprietor or partner of any other licensed foreign law practice (being a sole proprietorship or partnership) in the foreign group practice”.

Amendment of rule 69

23. Rule 69 of the principal Rules is amended —

(a)	by deleting the words “the telephone and fax numbers, and the email address,” in paragraph (1)(b)(iv) and substituting the words “the telephone number and email address”; and
(b)	by deleting the words “telephone and fax numbers” in paragraph (2)(b)(iii) and substituting the words “telephone number”.

Amendment of rule 78

24. Rule 78 of the principal Rules is amended —

(a)	by inserting, immediately after the words “subject to such conditions as the Director of Legal Services thinks fit” in paragraph (2), the words “and on payment of the appropriate fee specified in the First Schedule”;
(b)	by deleting the words “notify the Director of Legal Services in writing of any change in any of the following particulars within 7 days after such change” in paragraph (3) and substituting the words “, within 7 days after any change in any of the following particulars or in such other particulars of the practice as the Director of Legal Services may require in any specific case, notify the Director of Legal Services in writing of that change”; and
(c)	by deleting the words “the telephone and fax numbers, and the email address,” in paragraphs (3)(c), (4)(b)(iii) and (5)(c) and substituting in each case the words “the telephone number and email address”.

Deletion of rule 79

25. Rule 79 of the principal Rules is deleted.

New rule 83

26. The principal Rules are amended by inserting, immediately after rule 82, the following rule:

“Amendment and issuance of certificates, etc.

83. The Director of Legal Services may, on application by any Singapore law practice, Joint Law Venture, Formal Law Alliance, foreign law practice, representative office, solicitor or foreign lawyer and on payment of the appropriate fee specified in the First Schedule —

(a)	amend or issue a licence, certificate of approval or certificate of registration issued under Part IXA of the Act or under these Rules; or
(b)	issue a certified true copy of any such licence, certificate of approval or certificate of registration.”.

Amendment of First Schedule

27. The First Schedule to the principal Rules is amended —

(a)

by deleting the words “and 79” in the Schedule reference and substituting the words “, 78(2) and 83”; and

(b)

by deleting item 23 and substituting the following items:

“

23.	Fee under rule 78(2) for inspection of register or making information in register available

$50

24.	Application fee for application under rule 83 —

$50

(a)	to amend a licence, certificate of approval or certificate of registration issued under Part IXA of the Act or under these Rules; or

(b)	to issue a certified true copy of any such licence, certificate of approval or certificate of registration

”.

Made on 30 July 2018.

NG HOW YUE

Permanent Secretary,
Ministry of Law,
Singapore.

[LAW 32/001/8.28 Vol. 1; AG/LEGIS/SL/161/2015/7 Vol. 4]

(To be presented to Parliament under section 185 of the Legal Profession Act).