Lawyer suspended 6 months for promising but failing to supervise M. Ravi
A lawyer who made a promise in writing to personally supervise fellow practitioner M. Ravi, but ended up failing to do so, was handed a six-month suspension on Monday.
The suspension, which starts on Jan 1, 2024, was imposed on Mr Cheng Kim Kuan by the Court of Three Judges, the highest disciplinary body for the legal profession.
The court said it will give detailed reasons in due course.
Mr Ravi, who has bipolar disorder, was considered not fit to practise without supervision. He is currently suspended from practice.
He was given a conditional practising certificate for the practice year 2021-2022 after Mr Cheng gave a written undertaking on May 12, 2021, to the Supreme Court and the Law Society.
Lawyers’ practising certificates are renewed yearly in April.
Mr Cheng undertook to personally supervise Mr Ravi as a lawyer at his firm, K K Cheng Law, and to take all necessary steps to ensure that Mr Ravi complies with the conditions of his practising certificate.
He also pledged to provide monthly reports to the Law Society and the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC), and to immediately notify both organisations if he learns of circumstances that may impair Mr Ravi’s fitness to practise.
However, for months, Mr Cheng gave Mr Ravi free rein to run his own practice, including the freedom to hire his own employees, and had no idea what Mr Ravi was working on.
They did not even operate from the same premises. Mr Cheng’s firm was at People’s Park Centre, while Mr Ravi worked out of an office at High Street Centre that was not rented by the firm.
In November 2021, the AGC sent Mr Cheng a series of letters, setting out Mr Ravi’s behaviour and conduct in various court proceedings and on social media, and asking for his response.
Mr Cheng met Mr Ravi to lay down additional conditions: that his written approval was required before Mr Ravi took on a case, and that Mr Ravi was to refrain from further social media posts relating to cases taken on while he practised under the firm’s banner.
However, Mr Ravi refused to abide by these conditions.
In his response to the AGC, Mr Cheng said he did not approve or oversee the legal matters taken on by Mr Ravi, that he did not review the documents prepared by Mr Ravi, and that he was not aware of the incidents involving Mr Ravi.
Mr Cheng also said that he intended to stop acting as Mr Ravi’s supervisor only after the end of the practice year, to avoid disruptions to Mr Ravi’s practice.
On Jan 6, 2022, the Attorney-General made a complaint against Mr Cheng to the Law Society.
A two-member disciplinary tribunal found that Mr Cheng’s misconduct was sufficiently serious for him to be referred to the Court of Three Judges to face disciplinary sanction.
On Monday, the Law Society, represented by Mr Mark Cham, sought six to eight months’ suspension, while Mr Cheng’s lawyer, Mr Ong Ying Ping, suggested one month’s suspension.
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