Law Society Awards

1. Practice Excellence Awards

Call for Nominations: The Law Society’s Practice Excellence Awards

Nomination Period: 2 to 30 September 2025 (both dates inclusive)

Nomination Process

The Law Society is delighted to launch its inaugural Practice Excellence Awards, which showcase the best of the Singapore legal profession by recognising practising lawyers who have achieved excellence in a particular area of practice.

For 2025, the Society invites nominations for the following practice areas:

  • Civil Litigation/Advocacy
  • Criminal
  • Family
  • Personal Injury and Property Damage
  • Probate
  • Restructuring & Insolvency
  • Intellectual Property
  • Banking & Finance
  • Mergers & Acquisitions
  • Corporate (excluding Banking & Finance and Mergers & Acquisitions)
  • Capital Markets
  • Technology
  • Arbitration
  • Mediation

Eligibility Criteria

The Society considers nominations and presents awards at the Society’s sole discretion.

  1. The “eligibility period” is the period beginning on the date on which nominations for the award close and ending on the date on which the award is conferred.
  2. Nominees must be practising members of the Society who hold a valid practising certificate for Practice Year 2025/2026 and who have been in practice for at least 10 years. The Society does not accept nominations for in-house lawyers.
  3. The Society will not consider a posthumous nomination.
  4. Nominees whose practising certificates are revoked or suspended, or who hold a conditional practising certificate, or are convicted of a criminal offence (whether in Singapore or elsewhere), at any time during the eligibility period, are not eligible for the award.
  5. In extraordinary circumstances, the Society, at its sole discretion, reserves the right to subsequently revoke the award from a recipient who is no longer deemed deserving.

Filing a Nomination

A practising lawyer can be nominated for any award(s) by another practising lawyer or via self-nomination (in either case referred to as the “Nominator”).

To file a nomination, the Nominator must file using the official nomination form (Members’ Library > Society Matters > Practice Excellence Awards > LSS Practice Excellence Nomination Form) and collect all supporting documentation. After completing the nomination form, the Nominator must attach all supporting documents and send them via email to awardnominations@lawsoc.org.sg.

In the case of a nomination by another practising lawyer, the Nominator must provide a letter of nomination of 1-2 pages setting out the reasons for the nomination, background information on the nominee, and their outstanding service and exemplary achievements as they relate to the award.

In the case of a self-nomination, the Nominator must include 2 letters in support of your nomination, each from a practising lawyer who has been in practice for at least 5 years and is not from your law practice. If more than 2 letters of support are submitted, only the first 2 letters will be considered.

All documents should be in PDF format. Please ensure documents are not password-protected. Letters can be addressed as follows:

Practice Excellence Awards

The Law Society of Singapore

Maxwell Chambers Suites

28 Maxwell Road, #01-03

Singapore 069120

In summary, a complete nomination package includes the following:

  1. a nomination form completed by the Nominator;
  2. a narrative bio or CV of the nominee;
  3. in the case of a nomination by another practising lawyer, a letter of nomination of 1-2 pages setting out the reasons for the nomination, background information on the nominee, and their outstanding service and exemplary achievements as they relate to the award;
  4. in the case of a self-nomination, 2 letters of support, each from a practising lawyer who has been in practice for at least 5 years and is not from the Nominator’s law practice.

Please note that:

  1. incomplete nomination packages will be rejected;
  2. any and all confidential information provided in the nomination package must be clearly marked as “CONFIDENTIAL” on each page or in a dedicated cover sheet;
  3. no fees are chargeable for this year’s nomination process.

Selection Process

Nominees will be ranked across 4 areas:

The Nominator, or the number of nominations received, has no effect on a lawyer’s recognition for the purposes of the award(s).

Nominations for the Practice Excellence Awards are reviewed by an independent selection committee appointed by the Society. All decisions are made confidentially by the selection committee.

Announcement of Award Recipients

The award recipients will be notified at least 5 days ahead of the Society’s Annual Dinner and Dance, which will be held on 24 October 2025. The names of the award recipients will be made public once all of the recipients have been contacted. The names will be published on the Society’s website as well as by media release.

Award recipients will receive a commemorative plaque and a special Practice Excellence emblem to showcase in marketing materials.

If an award recipient cannot attend the award ceremony at the Society’s Annual Dinner and Dance, a representative may be appointed to receive the award on their behalf.

Questions regarding the Practice Excellence Awards can be directed to awardnominations@lawsoc.org.sg.

2. C C Tan Award

Honours members who embody the highest ideals of our profession — honesty, fair play, courtesy, and personal integrity.
 

2024 – Professor Tan Cheng Han, SC

2023 – Adrian Tan Gim Hai

2022 – Chew Kei Jin

2021 – Lok Vi Ming, SC

2020 – Philip Jeyaretnam, SC

2019 – Amolat Singh

2018 – Leo Cheng Suan

2017 – Peter Cuthbert Low

2016 – Chandra Mohan K Nair

2015 – Arfat Selvam

2014 – Gopalan Raman

2013 – George Lim Teong Jin, SC

2012 – Michael Hwang, SC

2011 – Tang See Chim

2010 – Phyllis P.L. Tan

2009 – Thean Lip Ping

2008 – K.S. Rajah, SC

2007 – Joseph Grimberg, SC

2006 – Giam Chin Toon, SC

2005 – Harry Elias, SC

2004 – T.P.B Menon

2003 – Chelva Retnam Rajah, SC

3. Pro Bono Ambassador Award (Inaugurated in 2009)

Presented to members who have demonstrated an outstanding commitment to pro bono service for over five years.
 

2024 – Viviene Sandhu

2023 – Peggy Sarah Yee May Kuen

2022 – Richard Siaw Kin Yeow

2021 – Abraham Vergis, SC

2020 – Eugene Thuraisingam

2019 – Sunil Sudheesan

2018 – June Lim Pei Ling

2017 – Arfat Selvam

2016 – Tan Cheow Hung

2015 – Thrumurgan S/O Ramapiram

2014 – Suresh S/O Damodara

2013 – Tan Joon Liang Josephus

2012 – George Lim Teong Jin, SC

2011 – Malathi Das

2010 – N. Sreenivasan, SC

2009 – Gregory Vijayendran, SC

4. Sports Personality Award (Inaugurated in 2017)

Presented to lawyers who have demonstrated outstanding leadership and sportsmanship within the legal fraternity.
 

2024 – Chan Lai Foong

2023 – Moiz Haider Sithawalla

2022 – Lee Terk Yang

2021 – Paul Wong

2020 – Sam Hui Min Lisa

2019 – Gary Allen Pryke

2018 – Bala Chandran s/o A Kandiah

2017 – Chelva Retnam Rajah, SC