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SINGAPORE: The Ministry of Law (Minlaw) will undertake a broader review of legal education and consider a launching a guide that sets out professional norms and workplace behaviours, said Minister for Law Edwin Tong on Wednesday (Jul 29).<\/span><\/p>\n Speaking at the Legal Profession Symposium, the former litigator noted that while the attrition in the industry is real, attrition figures alone do not tell the whole story.<\/span><\/p>\n “Lawyers have always left practice at some point in their career, usually at the earlier frame of their career,” said Mr Tong, noting that attrition figures have remained broadly stable.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Between 2015 to 2024, about 60 per cent of lawyers stayed in practice after five years, and 40 per cent after 10 years.<\/span><\/p>\n The real question is not whether people are leaving, but why they are leaving, the minister said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n “Are they pursuing different aspirations and opportunities, or are they pushed away because legal practice has become intolerable and unsustainable when otherwise they would like to be in practice? And I think that distinction matters a lot.”\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Around the world, law schools are rethinking how to prepare the next generation of lawyers, and Singapore should study how these developments apply to it, said Mr Tong.<\/span><\/p>\n This is why the law ministry will undertake a broader review of legal education, he added.<\/span><\/p>\n “But no matter how well we prepare our students, the most important learning still begins after they enter practice, just as it did for my generation.”<\/span><\/p>\n Workplace culture, good supervision, mentorship and respect matter at the workplace, said Mr Tong.<\/span><\/p>\n “At the same time, I do not believe the experiences described in the report is the majority of our profession. They don’t define our profession,” said the minister, referencing the Law Society’s <\/span>findings<\/span> that were released in June.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The four-year study found that lawyers are leaving private practice amid toxic workplace cultures, bullying, unreasonable workloads and a profession that intrudes into their personal lives.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Those experiences probably reflect the actions of a small minority, he added. “Unfortunately, it only takes a few individuals to cast a shadow over a profession that is overwhelmingly made up of decent, committed people who want to see their juniors succeed and will mentor them well.”<\/span><\/p>\n Mr Tong stressed that nothing excuses poor supervision, inadequate training, harassment, bullying or unreasonable treatment.<\/span><\/p>\n