Singapore Law Firms Service Change

Singapore Law Firms Service Change

Singapore law firms will have one of their service change soon: termination of keeping clients' money in property transactions.

This announcement of change by the Ministry of Law on Singapore law firms to have one less legal service to provide was revealed recently. The Singapore government plans to disallow Singapore law firms from holding all property payments in property deals that the Singapore law firms deal with. These sums of money involved in property transactions that law firms traditionally keep in trust will go to the Singapore Academy of Law and maybe even local banks in Singapore.

Details about how money in property transactions will be dealt with were released by the Law Ministry on 11 August 2009. The Law Ministry is seeking public feedback on a final solution to the recurring problem of lawyers running off with their clients' money.

In the last five years, rogue lawyers have absconded with almost $20 million in funds meant for property transactions, and held in client accounts in law firms.

The Law Ministry's proposals were triggered by a need to protect monies entrusted to lawyers by buyers and sellers of properties.