Singapore is at a crossroads once again. Maybe even a quiet existential crisis.

The first time was when we got kicked out of Malaysia. No hinterland. No industrial base. Only our wits, our grit and exceptional leadership.

But we had the benefit of an emerging global rules-based order, which was both ballast and rocket fuel, to propel us into the 21st century.

The growth of modern Singapore, that journey from third world to first, has been told countless times, but is no less remarkable with each retelling. Our success was unexpected, exponential, sui generis. It was a whole-of-nation enterprise. Entire industries and professions built themselves up from ground zero to world class, and in that process, we built a nation.

Relooking Singapore’s formula for success

Sixty years after independence, the rules-based order on which Singapore thrived is now under attack. We are confronted with big power politics, hegemons and realpolitik alliances, rather than a cooperative global commons.

How should Singapore find its place in a complex and ambiguous new world?

My chosen field, the Law, is the sector I know best and a natural direction for my analysis to turn.

Singapore’s present success is built on being an internationally renowned financial and services centre. That includes a thriving legal sector.

Singapore started producing its own law graduates in the early 1960s, and my mother was among the maiden crop, becoming the youngest – and a female – dean of the law school. Those early pioneers “invented” the profession from scratch. They set the standards, created the precedents, and established the structures which we practise from today. There was a sense of excitement as the legal sector developed in tandem with Singapore’s nation-building miracle.

Since then, the profession has assimilated global best practices and I believe we have the potential to be a world class profession. I suspect that it is a similar story with other specialisations. On the medical and biopharma fronts, Singapore continues to make breakthroughs; our country is among the top 10 countries in the world in artificial intelligence (AI) technology and research.

Perhaps that is the formula to finding our place in the world. There are some broad areas where we can be the best, and in being the best, create an indispensable role for ourselves in the global architecture.

I’m a big fan of the All Blacks. New Zealand is a small country, yet they have dominated rugby globally. Why can’t Singapore be the All Blacks of professional services? That is perhaps our comparative advantage.

We have been able to produce top class lawyers, doctors, architects, accountants, bankers, fund managers, researchers and public servants. Through that process, we maintain relevance and value in bringing expertise, trustworthiness, connectivity, insight and effectiveness to the table.

Let me bring the focus back to lawyering before I stray too far from my own domain expertise. How do we become and continue to be the best lawyers in the world?

Talent

The Singapore legal profession has been exposed to, and assimilated, global best practices. We are acknowledged domain experts. That’s why Singapore partners now dot the leadership of international firms, and not just in Singapore. There is a whole-of-profession approach to adapting to new practice areas and technologies, supported by a forward-thinking government. Look at the recent thinking and discussions surrounding AI adoption.

Our Western legal training and our cultural familiarity with the East give us a unique opportunity to be a trusted broker and connector. Our universities have already started training law students in other legal traditions.

But talent, while necessary, is not sufficient. You need trustworthiness. In many ways, we have had a free ride on Singapore’s existing reputation for integrity and its zero-tolerance approach to corruption. Nevertheless, we, as a profession, have to live this and to embody this. And this is where a commitment to ethics and honour are paramount.

Trust

Trust is becoming a rare commodity. In the common law world, lawyers in the US are increasingly politicised. Allegiance to political expediency is the new normal, to the extent that even pro bono work is politicised.

For example, law firms are avoiding pro bono cases which may upset the Trump administration, a consideration that ought to be irrelevant. Will commercial clients seeking representation also face these difficulties in securing zealous representation against government entities?

In the UK, there is a mounting lack of trust in the legal system – the criminal justice system is in disrepair to the point where it has been described as “a shambles” and “on the brink of collapse”, with an increasing backlog of trials, delayed trials, and a record number of people in remand. The events of Brexit, where Judges came under scurrilous attack with some mainstream media sources calling them “enemies of the people”, has encouraged an erosion of trust in the judiciary.

More broadly, eye-watering levels of partner pay inevitably make law a business first, and an honorable calling a distant runner-up.

In a world where trust is eroding, integrity and ethical behaviour become a safe harbour.

It may be argued that the practice of law as a business, and the need to compete with the best lawyers in the world, militate against an emphasis on ethics. This would be short sighted. Trust is currency, and there is space to do well by doing good. More fundamentally, you cannot put a price on doing the right thing.

Behaving with honour, integrity, courtesy – these are shared values in our wider community. We must not forget that. There are positive externalities benefiting the wider community if there is trust in the legal fraternity.

If we can all live up to this, then there is also the unquantifiable pride in being a part of a truly honorable profession.

Touch

Excellence and integrity, while worthy, are still not sufficient for us to be truly world class.  What then is the magic ingredient?

I would suggest that it is the quality of “touch”.

That can be expressed as inclusivity, or compassion. At its core, it is the desire to use our skills for the betterment of our community. Underpinning this is the simple idea that while we operate in a meritocratic society, meritocracy as an organising principle is only legitimate if those that succeed are intentional about making society a better place for those who have not made it as far.

This finds tangible expression in the provision of pro bono legal services, whether organised or ad hoc. This, for many years, has been the beating heart of our profession. The test of the moral health of a society is how we treat the most vulnerable. The legal profession’s longstanding track record in assisting the indigent, marginalised and the vulnerable to navigate the legal system is one of our success stories. This is what differentiates us.

In spite of the soaring heights that many of our lawyers achieve, they choose to embed themselves in the community. We’re the best because we care.

Nation building

May I go further? Elevating our profession plays a part in nation building for the future.

Trusted services to economic stakeholders, access to justice, and equality for all before the law, are foundational to building a strong community.

As the global rules-based order buckles, the rule of law in Singapore has a critical significance in maintaining Singapore’s relevance and value in the global village.

There is strength in providing professional services that meet global best practices, serve as connectors and honest brokers between different stakeholders, and are embedded in the community. Knowing that they serve this greater mission can give each lawyer a wider sense of purpose, mission and ownership, wherever in the legal community they end up. A career is singular, but done right, is also part of the aggregate contribution to building a nation.

This may sound idealistic, but with the world in moral flux, has there been a better time to hold onto ideals? Do we dare to aspire to be the best, practice with purpose, and build a Singapore for the future?

Challenge accepted.