SINGAPORE – Three individuals were appointed as Senior Counsel at the opening ceremony of the new legal year on Monday (Jan 11).
They are: Professor Goh Yihan, dean of Singapore Management University’s (SMU) School of Law; Ms Kristy Tan of the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC); and Mr Abraham Vergis, managing director of Providence Law Asia.
Prof Goh joined the National University of Singapore as an assistant professor in 2011. He moved to SMU in 2014, and was appointed the dean of SMU’s School of Law in 2017.
Before academia, he was a justices’ law clerk and later became the first-ever senior justices’ law clerk at the Supreme Court of Singapore.
In 2008, he was appointed an assistant registrar.
Ms Tan was an equity partner in law firm Allen & Gledhill LLP before joining the AGC in 2018. She now serves as the head of the advocacy group in the organisation, dealing with litigation matters involving civil, commercial, criminal and public law.
Mr Vergis, a lawyer with more than 21 years of legal experience, handles both local cases and international arbitration matters. He has also served as the chairman of the Law Society’s Criminal Legal Aid Scheme Committee, defending criminal cases pro bono.
Started in 1997, the Senior Counsel scheme recognises lawyers who possess outstanding ability as advocates, extensive knowledge of the law and the highest professional standing.
They also have the right to suffix their names with the initials “SC”.
The three new appointments on Monday bring the number of Senior Counsel in Singapore to 91.
