Lucien Wong

The Honourable
Lucien Wong
SC
黄鲁胜
9th Attorney-General of Singapore
Assumed office
14 January 2017
Appointed by Tony Tan Keng Yam
Deputy
Preceded by V K Rajah JA, SC
Deputy Attorney-General of Singapore
In office
19 December 2016 – 13 January 2017
Appointed by Tony Tan Keng Yam
Personal details
Born 1953 (age 63–64)
Nationality Singaporean
Alma mater University of Singapore (LLB)

Lucien Wong Yuen Kai (Chinese: 黄鲁胜; pinyin: Huáng Lǔ Shèng; born 1953), SC, is a Singaporean lawyer. He is the incumbent Attorney-General of the Republic of Singapore.[1]

Education

Wong graduated from the University of Singapore (now the National University of Singapore) with a Bachelor of Laws degree in 1978.[1] He topped his final-year class.[2]

Career

Private practice

Wong was called to the Singapore Bar in 1979.[1] He started as a legal assistant in Drew & Napier in 1980, becoming a partner in 1982.[3] He then moved to Allen & Gledhill, where he was a partner from 1987 to 1998,[3] before being appointed managing partner from 1998 to 2012, then chairman and senior partner.[2][3] As a corporate lawyer for over three decades, he specialised in banking, corporate and financial services law.[4] He also sat on law review committees, reviewing amendments to Singaporean company and securities law.[4] He was PM Lee Hsien Loong’s personal lawyer and represented him during the dispute with his siblings over LKY’s estate.[5]

Public service

On 25 November 2016, the Prime Minister's Office announced Wong's appointment as the Attorney-General.[6] Wong is the republic's first Attorney-General without prior experience on the Bench nor in the Attorney-General's Chambers, although Law Society president Thio Shen Yi described him as a "well-known corporate visionary" and Senior Counsel Lok Vi Ming said he had "few equals in the legal profession".[2] Parliament also debated his age, as he would be 63 when appointed; however, Law Minister K Shanmugam said that the appointment, being for a specified term, was "in accordance with Article 35 of the Constitution".[7]

As a "transitional arrangement", Wong was appointed on 19 December 2016 as a Deputy Attorney-General and a Senior Counsel.[1] On 14 January 2017, he commenced his three-year term as the republic's ninth Attorney-General, succeeding V K Rajah.[3]

Controversy

Singapore Democratic Party has written to President Tony Tan, urging him to revoke Mr Lucien Wong's position as the Attorney General as the AG has refused to look into Dr Lee Wei Ling's and Lee Hsien Yang's allegations that PM Lee Hsien Loong had abused his powers and made false statements in Parliament. The SDP said that the association of Mr Wong with PM Lee prior to his becoming the AG has created an acute conflict of interest which cannot be ignored and any further delay or refusal to act will cause even greater erosion of confidence in Singapore's public institutions.[8]

Professional appointments

Prior to his appointment as the Attorney-General, Wong was the chairman of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre and the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore. He was also a member of the Singapore Business Federation's board of trustees and a director of Temasek Holdings, Singapore Press Holdings, Hap Seng Plantations, Singapore Airlines and other companies.[3]

Wong is currently a member of the Presidential Council for Minority Rights[3] and the chairman of the Singapore Management University School of Law's advisory board.[9]

Family

Lucien Wong is married.[10]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Our Leadership". Attorney-General's Chambers. 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 Cheong, Danson (26 November 2016). "New Attorney-General Lucien Wong offers fresh perspective, say lawyers". The Straits Times. Singapore.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Veteran lawyer Lucien Wong appointed Attorney-General". Channel NewsAsia. Singapore. 16 January 2017.
  4. 1 2 Ng, Kelly (25 November 2016). "Top corporate law honcho Lucien Wong is next Attorney-General". Today. Singapore.
  5. ↑ http://www.theindependent.sg/6-interesting-facts-about-lucien-wong/
  6. ↑ "Appointment of Attorney-General and Deputy Attorney-General". Prime Minister's Office. 25 November 2016.
  7. ↑ Yong, Charissa (11 January 2017). "Exchange over A-G's appointment age". The Straits Times. Singapore.
  8. ↑ https://www.theonlinecitizen.com/2017/07/25/sdp-urges-president-tony-tan-to-revoke-lucien-wongs-appointment-as-attorney-general/
  9. ↑ "Advisory Board Chairman". SMU School of Law. 6 March 2017.
  10. ↑ Tai, Janice (3 March 2017). "Paul Wong: Hotshot Lawyer to Devoted Campus Pastor". YMI.
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