Opposition politician and lawyer Lim Tean to appeal after jail term extended to three months and one week

The High Court has enhanced the sentence of lawyer and opposition politician Lim Tean to three months and one week in jail for practising law without a valid practising certificate.

Justice Kannan Ramesh delivered the decision on 23 February, finding the original sentence “manifestly inadequate”.

Lim, 61, was initially sentenced in February 2025 by a district judge to six weeks’ imprisonment and a S$1,000 fine for three counts of acting as a solicitor without authorisation under the Legal Profession Act.

He was found to have continued conducting court matters between 1 April and 9 June 2021 despite not holding a valid practising certificate.

Court dismisses Lim’s appeal and increases sentence

Justice Ramesh rejected Lim’s appeal against both conviction and sentence, confirming that the evidence established he had no certificate in force during the relevant period.

The court accepted the prosecution’s argument that the district judge erred by assessing Lim’s culpability too lightly and by failing to give sufficient weight to deterrence.

The prosecution submitted that Lim’s actions showed disregard for professional regulations and called for a custodial term of between five and eight months.

 Justice Ramesh agreed that Lim’s behaviour warranted a stronger punitive response, noting the potential risk to clients who were represented by a lawyer acting without authorisation.

Sentencing arguments and reasoning

Deputy Public Prosecutors Ng Yiwen and Bryan Wong emphasised that Lim, an experienced practitioner of over 30 years, was fully aware of the requirement to hold a valid certificate before appearing in court.

His repeated involvement in 32 court matters over more than two months reflected sustained unauthorised practice, they said.

Defence counsel Patrick Fernandez and Mohamed Arshad urged the court to impose a fine instead of a custodial sentence, contending that Lim’s conduct did not cross the threshold for imprisonment.

They argued that Lim acted in reliance on advice from a Law Society officer who told him he could attend court while awaiting renewal, provided he disclosed this to the presiding judge.

Justice Ramesh rejected those claims, observing that Lim had chosen to remain silent at trial and had offered no evidence to substantiate the alleged advice. The judge found no merit in his assertion that he had exercised reasonable care, or that he misunderstood the legal requirements concerning practising certificates.

Deferment and pending cases

Lim was granted a deferment of his sentence after informing the court that he intended to prepare a mitigation plea for a client in another case and was considering whether to take the matter to the Court of Appeal. Justice Ramesh ordered that he surrender himself at the State Courts on 24 April.

Following the decision, Lim wrote on his Facebook page, “I have instructed my legal team to do the necessary to appeal Justice Kannan Ramesh’s decision this morning to the Court of Appeal. I will have more to say in the coming days.”

Lim founded the opposition party People’s Voice and co‑leads the People’s Alliance for Reform. He currently faces separate pending charges of criminal breach of trust and unlawful harassment.

 The Law Society of Singapore has also applied to strike him off the roll in connection with a separate incident involving a S$30,000 cheque intended for a client.

Offending period and professional status

According to court findings, Lim failed to renew his practising certificate for the 2021/2022 year by the statutory deadline of 31 March 2021 due to difficulties obtaining professional indemnity insurance, a mandatory prerequisite. He subsequently continued representing clients until June 2021, when he finally obtained the necessary certificate.

During this period, Lim attended multiple court hearings and submitted court documents despite being unauthorised to practise. Under the Legal Profession Act, practising without a certificate is punishable by imprisonment for up to six months, a fine of up to S$25,000, or both.

The revised sentence does not reach the constitutional threshold for disqualification from standing in parliamentary elections, which applies to persons jailed for at least one year or fined S$10,000 for a single offence.