Ethics
Ethics Tip 8: Balancing your duties as an officer of the court and the duties to your client
Lawyers Gerard Quek and Glenn Chua faced an arduous task of arguing that unjust enrichment should be recognised as a cause of action and proprietary remedies should be available to their clients. Their clients’ claims in contract or tort were time-barred. As unjust enrichment has been recognized as an interstitial cause of action, applicable only when no other causes of action are available, the court struck out their client’s claims.
Although the court did not agree with much of their arguments JC Mohamed Faizal was impressed with how they discharged their duties as officers of the court and at the same time advanced the best possible arguments for their clients! The Learned JC recorded in his Grounds of Decision:
“ It leaves me finally to record my appreciation to the claimants’ instructed counsel (both Mr Gerard Quek and Mr Glenn Chua, as they both argued discrete portions of the many legal aspects of the case before me) who capably fleshed out a fair number of the issues I highlighted above in some detail and placed before me the best possible arguments in support of their clients’ case. While, as indicated above, I did not agree with much of what has been canvassed on their clients’ behalf, my conclusions should not detract from the fact that their arguments were advanced in a careful, nuanced and thoughtful fashion, with one eye to what the law is or should be. I derived much assistance in understanding an undeniably complex area of the law from the arguments that have been canvassed at length by both of them. I also commend them for the candour displayed in highlighting an adverse decision (see above at [96]) for my consideration. Such a desire to be candid with the court, while nonetheless advancing the best possible arguments available on behalf of their clients, speaks well of their fidelity to discharging their role as officers of the court.” (emphasis added)
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Well, done Gerard Quek and Glenn Chua!
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