Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon: Welcome Address at the Judiciary Volunteers Appreciation Lunch 2025

1. A very good afternoon. On behalf of the Judiciary, welcome to this year’s Appreciation Lunch, where we come together to express our heartfelt appreciation and deep gratitude for the tremendous efforts that each and every one of you has made in contributing to our mission. We deeply appreciate the efforts of all our volunteers. 

2. This has been a year of many significant milestones. We commemorated the 40th anniversary of the Small Claims Tribunals, marked the first decade of the Singapore International Commercial Court, and celebrated the official opening of the Octagon as the new home of the Family Justice Courts. But all of these milestones have been made possible only because of the strong and unwavering support that we have received from our partners and stakeholders – not least our court volunteers, who form a critical pillar of our justice system. 

3. Although you come from diverse backgrounds and assist us in many different ways, all of you are united by your passion and commitment to ensuring that we make access to justice a reality for our fellow citizens and residents. So, I would like to express on behalf of the Judiciary, our heartfelt appreciation and gratitude to each and every one of you for stepping forward and for offering your time, energies and expertise to support the work of our Judiciary.

4. This afternoon, we will be giving out 23 Long Service Awards to volunteers who have been working with us for 10 and 15 years respectively at the State Courts’ Court Dispute Resolution Cluster (or “CDRC”). We will also be presenting the Outstanding Court Volunteer Award to two volunteers who have demonstrated outstanding commitment and dedication:

(a) The first is Mr Choo Si Sen of Tan Lee & Partners, who receives the Outstanding Court Volunteer Award in the Advocate & Solicitor category. A veteran of our legal community, Si Sen joined our panel of Court Volunteer Mediators in 2002 and has mediated cases in the CDRC for 23 years. He has been complimented for his unwavering dedication, exceptional professionalism, and genuine passion for resolving disputes through mediation. In just the last three years, Si Sen has volunteered on 39 occasions, including nine times between April last year and March this year.

(b) The second recipient of the Outstanding Court Volunteer Award is Ms Ng Lee Lee, who receives the award in the Open Category. Lee Lee has volunteered as a mediator at the Small Claims Tribunals since September 2014. Despite her professional commitments in a consultancy firm, she has volunteered no less than 105 times in the last three years, with 43 of these having taken place between April last year and March this year. 

5. Finally, we will be presenting the Legal Assistance Scheme for Capital Offences (or “LASCO”) Long Service Award to two individuals who have made significant contributions to LASCO for more than 25 years.  

(a) Our first recipient is Mr Allagarsamy s/o Palaniyappan, who practises as a sole proprietor at Allagarsamy & Co. A senior member of the Criminal Bar, he was appointed to the LASCO panel in 1999 and has handled more than 40 LASCO cases through the years. 

(b) The second recipient of the LASCO Long Service Award is Mr Mahadevan Lukshumayeh, founder and managing director of Lukshumayeh Law Corporation. He first joined the LASCO scheme in 1998, and he too has been assigned to over 40 LASCO cases. If I may say so, Mayeh’s journey is one that is especially meaningful and inspiring. Some of you may have seen a recent video produced by Rice Media in collaboration with the Singapore Academy of Law, in which Mayeh shared his story about how he had fallen afoul of the law about two decades ago. That today we are celebrating Mayeh’s pro bono achievements is testament to the fact that there is room within our profession for those who may have made mistakes along the way, but who are willing to hold themselves accountable, learn from those mistakes and bounce back to great success.   

On behalf of the Judiciary, I warmly congratulate and commend all our award recipients for the tremendous work they have done and the recognition that we accord them today. 

6. Earlier, I mentioned the milestones that we celebrated this year. Next year, together with the legal profession and the Government, we will celebrate a milestone of broader national significance – the bicentennial of our courts and legal system, when we mark the 200th anniversary of the Second Charter of Justice. We intend to pay tribute not only to the judges, court administrators and lawyers who have made our Judiciary and legal system what it is today, but also to all the volunteers like yourselves who have answered the call to serve and who have made a real impact on the lives of our court users. So once again, I thank you all very much for the tremendous work and sterling contributions that each and every one of you has made, and for partnering with us in the quest to serve our community by administering and dispensing justice. I wish you a most enjoyable lunch. Thank you.