Media Release: Justice See Kee Oon relinquishes appointment as Presiding Judge of the State Courts. Justice Vincent Hoong appointed

1. The President of the Republic of Singapore has appointed Justice Hoong Seng Lei Vincent as Presiding Judge of the State Courts with effect from 1 April 2020. Justice Hoong takes over from Justice See Kee Oon, who relinquishes the position he has held since 2014.

2. Justice See, who was appointed a Judicial Commissioner in 2014 and thereafter a Supreme Court Judge in 2017, will continue his appointment on the Supreme Court bench. Justice See Kee Oon

3. Justice See was appointed as the first Presiding Judge of the State Courts in 2014. During his six-year term, he steered the organisation through numerous milestones that were instrumental to realising our vision of a trusted and forward-looking judiciary that administers quality judgments, timely and effective dispute resolution and excellent court services. These milestones included the formation of two new justice divisions - the Community Justice and Tribunals Division and the State Courts Centre for Dispute Resolution, and the development and implementation of several case management systems such as the 2 Integrated Case Management System and the Community Justice and Tribunals System. Justice See played the pivotal role of leading the State Courts in its historic move to its new premises, the State Courts Towers, in 2019.

4. Justice See joined the Singapore Legal Service in 1991. He was appointed a Deputy Registrar and Magistrate in the then Subordinate Courts before joining the Supreme Court in 1995 as a Justices’ Law Clerk. He returned to the Subordinate Courts as a District Judge in 1997. He was posted to the Insolvency and Public Trustee’s Office, Ministry of Law, as the Official Assignee and Public Trustee in 2007. In 2009, Justice See returned to the Subordinate Courts. He was appointed Chief District Judge of the Subordinate Courts in October 2013 and thereafter the Presiding Judge of the State Courts in 2014.

5. Justice See received his Bachelor of Laws from the National University of Singapore (NUS) in 1991. He obtained a Master of Law from the University of Cambridge in 1994 and a Master in Public Management from the NUS Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy in 2006. Justice Hoong Seng Lei Vincent

6. Justice Hoong Seng Lei Vincent graduated from NUS with a Bachelor of Laws in 1982 and joined the Singapore Legal Service in 1984. He was posted to the then Subordinate Courts as a Magistrate. In 1986, he held the appointment of Assistant Registrar in the Supreme Court before returning to the Subordinate Courts as a District Judge from 1990 to 1997.

7. Justice Hoong managed the Singapore Land Registry of the Ministry of Law from September 1997 to May 2001 before being seconded to the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) as Deputy Chief Executive and Chief Legal Officer, and eventually as Chief Executive from May 2009 to March 2015. During his tenure at the SLA, he also held concurrent appointments as the Registrar of Titles & Deeds and Controller of Residential Property from May 2000 to 31 March 2015 and as the Commissioner of Lands from August 2002 to April 3 2009. He was appointed Registrar of the Supreme Court in April 2015 and held that position until his appointment as a Judicial Commissioner of the Supreme Court on 10 April 2019.

8. Justice Hoong was appointed a Supreme Court Judge on 3 January 2020.

Issued by: State Courts,
Singapore Date: 1 April 2020

For further information or clarification,please contact:

Bryan Jacob
Executive
Communications Directorate
Tel: 6955 0399 / 9722 6139
Email: bryan_jacob@statecourts.gov.sg

Michelle Chiang
Senior Assistant Director
Communications Directorate
Tel: 6955 0700/ 9722 6139
Email: michelle_chiang@statecourts.gov.sg