THE limited size of the domestic market is driving a number of law firms to set up branches overseas. But local law firm Tan Peng Chin LLC still sees plenty of room for growth in Singapore - and it is not budging from its roots.
The mid-sized firm is looking to raise its lawyer headcount to about 60 in five years, from the 40 at present.
'As it is, already - in terms of Singapore work - I think we can actually get more work,' the firm's founder and director Tan Peng Chin tells BT in a recent interview. 'But I don't really want to get more work and 'kill' my lawyers.'
Set up in 1994 as a one-man practice, Tan Peng Chin has grown to cover niche areas such as medical and dental negligence, technologies and e-commerce among its offerings. The firm now has five departments: asset and wealth management; corporate, banking and finance; intellectual property, media and entertainment; litigation and dispute resolution; and real estate and conveyancing.
It counts a number of foreign banks, multinationals and Singapore-listed companies among its clientele. The firm recently became the first Asian legal entity to join Eurojuris International, a network of independent law firms in Europe. With a presence in 610 cities across 30 countries, the network could open doors to cross-border transactions without the need for a physical outfit.
With 60 lawyers, Mr Tan reckons that the size will give the firm flexibility to distribute work at a more comfortable level.
'A number of about 60 will give us a bit more juggling room,' he says. 'Say, if you've got six lawyers who do nothing but banking - chances are, not all six of them will have to work themselves to death.'
Although the firm is known for its commercial and banking practices, Mr Tan says the door is open to lawyers in any area of specialisation.
'Just find me a specialist in any area of practice and we will be able to find a niche area for him to build up the practice,' he says.
With Singapore being a small place and the wide networks of the partners in the firm, Mr Tan is confident of securing work, 'as long as there are good lawyers'.
Like many other law firms, recruiting lawyers is becoming a challenge for Tan Peng Chin. Mr Tan reckons that the legal fraternity is losing talent as a result of the workload and long hours.
He provides anecdotal accounts of lawyers giving up the legal practice very early on, after getting burnt out in the profession.
This was recently confirmed in a report by the Committee to Develop the Singapore Legal Sector, which also highlighted that about one-third of young lawyers had dropped out of the service between 2001 and 2006.
Mr Tan hopes that the 'family-friendly culture' at his firm will help to draw lawyers looking for a slower pace of life. According to him, about 70 per cent of the lawyers in his firm knock off by 7.30pm every day.
'Obviously, if you are in the middle of a trial or a big transaction, there's no alternative,' he adds.
'But I would say it's maybe only once a year that you would have to work till 4am in the morning. Many of the lawyers have never worked non-stop for 24 hours while at this firm.'
He also has no qualms about rejecting work if it means having to overstretch the manpower. And he is quick to point out that there are four breastfeeding mothers working in the firm at this time.
'I never want to actually bite off more than I can chew,' says Mr Tan. 'At the end of the day, I'd rather build a sustainable law firm than lose the people we need.'
His philosophy is to provide an environment for legal practitioners to 'have the ability to complete a marathon', while having a balanced family life.
'To be frank about it, the flip side is that they cannot expect to be earning as much money working with me than if they were to be working in Baker & McKenzie,' says the practical lawyer.
