Spike in overseas grads ‘the reason S’pore faces lawyer glut’ ​

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http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/spike-overseas-grads-reason-spore-faces-lawyer-glut?singlepage=true

In the midst of confusion and alarm resulting from his warning that Singapore could face an oversupply of lawyers in the coming years, Foreign Affairs and Law Minister K Shanmugam has set the record straight on the cause of a possible glut:

The spurt in the number of Singaporeans studying to be lawyers overseas.

Mr Shanmugam’s remarks have caused some anxiety among law undergraduates and the legal fraternity, as well as triggered public discussion on the issue.

Some questioned how there could be an oversupply after the recent moves — including the setting up of a third law school in Singapore — to produce more lawyers amid a growing legal services sector.

The third law school — to be set up at SIM University — will focus on family and criminal law. Mr Shanmugam said those citing the school as a reason for a possible glut are using a red herring, with the same going for those who felt it could be a result of opening the doors to foreign law firms and lawyers.

Instead, the glut could happen because more and more Singaporeans are studying law overseas, he explained. Although the number of recognised overseas universities has remained at 35 since 2006, the total number of Singaporeans reading law in the United Kingdom has more than doubled to 1,142 between 2010 and last year, based on the Ministry of Law’s (MinLaw) estimates.

In addition, there were 386 Singaporeans pursuing a law degree in Australian universities last year. The UK and Australia are the main sources of returning law graduates.

Pointing to this trend — driven by the greater affordability of overseas studies — Mr Shanmugam noted that the Government has no control over what people choose to study.