JUSTICE DEBBIE ONG: “DOES ANYBODY ACTUALLY THINK FAMILY LAW IS STATIC?”
The Presiding Judge of the Family Justice Courts on how family lawyers can navigate the new decade.
“Does anybody actually think family law is static?” asks Justice Debbie Ong as we settle in for a chat about family law and its direction in the coming years. Like so many conversations in these times, we have swapped out face time for FaceTime and are chatting over the phone. “In fact, some may find it challenging to keep up with the continuing developments and demands in the area. Just consider the progress made in family law and practice in recent years,” she adds, pointing to reforms that have spearheaded a ‘judge-led’ approach to family proceedings.
Justice Ong knows these reforms well; as the Presiding Judge of the Family Justice Courts, she has presided over them and overseen their implementation. But reforms are far from quick fixes, she is quick to add. “I think our entire system and understanding of the needs of families are developed over the years. It also takes time to assess these needs, learn from social science research, pilot new initiatives, and review them in light of evolving situations within society. People’s attitudes and values can change over time too, especially over generations.”
Naturally, I’m curious about how she sees family law evolving in the coming years. “A change in mindset. A conviction that parental conflict harms children and acceptance that litigation should be avoided. Family practice will be non-adversarial.” She believes the norm in the practice area will be a harmonious route to resolution, not litigation. “Family lawyers will continue to play a hugely important role in this. Those cases that do require court adjudication will likely be more complex and a more robust judge-led approach in these cases will be taken,” she adds.
Navigating these new waters will require a solid foundation in family law. “Helping parties to make strong and durable agreements on legal issues requires understanding and experience in key aspects of family law,” she advises. “If parties agree to poorly thought-out terms, the issues not addressed by the agreed terms can cause difficulties and further conflicts in future.”
But new skills and attitudes are also useful: “These could involve training in collaborative law, in mediation skills, interpersonal skills in calming and engaging emotional clients, understanding how to protect children’s interests and so forth.”
She calls on the wider Bar to acquire these skills as well, as they are useful for all areas of the law. “Would parties not desire to have a judge in criminal or civil proceedings to be able to communicate in empathetic ways? Would a client in a civil matter not benefit from a lawyer who is attuned to his emotional pulses which are driving his preferences and decisions, able to identify the real issues the need to be resolved? Would parties in civil matters not gain from having lawyers who can assist them in mediation towards a fair and amicable settlement?” We can’t help but agree.
The Singapore Academy of Law has two upcoming events focused on Family Law: the first, on 15 June, maps out key competencies that the future-focused family lawyer must possess, while the second, on 1 July, provides a useful review of the past year in the practice area. A bundle deal is available for both events.
A LIFE IN THE LAW
Justice Debbie Ong
Called to the Bar: 1990
Called to the Bench: 2014
I had never studied family law as a student (this may surprise many) and I had just graduated from NUS and Cambridge universities with little life experience. Over the years, I grew to have great affinity for family law, assisted by a generous mentor in my colleague Professor Leong Wai Kum. I think that being in what you call the family law sphere is a “calling”. It is very challenging — you desire a good outcome for families but so many factors can thwart that goal, and so you keep trying to problem-solve in different ways — sometimes you see families doing well and you feel inspired and blessed to be involved in such meaningful work; at other times, you feel both sad and indignant because despite all that you try to do, the children have been tragically damaged by their parents’ inability to discharge their parental responsibility. I think for some lawyers, they may have clients who are extremely grateful to them for helping them in such dark times, or have clients who behave nastily towards them because they perceive that their lawyers have failed to get them whatever they want (which isn’t necessarily always what is good for their children).
