Lacunae and the law

Wed, 21 Apr 2021
2 min read
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(IMAGE: TD.ORG)

It was eye-opening to read Justice Choo Han Teck’s grounds of decision regarding the issue of the lawyer who was unqualified to supervise legal trainees on their journey to be called to the Singapore Bar.

The incident has exposed a literal lacuna in the law, when it comes to learning and development in Singapore’s legal fraternity.

As Justice Choo Han Teck said in his introduction, this case really raises more questions than answers.

Personally, I’m curious to know:

  1. How the supervisor was allowed to supervise the trainee, despite the former not being qualified to do so;
  2. If there were similar cases prior to this one – i.e. a trainee being called to the bar despite having an unqualified supervisor – that have gone under the radar; and
  3. What safeguards will be put in place to prevent this from happening again.

On the same topic about lacunae and that law, I was pleasantly surprised to hear about Lacuna Training Solutions!

Founded in 2017 by Sim Khadijah Binte Mohammed, Lacuna is Singapore’s first dedicated legal skills training firm with a special focus on developing young lawyers.

For laymen like me with a soft-spot for puns and aptly-named businesses or products, a “lacuna in the law” is a form of jargon specific to the legal industry.

The phrase refers to gaps or imperfections in the law, where loopholes may exist or exploitations may occur.

It’s a delightful company name in the context of legal training, given the core business of people development: identifying learning needs and addressing them for individual and organisational growth.

Somewhat bewildered

Sun, 6 Dec 2020
2 min read
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Joan Allen as Elizabeth Proctor in The Crucible (1996).
Joan Allen as Elizabeth Proctor in The Crucible (1996).

In Act 1, Scene 2 of Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, there’s an exchange between Elizabeth and John Proctor that goes like this:

PROCTOR: You will not judge me more, Elizabeth. I have good reason to think before I charge fraud on Abigail, and I will think on it. Let you look to your own improvement before you go to judge your husband any more.

ELIZABETH: I do not judge you. The magistrate sits in your heart that judges you. I never thought you but a good man, John, only somewhat bewildered.

(Miller; my emphasis)

That line, to me, has always been both the play right there and the most succinct demonstration of Miller’s craft as a playwright.

In contemporary usage, “bewildered” often means perplexed or puzzled.

In certain instances, the word could also refer to someone being confused as to the direction or situation they are heading or in.

In the case of The Crucible, it’s also instructive to return to the more archaic meaning of the word.

Miller aptly uses it, both in the context in which the play is set, as well as to describe Proctor: to be thoroughly led astray or lured into the wild.

To some extent, Elizabeth is describing Proctor’s dalliance with Abigail as an example of his being led astray by her. It’s also a reference to how he has been “bewitched” by her, hence his seemingly odd behaviour.

Yet, bewilderment goes beyond more than just the transgression of sexual and marital mores.

At its core, The Crucible is about identity, in terms of the individual, society and the individual in relation to society.

While the different characters each have their own struggles with identity, Proctor’s struggle is his search for who he truly is as a person.

His bewilderment, then, is not just about how Abigail’s womanly wiles have lured him into the wild.

Much like how Salem has, ironically, corrupted itself in its attempts to retain some semblance of goodness, John’s bewilderment is a result of how he has has lost his way in the wilderness of this corrupted society and, from which, he has to find his way out, if he is to hang on to his self, and all that is good about it.

Off Centre: A Necessary Resource

Mon, 20 Jul 2020
2 min read
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OFF CENTRE: A NECESSARY RESOURCE
WITH CONTRIBUTIONS BY ALVIN TAN, LAREMY LEE AND AKANKSHA RAJA

Off Centre: A Necessary Resource is the much-awaited guide to Off Centre, one of Singapore’s most celebrated plays. This resource guide comprises material that will greatly benefit all educators and students of Off Centre. It features pedagogical notes, insights on the play, as well as a question and answer section with the playwright, Haresh Sharma.

Off Centre made history in 2007 by being the first Singapore play selected by the Ministry of Education to be offered as a GCE O- and N-Level literature text. The play, best remembered for presenting an honest and unflinching look at mental illness and the social prejudices surrounding it, has been back on the syllabus since 2018.

Off Centre: A Necessary Resource also features:

  • Founder and Artistic Director of The Necessary Stage, Alvin Tan shares his insight on directing and staging Off Centre
  • Educator Laremy Lee provides a useful guide on approaching narrative, characters, themes, and theatrical and stylistic devices in the play
  • Journalist Akanksha Raja reflects on her experience studying Off Centre

Off Centre: A Necessary Resource is available at The Necessary Stage and other select bookstores.

Email admin@necessary.org to purchase a copy now.

Retail Price: $16.00
ISBN No. 978-981-11-8956-2