'No stranger to disciplinary proceedings': Lawyer M Ravi struck off the rolls

SINGAPORE: The Court of Three Judges, the highest disciplinary body for lawyers, has ordered lawyer M Ravi to be struck off the rolls, finding that his latest series of "improper conduct" had "crossed the line" and was "dishonest".

Ravi had more than 25 years' experience as a lawyer, with the court calling him "no stranger to disciplinary proceedings" for different types of improper conduct over the years.

This ranges from "making baseless allegations" over key legal institutions, being disruptive in the courtroom and the improper handling of clients.

He had been found guilty on more than 10 occasions of improper conduct by the disciplinary tribunal of the Law Society of Singapore (LawSoc) and was given sanctions ranging from monetary penalties to suspensions from practice.

Ravi is currently serving a five-year suspension beginning in March 2023.

According to a judgment released on Friday (May 31), there had been no finding of dishonesty against Ravi in his previous disciplinary proceedings, but this time, he knowingly made false statements.

"In doing so, his improper conduct crossed the line, and his conduct was found to be dishonest," said Justice Steven Chong, delivering the verdict he made with Justice Tay Yong Kwang and Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon.

WHAT RAVI DID

The decision to strike him off came after LawSoc applied for Ravi to be sanctioned over statements he made about then Singapore President Halimah Yacob, the appointments of two Singapore prime ministers and his conduct before a High Court judge.

In August 2020, Ravi wrote to Madam Halimah, alleging that the appointments of Mr Goh Chok Tong and Mr Lee Hsien Loong as prime ministers of Singapore were unconstitutional due to "racial considerations".

He posted videos on his Facebook pages and urged the public to make the same request of the president.

When the President's Office replied to Ravi, he published her letter on his Facebook pages. The Attorney-General later complained about Ravi's conduct.

On Nov 22, 2021, while Ravi was representing Mr Chua Qwong Meng in a lawsuit against SBS Transit, the judge stood down the trial.

When the trial resumed, SBS Transit's lawyer, Senior Counsel Davinder Singh, informed Justice Audrey Lim that Ravi had told him "don't be a clown" at least three times.

Justice Lim asked Ravi about this. Ravi later interrupted Justice Lim multiple times while she was explaining a court process and asked her to recuse herself, alleging she was biased.

Ravi's then-client, Mr Chua, was embarrassed by his behaviour and sent a statement to the media stating so.

LawSoc pushed for Ravi to be struck off, arguing that he has "character defects" and brought "grave dishonour" to the legal profession.

In response, Ravi did not challenge the findings and said he was remorseful. He accepted that it was inappropriate for him to have made those statements or behaved the way he did.

He said that regardless of the outcome, he is "committed to personal reflection and healing" and "endeavours to move past his mental health challenges and emerge stronger".

Ravi has been open about his bipolar disorder.

The court found that the appropriate sanction was striking off and ordered Ravi to pay costs of S$20,000, with other costs and disbursements.

Ravi had expressed hope to be able to practice law again in Singapore in the future.

"We agree he should focus on getting past his various issues and will consider his fitness to resume his practice of law at the appropriate time when such an application is before us," said the court.

Separately, Ravi is facing multiple charges including voluntarily causing hurt and offences under the Protection from Harassment Act. He is represented by Mr Eugene Thuraisingam's law firm and is set to plead guilty in July.