Opposition politician Lim Tean charged with CBT, stalking

UPDATE: Lim Tean was charged in court on Thursday (12 May).

SINGAPORE — Lawyer and opposition politician Lim Tean was charged in court on Thursday (12 May) for criminal breach of trust (CBT), stalking, and acting as an advocate and solicitor without a valid practicing certificate last year.

The CBT charge relates to a sum of $30,000 that Lim is alleged to have misappropriated from a former client between November and December 2019. The sum had been awarded to the latter as settlement in a motor injury lawsuit.

Meanwhile, the stalking charge pertains to Lim's purported harassment of a former employee while she was working at his law firm, Carson Law Chambers, in 2020. He is alleged to have repeatedly sent her flirtatious text messages between April and May that year.

Lim is also alleged to have acted as an advocate and solicitor while he was not holding on to a valid practicing certificate on 66 separate occasions over two months from 1 April to 9 June last year.

Among other things, he issued a Writ of Summons and attended pre-trial conferences and hearings. He faces a total of three charges of breaching the Legal Profession Act.

If found guilty of CBT, Lim faces life behind bars, or a jail term of up to 20 years and a fine.

Stalking is punishable with a jail term of up to 12 months and/or a fine of up to $5,000.

The maximum punishment for acting as an advocate and solicitor without a valid practicing certificate is six months' jail and a $25,000 fine.

In a news release on Tuesday, the police also said that investigations against Lim for separate matters are ongoing, without elaborating.

Lim contested the 2020 general election under Peoples Voice, a political party he founded in 2018. His four-member team in Jalan Besar GRC garnered about 35 per cent of votes.

Prior to forming Peoples Voice, he was the secretary-general of the National Solidarity Party. His five-member team in Tampines GRC garnered about 28 per cent of votes at the 2015 general election.

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