SINGAPORE: Veteran lawyer Harry Elias, known for his role as founding chairman of the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme for those who could not afford lawyers, has died aged 83.
His firm, Harry Elias Partnership, said in a statement on Thursday (Aug 27) that Mr Elias, who died on Wednesday, “was known for his compassion and contribution to society”.
Managing partner Philip Fong of Harry Elias Partnership said Mr Elias was “the epitome of a fearless and first-class advocate” and “a trailblazer with lasting legacy”.
“For us personally, Harry was a true friend, a teacher and a kind and generous soul. We are honoured to have walked with him for a part of his impactful life.”
Among Singapore’s best-known trial lawyers, the former Senior Counsel’s death has left a “void in the Law Society”, LawSoc president Gregory Vijayendran told CNA.
Mr Elias was his predecessor, and was appointed president of LawSoc in 1984.
He co-founded the Criminal Legal Aid scheme (CLAS) a year later, providing legal aid to those facing criminal charges but who could not afford lawyers. Pro bono work did not exist in Singapore in that form before this.
Senior Counsel Vijayendran said Mr Elias was “a Silk with exceptional persuasion, peroration and panache”.
He recalled watching Mr Elias persuade a judge in chambers almost 30 years ago when SC Vijayendran was a pupil.
“That left a deep impression on me as the watching apprentice. It was pure poetry in motion,” he said.
“There is now a void in the Law Society with this sad loss of one of its finest gems. But his fingerprints will be everywhere notably in the civil litigation and criminal litigation Bars,” said SC Vijayendran.
Mr Elias’ greatest legacy for LawSoc was that he “gave justice to the weakest in society”, and his name will always be linked with CLAS, he added.
“35 years on and going strong, CLAS, like its visionary architect, is pure class and now Singapore’s Office of Private Defender,” said SC Vijayendran.
“This Society and society (are) the richer for it. CLAS is the crown jewel of the Law Society only because SC Harry Elias had the acuity to see the value, and invest the hard work, in creating this gem of priceless value.”
Established in 1985, the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme would go on to be the spark that would set off a comprehensive pro bono movement in Singapore. Seen here is Law Society’s first CLAS committee, headed by Harry Elias (seated second from right). (Photo: Law Society of Singapore)
Fellow veteran lawyer Peter Low told CNA that Mr Elias was his boss many years ago when he was a young lawyer in Drew & Napier.
“He inspired me and another colleague … to later be presidents of LawSoc,” said Mr Low, adding that Mr Elias was “highly ethical and very personable”.
He said Mr Elias was “a brave lawyer”, standing up to Lee Kuan Yew at a select committee to defend the former senior district judge Michael Khoo, stating that Mr Khoo had a good track record as a judge.
Lawyer Doris Chia, who worked as a young lawyer in Mr Elias’ firm, said he taught her, among other things, “integrity, professionalism, respect for the judiciary” and “to always put the client’s interest before profit”.
“His loud laughter and colourful stories about his cases will forever be missed,” she added.
Calling Mr Elias a “legal giant”, lawyer Josephus Tan quoted Mr Nelson Mandela in describing the late lawyer, saying: “A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination.”
CLAS would be “his most enduring legacy for our legal fraternity and the underprivileged among us”, said Mr Tan.
He said the firm Mr Elias founded has produced “many great legal personalities” and is a leading firm that aspiring lawyers want to start their journeys with.
“Back in 2006, I did my first and only internship at his firm under Mr Subhas Anandan, who went on to become my pupil master,” he said.
“In my early years of practice as a budding criminal lawyer handling many CLAS cases, I bumped into Mr Elias at a lunch and I remembered how he told me to keep doing what I do only to find out later that I just spoke to the legend who co-founded CLAS himself. It was a star-struck moment for me.”
READ: The lawyers who take cases for no fee: Pro bono movement now seen as a ‘golden crown’
Mr Elias, who was still doing pro bono work when he was 80, previously told CNA that his feelings about ensuring everyone gets their day in court had not changed, no matter how heinous the crime.
“It’s not for us to try them. The whole system is that there is a judge,” Mr Elias had said. “If he thinks you have done wrong, listen (to my defence) and punish (accordingly).”
“So why don’t we take (the case), give them the opportunity for the best possible representation. Sometimes you take it on the basis of acquittal. I don’t get an acquittal, I don’t care, but if I get the judge listening to the mitigating factors, then I have done my job.”
