GROWING CONCERNS OVER “LAWFARE”
The setting up of Lionheart Advocates aligns with recent efforts by the government to curb the abuse of court processes. On Nov 13 last year, parliament passed amendments to the Administration of Justice (Protection) Act (AOJPA) to explicitly state that the abuse of court proceedings can amount to contempt of court.
The Ministry of Law, responding in November to media queries about Assoc Prof Leong’s legal case, noted that Singapore’s legal system has safeguards in place to prevent baseless claims meant to vex and oppress the defendant to extort a settlement.
Minister of State for Law Murali Pillai said during a parliamentary debate on the amendments that a trend of such cases has been observed in Singapore and other countries, adding that the impact of egregious abuse of process can be very serious, and can erode trust in the justice system over time.
BITCOIN DONATION
In response to queries from CNA, Assoc Prof Leong said that most of the S$700,000 came from one of his ex-students in the form of 5 BTC (bitcoin).
He detailed delays in cashing out a large amount of cryptocurrency due to Singapore’s strict anti-money laundering laws.
“It turns out I had a lot of supporters who offered money. In addition to the 5 BTC,” said Assoc Prof Leong.
“When the BTC was first pledged to us, it was worth ~$660K. The delay in cashing out the money has actually been a blessing because the total value has since increased. In the long term, we are not planning to hold crypto. Our NGO will only be working with fiat.”
As of Sunday, one BTC is worth S$131,400.
Assoc Prof Leong added that the money is disbursed to law firms acting on behalf of those facing lawsuits. Two firms are currently working with the NGO, with one of them, TSMP Law Corporation, providing pro bono services.
Assoc Prof Leong declined to disclose other team members involved in Lionheart Advocates, citing concerns that they might be subject to online harassment.
