Chief Justice Menon: Only 1 in 10 Young Singapore Lawyers Have Been in a Structured Mentorship Program

Chief Justice Menon's address identified leadership and mentorship as the fourth of five structural pressures on lawyer sustainability — and the data point that anchors it is stark: only about one in ten respondents to Singapore's Young Lawyers' Survey had participated in a structured mentorship programme. Lawyers develop through "observing others, receiving feedback, and being entrusted progressively with responsibility under proper supervision" — but the address acknowledged that "lawyers are trained in law, and not necessarily in personnel management," and that "technical excellence does not automatically produce managerial or mentoring ability." The gap between what young lawyers receive and what they need is not primarily a willingness failure — it is a capability and structural design failure. For managing partners designing associate development programs, the 1-in-10 figure is a floor that most common-law jurisdiction firms would likely match or underperform. The FLPC's Business and Leadership Skills workstream will attempt to address this through "practical programmes and shared frameworks for supervision, communication and talent development" — a model that law society bodies in other jurisdictions could adopt or adapt.