SINGAPORE – Former appeals court judge Thean Lip Ping, known for his exacting standards and sense of fair play, died on Jan 12 at the age of 90.

Appointed a judge of the High Court in 1984, he would spend 18 years on the Supreme Court bench, including almost a decade as a judge on the Court of Appeal.

He was one of the first two judges to be appointed to the Court of Appeal in post-independence Singapore in 1993, alongside Mr Mootatamby Karthigesu.

Mr Thean left his mark on many areas of Singapore law in his 18-year career on the bench, from administrative and constitutional law to commercial and matrimonial law. This included that matrimonial assets should be divided based on the just and equitable principle.

At his retirement in 2002, then Attorney-General Chan Sek Keong said Mr Thean was part of several significant appeals court judgments that would likely remain influential into the future.

They include Chng Suan Tze v Minister of Home Affairs in 1988, a landmark case on the constitutional limits of preventive detention under the Internal Security Act.

A line within the judgment that affirmed that all power has legal limits has become one of the most frequently referenced in Singapore’s public law, while its principles remain a centrepiece in the Republic’s jurisprudence.

On his legendary work ethic, RHTLaw Asia managing partner Azman Jaafar noted that Mr Thean insisted on going to work every day despite his frail health, and difficulty walking in his 80s.

After changes such as dress-down Friday were introduced, he would urge co-workers to consider the ramifications, such as their conduct and duty as officer of the court.

“In today’s legal profession, I think there are very few like him,” Mr Azman said.

Born in Kuala Lumpur, Mr Thean crossed the Causeway in 1964 to set up the Singapore office of law firm Shook Lin & Bok.

Together with Mr Chan, who later became Chief Justice, he developed the firm into one of the Republic’s biggest banking and corporate practices by the early 1980s.

While work was synonymous with L.P., as he was known within legal circles, those who knew him personally said he was also a dedicated family man.

Mr Azman said: “I never saw the social part until I visited him at home and got to see the side of him which was so sweet, talking to his wife... He was a very loving husband, a very devoted grandfather and father.”

Mr Sunil Sudheesan, a criminal lawyer at Quahe Woo & Palmer, said that Mr Thean was also very kind to young lawyers when they approached him for insights into the cases he had ruled on.

“He was kind to a miscreant like me,” he added. “He loved his Imperial Treasure (Cantonese cuisine), and his food in general.”

After his retirement, Mr Thean joined KhattarWong as a consultant, and then RHTLaw Asia as senior consultant.

Mr Thean’s reputation for compassion, open-mindedness and commitment to equal justice meant he became a highly sought after arbitrator and mediator in private practice.

Such high regard was also why the Government asked him to be mediator in 2008 when it was sued after a convicted defendant was wrongly given three extra strokes of the cane, noted the Singapore Law Gazette.

In 2009, the Law Society of Singapore awarded Mr Thean the C.C. Tan Award. Named after the society’s first elected president, the late Mr Tan Chye Cheng, the award honours lawyers who exemplify key virtues of the legal profession – honesty, fair play and personal integrity.

Said Mr Azman: “He was a very important luminary for us, a pillar of strength for our litigation and disputes team. His loss will be felt.”