Adrian Tan Gim Hai (born 1966) is a

Singaporean Singaporeans, or the Singaporean people, refers to citizens or people who identify with the sovereign island city-state of Singapore. Singapore is a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and multi-lingual country. Singaporeans of Chinese, Malay, India ...

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

and

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

. Known for writing the Teenage Texbook series of books in the 1980s, he is the current president of the

Law Society of Singapore The Law Society of Singapore is an organisation which represents all lawyers in Singapore. It publishes the ''Law Gazette'' and operates a scheme for needy people to benefit from legal services free-of-charge. The Society also sets out rules for ...

and a partner at TSMP Law Corporation.

Early life and education

Tan was born in Singapore to a

Hainanese Hainanese (Hainan Romanised: ', Hainanese Pinyin: ',), also known as Qióngwén, Heng2 vun2 () or Qióngyǔ, Heng2 yi2 (), is a group of Min Chinese varieties spoken in the southern Chinese island province of Hainan and Overseas Chinese su ...

family. His parents were both teachers, and he grew up in a

Housing Development Board The Housing & Development Board (HDB) (; ms, Lembaga Perumahan dan Pembangunan; ta, வீடமைப்பு வளர்ச்சிக் கழகம்) or often referred to as the Housing Board, is a statutory board under the M ...

(HDB) flat. As a child, Tan attended the

Anglo-Chinese School Anglo-Chinese School (ACS) is a family of Methodist schools in Singapore and Indonesia. It was founded in 1886 by Bishop William Fitzjames Oldham as an extension of the Methodist Church. Anglo-Chinese School is usually abbreviated as "ACS", wit ...

and

Hwa Chong Junior College The Hwa Chong Junior College () was a junior college in Singapore offering pre-university education. The school merged with The Chinese High School on 1 January 2005 to form the integrated Hwa Chong Institution. History Founding Hwa Chong Juni ...

. After his A-levels, he was offered a civil-service scholarship to study English in Britain, which would've required him to work as a civil servant after graduation. He turned down the scholarship to study law at the National University of Singapore (NUS). While in university, Tan represented NUS as a

debater Debate is a process that involves formal discourse on a particular topic, often including a Discussion moderator, moderator and audience. In a debate, arguments are put forward for often opposing viewpoints. Debates have historically occurred ...

in international competitions and televised debates in Singapore. He later completed a second, joint-honours degree in computer science and psychology from the

Open University The Open University (OU) is a British public research university and the largest university in the United Kingdom by number of students. The majority of the OU's undergraduate students are based in the United Kingdom and principally study off- ...

in 2004, while working as a lawyer.

Career

While an undergraduate law student at NUS, Tan wrote the novels ''

The Teenage Textbook ''The Teenage Textbook'' is a novel by the Singaporean author Adrian Tan, first published by Hotspot Books in 1988. The book was a bestseller in Singapore, and was followed by a sequel, ''The Teenage Workbook'', in 1989. The books followed the li ...

'' (1988) and ''

The Teenage Workbook ''The Teenage Workbook'' is a humour fiction novel by Adrian Tan, first published by Hotspot Books in 1989. The book is the sequel to ''The Teenage Textbook'' (published in 1988). Both novels focused on the lives of four students studying at th ...

'' (1989), which became bestsellers that sold over 50,000 copies. ''The Teenage Textbook'' was also made into a stage play by

The Necessary Stage The Necessary Stage (previously known as M1 Theatre Connect and M1 Youth Connection) is a Singaporean non-profit theatre company with charity status. Formed in 1987 by Alvin Tan, The Necessary Stage was established with its own mission to creat ...

in 1997; a

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

in 1998, which topped the box office in Singapore for four weeks; a 2017 musical titled ''The Teenage Textbook Musical''; and a 2021 TV series on Channel 5. In 2015, ''The Teenage Textbook'' was listed by '' The Business Times'' as one of the top 10 English Singapore books from 1965–2015. After graduating from NUS with a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

degree, Tan began his legal career in 1991 at Drew and Napier, a large Singaporean firm. He initially practiced

conveyancing In law, conveyancing is the transfer of legal title of real property from one person to another, or the granting of an encumbrance such as a mortgage or a lien. A typical conveyancing transaction has two major phases: the exchange of contracts ...

law, but switched over to litigation thereafter, where he worked under Davinder Singh. In 1999, Tan left Drew for a two-year stint as

general counsel A general counsel, also known as chief counsel or chief legal officer (CLO), is the chief in-house lawyer for a company or a governmental department. In a company, the person holding the position typically reports directly to the CEO, and their ...

of a technology firm, following which he returned to Drew. Eventually, after 22 years at Drew, Tan left to work for Stamford Law (now Morgan Lewis Stamford) in 2013. In 2018, Tan resigned from Stamford to work at TSMP Law. Tan practices

litigation - A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil actio ...

, and specialises in

intellectual property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...

information technology Information technology (IT) is the use of computers to create, process, store, retrieve, and exchange all kinds of data . and information. IT forms part of information and communications technology (ICT). An information technology system (I ...

real estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...

, and

shareholder oppression Shareholder oppression occurs when the majority shareholders in a corporation take action that unfairly prejudices the minority. It most commonly occurs in non-publicly traded companies, because the lack of a public market for shares leaves minorit ...

disputes. He is also the honorary counsel of the

Singapore Association of the Visually Handicapped The Singapore Association of the Visually Handicapped (SAVH) is a charitable organisation for the blind in Singapore. It was founded in 1951 and was known as the Singapore Association for the Blind. The SAVH is a registered charity and is affilia ...

, a member of the boards of the Law Society Pro Bono Services,

Maxwell Chambers Maxwell Chambers is an integrated alternative dispute resolution (ADR) complex located in Singapore. It provides hearing rooms and facilities for the conduct of ADR hearings in Singapore, as well as the regional offices of a number of ADR institut ...

, and Arts House Limited, and was previously a member of the

Speak Good English Movement The Speak Good English Movement (SGEM) is a Singapore Government campaign to "encourage Singaporeans to speak grammatically correct English that is universally understood". It was launched by then-Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong on 29 April 2000. Th ...

committee. From 2013 to 2021, Tan was a member of the

Law Society A law society is an association of lawyers with a regulatory role that includes the right to supervise the training, qualifications, and conduct of lawyers. Where there is a distinction between barristers and solicitors, solicitors are regulated ...

Council, serving as treasurer in 2016 and vice president in 2017. In 2022, he was appointed president. As president of the law society, he is known for his public outreach on legal issues, such as the HDB's ban on cats, the 2022 bar exam cheating scandal, and Richard Branson's comments on the death penalty in Singapore.

Notable cases

* ''Wee Shuo Woon v HT S.R.L.''

017 Seventeen or 17 may refer to: *17 (number), the natural number following 16 and preceding 18 * one of the years 17 BC, AD 17, 1917, 2017 Literature Magazines * ''Seventeen'' (American magazine), an American magazine * ''Seventeen'' (Japanese ...

SGCA 23 * ''Turf Club Auto Emporium Pte Ltd v Yeo Boong Hua''

018 018 may refer to *Air Canada Flight 018, an airline flight from Hong Kong to Vancouver, Canada, illegally boarded by a Chinese man wearing a disguise in 2010 *Area code 018, a telephone area code in Uppsala, Sweden *BMW 018, an experimental turboje ...

SGCA 44 * ''Singsung Pte Ltd v LG 26 Electronics Pte Ltd (trading as L S Electrical Trading)''

016 HV-016 is a former military unit of Norway, that was a part of the Home Guard. It was established after 1985 to "stop terror- or sabotage actions that could weaken or paralyze Norway's ability to mobilize its military and its ability to resist". ...

SGCA 33 * ''Y.E.S. F&B Group Pte Ltd v Soup Restaurant Singapore Pte Ltd (formerly known as Soup Restaurant (Causeway Point) Pte Ltd)''

015 Fifteen or 15 may refer to: *15 (number), the natural number following 14 and preceding 16 *one of the years 15 BC, AD 15, 1915, 2015 Music *Fifteen (band), a punk rock band Albums * ''15'' (Buckcherry album), 2005 * ''15'' (Ani Lorak album ...

SGCA 55 * Acted as counsel in proceedings concerning Gilstead Court, Thomson View, and Shunfu Ville collective sales.

Personal life

In March 2022, Tan was diagnosed with cancer.

Bibliography

* ''"Dear Adam, Help!"'' (1988, Hotspot Books) ISBN 9813002352 *''

'' (1988, Hotspot Books) * ''

'' (1989, Hotspot Books)

References

External links

Adrian Tan at TSMP Law Corporation

Internet Movie Database profile of ''The Teenage Textbook Movie''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tan, Adrian Singaporean writers 20th-century Singaporean lawyers Singaporean people of Chinese descent Anglo-Chinese School alumni National University of Singapore alumni Living people 1966 births 21st-century Singaporean lawyers