Dr Anamah Tan

Dr. Tan is a women’s rights activist, an advocate for gender issues, a renowned family lawyer and a skilled negotiator. She has more than 30 years of extensive experience in advancing the rights and status of women in Singapore and internationally.

Dr. Tan first started working as an Estates Officer with the Singapore Improvement Trust (SIT) – which in 1960 evolved into the Housing and Development Board (HDB). In the 1970s, she entered private practice to become a Partner in Laycock & Ong, one of Singapore’s oldest legal firms. She later went to the UK to get her Solicitors’ qualification to gain experience in international financial instruments and then set up her own practice which she still operates to this day.

Some of Dr. Tan’s notable cases can be seen below:

1. Lee Nellie v Wong Lai Kay [1990] 1 SLR(R) 215; [1990] SGHC 17 – successfully obtained an order for her Client to have a property, previously transferred to her son to hold on trust, transferred back to her. The son had argued that the transfer was a “gift”.

2. Vettath v Vettath [1991] 2 SLR(R) 685; [1991] SGCA 38 – successfully resisted an application for an extension of time to file a Notice of Appeal out of time.

3. Yasufumi Shinozaki v Christina Kelly Wisley [1991] SGHC 63 – successfully resisted the opposing party’s application, and obtained her Client sole custody and care and control of the children, and maintenance for her Client as well as the children. This was a reversal of an ex parte order obtained by the opposing party which would have required her Client to deliver the children to his custody.

4. Chee Bong Yeo v Teo Soon Hoe and Another [1998] SGHC 191 – her Client was awarded 40% in the division of the matrimonial assets in divorce proceedings. The matrimonial assets included a property which a third party claimed to have a beneficial ownership of. Successfully defended and protected her Client’s Court-awarded 40% share.

5. Thomas Hugh Godfrey v Tan Chit Neo Alice [1999] 3 SLR(R) 571; [1999] SGHC 264 – successfully protected her Client’s Court-awarded share of the matrimonial home and resisted the opposing party’s appeal against the same. The opposing party had sought an equal division in the matrimonial home instead of the originally ordered 30%.

6. Lee Liok Ching v Teo Poh Jin Kim [2003] SGDC 52 – successfully resisted a claim for child maintenance by the opposing party. Her Client had previously paid a lump sum of S$205,000.00 as maintenance for the child.

7. ANX v ANY [2014] 1 SLR 728; [2014] SGHC 248 – successfully resisted the opposing party’s argument that a deed of separation drafted by his lawyers should not be upheld in the divorce proceedings.

8. UTY v UTZ [2019] SGFC 32 – successfully obtained an order for her Client for the enforcement of maintenance (for the wife and the children) under a divorce order which had been place since 2004. The opposing party had gone incommunicado and had repeatedly evaded the payment of maintenance over the course of 15 years. During the 15 years, several orders were also obtained for the transfer of the opposing party’s CPF monies to her Client’s CPF account to set off the monies due to her Client under the original divorce order.

9. UYQ v UYP [2020] SGCA 3 – succeeded on appeal and overturned a High Court Judge’s decision to make an adjustment of 7.5% (7.5% decrease for her Client and conversely, a 7.5% increase for the opposing party) to the average ratios awarded to parties for the division of the matrimonial assets. Following the appeal, the adjustment was reversed and the division was reverted back to the original ratios that the High Court Judge had originally found for.