Distance runner Soh Rui Yong’s ex-lawyer Clarence Lun sues him for defamation

Singapore distance runner Soh Rui Yong is facing a defamation suit from his former lawyer Clarence Lun over comments made in a Facebook post.

The founder of Fervent Chambers LLC is seeking $180,000 in damages, a removal of the post, a public apology, and a court injunction to prevent future similar statements.

Lun alleged that the post, which was published on Aug 25, 2024, put him in a negative light, despite not being named directly.

In Soh’s post, the two-time SEA Games marathon champion shared his experiences and frustrations of having “to deal” with various lawyers over the years. 

The 33-year-old athlete suggested that these lawyers were “dishonest” and “incompetent”, but did not name any individuals.

Lun contended that he can be identified from the post due to references to a lawyer who had been suspended from practice.

On Oct 10, 2022, Lun was handed an 18-month suspension, from Nov 7, 2022 to May 5, 2024, for acting as a supervising solicitor of practice trainees without the necessary qualifications, but he emphasised that the Court of Three Judges which heard the case then did not find him “dishonest in respect of the misconduct which led to the suspension”.

He also argued that he could be identified due to his prior public association with Soh as his legal representative, which the latter had written about on his Facebook page multiple times.

According to court documents, Lun, who had previously represented Soh in two separate defamation suits against fellow marathoner Ashley Liew and former Singapore Athletics executive director Malik Aljunied, said his “reputation has been seriously damaged” because of the post and he “has suffered hurt, distress and embarrassment”.

In the defamation suit filed by Liew, Soh had in May 2021 replaced Lun with Eugene Thuraisingam and Chooi Jing Yen of Eugene Thuraisingam LLP as his lead counsel. Soh subsequently lost the case and was ordered to pay his former teammate $180,000 in damages.

Lun also represented Soh initially in the latter’s defamation suit against Malik. The runner lost the case in June 2022.

In a statement to The Straits Times, Lun said he had sent a letter of demand to Soh on Sept 2, 2024, but did not receive a response.

As Soh was believed to be overseas at the time, Lun attempted to serve the legal papers through multiple channels – Facebook, LinkedIn, WhatsApp, and e-mail – but no response was received. 

He said: “It is disappointing that I had to engage professionals and to contact his family members to attempt to reach him, which were options I had wished to avoid, to show to the honourable court that I have undertaken all steps possible to serve papers on him, in order for the court to grant substituted service out of jurisdiction.

“Mr Soh sought to portray himself as someone righteous and willing to take responsibility for his actions, but his actions to evade service shows otherwise, and his family members had to bear the brunt of the inconvenience.”

In the defence filing, a lawyer acting for Soh, Akesh Abhilash of Silvester Legal LLC, rejected the claims in the suit.

He noted that the statement “Today, 1 of them has been charged by the Law Society” in the post could not be referring to Lun, as no such charge was brought against him on Aug 25, 2024.

Abhilash also pointed out that none of the comments on the post mentioned Lun, and that any prior references to him on Soh’s Facebook page had been made in 2020 and 2021, before the post in question was published.

The defence alleged that during the course of their solicitor-client relationship between August 2019 and May 2021, Soh believed certain statements made to him in person or through WhatsApp were “dishonest”.

It was also stated that the letter of demand was served while Soh, who is currently studying for a Master of Business Administration at the London Business School, was not in Singapore.

When contacted, Abhilash said: “We cannot comment on the matter as it is presently before the courts. My client is focused on defending himself against the claims made against him.”

The case conference for the defamation suit is set for May 13.

Kimberly Kwek joined The Straits Times in 2019 as a sports journalist and has since covered a wide array of sports, including golf and sailing.

Source: The Straits Times © SPH Media Limited. Permission required for reproduction.

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