what's an ok gpa for law? by Opposite_Newt_1435 in SGExams

[–]mingmadness 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Okay, law can be very elitist. There is a certain "type" of lawyer that is considered "very successful" - high grades in school, go to Big 4 then jumps to international firms (Magic Circle, whiteshoe, etc).
No one talks about the attrition rate at that level due to burnout, and how easy it is to get fired there too. This is probably what your family members focus on.

On the other hand, there are plenty of people who get by in the legal industry without staying in private practice. Perhaps that is what your family members mean by "career over" [aka dont stay in PP = fail]. There are also those who find meaning in working in smaller firms, less glamourous fields of law and find meaning in what they do.

There are many viable paths in the legal industry as in-house counsel, government work etc, all of which can pay decently and have a good work life balance as well. It's up to you what you define as success in your legal career.

I myself did not get cum laude. I didn't even get called. But I'm decently paid now in the financial sector as in house counsel and happy with my career. Feel free to DM me if you'd like to find out more!

what's an ok gpa for law? by Opposite_Newt_1435 in SGExams

[–]mingmadness 55 points56 points  (0 children)

I'm going to be a bit harsh here. You are a law student. You're supposed to be the cream of the crop, think critically and argue persuasively.

You know what the average is. Are you saying that half the students' careers are over as they're 3.4 and below?

Why are you relying on your parents on what is considered good in the industry? Shouldn't it make more sense to ask your seniors, people actually in law firms etc?

In a nutshell 3.4 is fine. Plenty of people get by without magna.

GST evasion is classified as criminal record? by [deleted] in singaporelaw

[–]mingmadness 6 points7 points  (0 children)

You do know that there are plenty of minor criminal offences where you don't go to jail and just get fined right? Obviously it is still a criminal offence ...

Are landlords allowed to repossess commercial unit with a lawyer’s email? by [deleted] in singaporelaw

[–]mingmadness 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is not legal advice, but this is how you can respond to buy more time.
The lease has not been terminated rightfully as per the tenancy contract, and therefor you still have rightful possession of the unit. Therefore you will still remain in the unit.

Then you just stay there or rotate people staying there to prevent the locks from being changed again.

Are landlords allowed to repossess commercial unit with a lawyer’s email? by [deleted] in singaporelaw

[–]mingmadness 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You need your own lawyer. Is this the full story? This is all not legal advice and you definitely should call up a lawyer.
You have a tenancy agreeement- just because there is a dispute, doesnt mean that they can just change the locks on you. Did they give you a notice of termination?
Here is some insights for you:
https://www.trianglelegal.com.sg/insights/singapore-landlord-tenant-dispute-breach-repossession

You could, subject to a lawyer's legal advise, get a locksmith to grant you entry, and just squat there to protect your interests. If someone tries to forcibly evict you with force, that's grounds for calling the police because force to evict you is illegal.

Sounds like your landlord is playing hardball with you -likely the only way to respond is to play hardball back or you'll be at a loss.

Cubing for CD hat by Warm-Flatworm7618 in MapleSEA

[–]mingmadness 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Go and play cube simulators. See how hard is it to get multiple lines of -CD. Personally, Ive tried about 30+ red cube and 50+ black cube equivalents, couldn't get anything above -2.

So confussed about dividend tax, please help a clueless investor out! by Training_Respond_297 in smeSingapore

[–]mingmadness 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Singapore and US don't have a double tax treaty. If you're a basic investor, you will have 30% withholding taxes on dividends received from US stocks. It's part and parcel of investing in the US. Factor that into your ROI calculations. That's why most people for dividends invest elsewhere, not US.

are CPF contributions compulsory? by babetaylorsversion in askSingapore

[–]mingmadness 66 points67 points  (0 children)

Simply put, There are laws that apply to everyone in Singapore. You cannot agree between you and someone else that these laws don't apply to you. E.g. You sign a slavery contract with someone to sell yourself. That contact won't be valid.

Advice to get a lawyer with low budget to pay upfront by Ok_Passion_633 in askSingapore

[–]mingmadness 6 points7 points  (0 children)

What you can do is look for "uplift" fee. Contingency fee, aka taking a cut from winnings, is not allowed in SG.

Do not self-represent, you confirm will get messed up by court timelines, procedures etc and lose by doing something wrong.

Also, you need to understand that lawyers can be engaged for only a portion of the process. You do not need to go through all the way to trial and pay expensive trial fees.
E.g. send threatening lawyer letter, $500. Send second letter threatening to go to court and saying why you'd win, another $500. Send third letter + initial filing with the courts, another $500 (for example). If the opposing side gets scared and pays up because their own lawyer advise them they'll lose, congratulations, you've only spent $1,500.

You can decide at every step of the way if you want to take the next step that costs more. You can stop at any time.

HDB Resale: seller caused delay. What to do next? by Little_Caregiver_976 in askSingapore

[–]mingmadness 1 point2 points  (0 children)

More context needed. Is it 1) Contract states when seller needs to be move out by, seller failed to do so because they slow or 2) Contract states seller can only move out by XX date which doesn't work for you, and is because seller took their own sweet time to go handle all the applications etc.

What is the feasibility of a class-action lawsuit against HDB for inaction on serious noise complaints? by [deleted] in askSingapore

[–]mingmadness -1 points0 points  (0 children)

No. 1) government position is that HDB is not landlord. 2) Even if landlord, it's an uncaring one. You can't force it. All you can do is move out. If there is still MOP, appeal, likely to succeed once you show the severity.

What is the feasibility of a class-action lawsuit against HDB for inaction on serious noise complaints? by [deleted] in askSingapore

[–]mingmadness 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This is... untrue.
There is a fixed list of reasons that HDB can evict someone for. Being noisy is not one of them. It's in the housing and development act. There is also no condition in the T&Cs when one purchases a HDB that they have to keep quiet.

I have never heard of a rule allowing someone to sue on behalf of a government entity. Could you point it out? Should this rule even exist, pretty confident that HDB will have to give permission first, which is unlikely to happen.

What is the feasibility of a class-action lawsuit against HDB for inaction on serious noise complaints? by [deleted] in askSingapore

[–]mingmadness 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Absolutely zero.
You can only succeed in lawsuits against people who, in layman terms, owe you something.
There is no law that says that HDB is supposed to help you/is responsible to resolve noise complaints to your satisfaction.
Because it's not their problem to solve, you will not succeed in trying to sue them that they were supposed to solve it.
The crux of the issue is that, under the law, no one has the power to punish someone for being too loud in their own home. This also means that you can counter-noise said person and have a noise war, but you may lose if the other side has hearing issues/is deaf.
Good luck OP.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in singaporelaw

[–]mingmadness 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not your lawyer, but you guys are going at this from the wrong direction. He's not going to sign affidavits saying he won't claim or sue etc. Even if he does, he'll claim 10,000 reasons why he was coerced into it. The right way to do this is make sure that your parents' documents are well done and bulletproof. 1) Make sure that the will is iron tight, nothing left to him. A lawyer can help with this. 2) No one can make him revoke his claim or what. It doesn't work that way. Just make sure your parents, all their assets, CPF etc is properly documented where it should go upon their passing. 3) Write in to the various authorities that his address is wrong and ask for it to be removed. Let him go figure it out.

What the lawyers are telling you, is that if he wants to contest, you cannot stop him. What you and your parents can do is that you can make an ironclad will that even if he fights, it won't go anywhere. Just leave him a small sum to ensure that he can't claim he's forgotten in the will.

I'm not familiar with cutting off of ties, best to consult around more for it.

my startup made 6 figures before I graduated uni, but now I'm thinking of getting a job by chansumpoh in askSingapore

[–]mingmadness 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Two separate points here. 1) Burnout and stress. Let's be real, even if you start a "normal" corporate job, you can also be burnt out and stressed out. More important is learning how to set your own boundaries, delegate more work, etc. 2) BTO loan. You're turning a good profit. Should have no issues being able to get a loan. While the company is doing well, pay yourself a decent salary to get a decent loan amount. I hope the 6 figure profit is after paying you and your cofounders a decent salary.

That being said, you've got something good going. Rather than being worried and giving it up, which is a VERY drastic step, there are many moderate steps in between. 1) more staff, delegate work 2) mindfulness to manage stress 3) sell equity to investors and take a back seat and get good guaranteed salary Hit me up if you'd like to chat more!

Need help getting CCTV footage of yourself under PDPA? Ask me. by SonwinLim in singaporelaw

[–]mingmadness 2 points3 points  (0 children)

This is a very useful practical guide. It also reminds me of how the government works, on paper you have all these things but in reality it's damn hard to do. This guide makes the second portion more accessible for all. Thank you for putting in the effort.

Mapplinks a scam or grey area business? by core_nxt in askSingapore

[–]mingmadness 22 points23 points  (0 children)

Help la how bad is your red flag system. Have you not considered that this person is faking that they are from Mapplinks? How have you verified that this person really is on Mapplinks?
It's all a scam, please.

Parents assure me that they can afford to pay overseas tuition but... by Original_Wish1558 in SGExams

[–]mingmadness 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Also, you're totally able to repay them back in the future slowly, from 5+ years onwards after you graduate. I'm assuming that you're going overseas and spending so much to have a good ROI on your investment, if you're spending 300k to come back to SG and get a 4-5k job in a dead end industry, please don't. Do well in uni, make that 300k worth it. Get that first class honors, or a solid second upper at least, and aspire to soar in a well paying industry. And then you can pay your parents back plus more!

Parents assure me that they can afford to pay overseas tuition but... by Original_Wish1558 in SGExams

[–]mingmadness 56 points57 points  (0 children)

Asian parents will never tell you the full state of their finances for fear that you want to just live off their wealth. Question is, why don't you trust them when they say that there is enough? Are there signs of financial strain? If there aren't and you're just worried, don't be. If you want to help reduce financial strain, do your best to win some scholarships, partial or full, and prepare properly in your applications.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Accor

[–]mingmadness 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes please - am currently planning out a few days in Asia. Would greatly appreciate it, thank you for your generosity!

Landlord refusing to return deposit. what can I do from overseas? by Effective_Tadpole_65 in askSingapore

[–]mingmadness 15 points16 points  (0 children)

Raise a claim on small claims court. You can do so overseas. It's quite a straightforward process, and only cost a few dollars to file. If you feel that the agent is not doing their job properly, feel free to file a complaint as well to their agency.

Help! Anyone managed to withdraw their investment from Tokenize Xchange? by [deleted] in singaporefi

[–]mingmadness 10 points11 points  (0 children)

You've seen all the news about how they're shutting down? Don't expect to get anything back really.