SINGAPORE: The High Court has ruled that Mr Ariffin Iskandar Sha bin Ali Akbar, better known as Ariffin Sha, may be admitted to the Singapore Bar despite objections from some stakeholders over a past criminal conviction.
Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon decided on 1 July 2025 that Mr Ariffin was a fit and proper person for admission and that no deferment was necessary.
The ruling follows Mr Ariffin’s conviction on 26 August 2024 for criminal defamation under section 500 of the Penal Code.
He was fined S$8,000 after Wake Up Singapore, the alternative news outlet he founded, published a fabricated story about KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH) .
At the time of the offence in March 2022, Mr Ariffin was the sole administrator of Wake Up Singapore.
The article alleged, falsely, that a pregnant woman miscarried at KKH after being made to wait for hours without treatment.
The claim, supplied by a source later found to have fabricated the story, went viral and was republished by other media outlets.
KKH lodged a police report, and Mr Ariffin removed the story the same day, apologising privately to the hospital and publicly retracting the article.
He published a detailed account of events and complied with a correction direction issued under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act.
During the Bar admission process, Mr Ariffin fully disclosed the offence, as well as two prior conditional warnings for unrelated public order offences in 2014 and 2018.
The Attorney-General (AG) and the Singapore Institute of Legal Education (SILE) argued that, although the offence did not involve dishonesty, admitting him so soon after the conviction might undermine public confidence in the legal profession.
They said his failure to verify the allegations before publication was careless and incompatible with the standards expected of lawyers.
They recommended a 12-month deferment from the date of conviction.
The Law Society of Singapore, however, did not object, noting the absence of dishonesty and his full cooperation.
In his decision, the Chief Justice found that the “Protective Principle” — applied in cases where public confidence may be harmed by an admission — did not apply here.
He noted there was no evidence that Mr Ariffin knew the story was false when he published it, distinguishing his case from that of lawyer M Ravi, who had made reckless statements knowing them to be untrue.
The court stressed that the offence arose from a lack of care, not dishonesty or indifference to the truth.
Mr Ariffin’s prompt retraction, public accountability, and subsequent work in pro bono legal matters showed rehabilitation.
Beyond his legal career, Mr Ariffin is a long-time activist and politician who just joined the Singapore Democratic Party(SDP).
He first met SDP leader Dr Chee Soon Juan in 2014 as a 17-year-old, and founded Wake Up Singapore at 16.
In the 2025 General Election, he contested Marsiling–Yew Tee GRC against a team led by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong but was unsuccessful.
The court’s decision means Mr Ariffin can now be called to the Bar and practise as a lawyer.
According to the public hearing list, he will be called to the Bar on 13 August.
According to CNA, Ariffin said he was “humbled and honoured” by the court’s decision.
“I hope to use this privilege of practice to serve the community and help those in need,” he told CNA.
He expressed gratitude to the honourable court, the stakeholders, his legal counsel from Audent Chambers and Eugene Thuraisingam, as well as his mentors in law.
“I will do my best to make them proud,” he added.
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