Teo Soon Kim (b. 23 June 1904, Singapore–d. 23 April 1978), also known as Teow Soon Kim and later Lo-Teo Soon Kim, was the first local woman admitted to the bar of the Straits Settlements1 and the first woman barrister in Hong Kong when she was admitted to the Hong Kong bar on 8 August 1932.2 She studied in London and was the second Malayan Chinese woman to qualify as a barrister in England, but only practised in Singapore between 1929 and 1932.3
Early life
Teo was the daughter of the Teochew rubber baron, Teo Eng Hock, and his second wife, Tan Sock Gee.4 Her family was prosperous and lived in various homes on Read Street, Prinsep Street, North Bridge Road and in Woodlands where her father had a rubber plantation. She studied at the Methodist Girls’ School even though women’s education was not a high priority for Chinese families at the time, because her father wanted all his children to have the best education possible. He believed that education, unlike wealth, could not be lost. It was unusual then for girls to complete their Senior Cambridge examination, and teaching was one of their few career options.5
Major accomplishments
Studying in England
With her father’s financial support, Teo travelled to England to study law. During her voyage, Teo was looked after by a couple introduced to her family by a missionary. She then converted to Christianity, despite her grandmother’s warning that she would end up as a “hungry ghost”.6 Once in England, she enrolled at the University of London and lived in Finchley.7
In May 1924, Teo was admitted to Inner Temple in London and studied under H. H. L. Bellot, former secretary of the International Law Association. She was called to the bar of England and Wales in June 1927.8
Making history in Singapore and Hong Kong
Upon Teo’s return home in late 1928 (as Lo-Teo Soon Kim) she applied to the bar and was called to the Bar of the Inner Temple, and to the Singapore Bar in 1929, thus becoming Singapore’s first female barrister.9 Teo’s father encouraged her to pursue a legal career, but after spending some time in a law firm she decided it was not an appealing vocation.10
Teo spent the next two years in China, then returned to practise in 1931.11 In 1932 she went to the Supreme Court to argue her most significant case, defending a farmer charged with murder after killing his cousin in a fight.12 In doing so, she became the first woman barrister to appear at the assizes.13 Her debut at the assizes drew an unusually large crowd to the public gallery, including many women and friends, who witnessed Teo succeed in securing her client’s acquittal.14
Later that year Teo won another case at the assizes involving a fatal motor accident, but soon thereafter moved to Hong Kong.15 In August 1932, she became the first woman admitted to the Hong Kong bar, making her a pioneer in two colonies. She was uncertain whether to remain there permanently, and details of her subsequent career are unknown.16
Teo died on 23 April 1978.17 In 2014, she was posthumously inducted into the Singapore Women’s Hall of Fame by the Singapore Council of Women’s Organisations.18
Family
Siblings: Half-brother Teo Ping Keh (whose mother was deceased), and one younger sister Teo Moh Tet. She probably had other younger half-siblings, as her father had more than one wife.19
Husband: Lo Long Chi (Dr), whom she married in 1928.20
First cousin once removed: Teo Cheng Guan (d. 10 May 2002), former chairman of the Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation.21
First cousin twice removed: Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean.22
Author
Duncan Sutherland
References
1. Aedit Abdullah. (2005). The legal profession. In K. Y. L. Tan (Ed.), Essays in Singapore legal history. Singapore: Marshall Cavendish Academic and Singapore Academy of Law, p. 202. (Call no.: RSING 349.5957 ESS)
2. Chinese woman barrister. (1932, August 16). The Straits Times, p. 18. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
3. Malathi, D. (2007, October). 40 Law Society and legal firsts facts. Retrieved 2016, December 30 from Law Gazette website: http://www.lawgazette.com.sg/2007-10/legalfirst.htm; Chinese woman barrister. (1932, August 16). The Straits Times, p. 18. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
4. Singapore Council of Women’s Organisations. (2014). Teo Soon Kim. Retrieved 2016, December 30 from Singapore Women’s Hall of Fame website: http://www.swhf.sg/the-inductees/20-law/158-teosoon-kim
5. Chew, D. (Interviewer). (1992, December 23). Oral history interview with Mrs Goh Heng Chong [Transcript of cassette recording no. 1392/02/01, pp. 1–5, 11]. Retrieved from National Archives of Singapore website: http://www.nas.gov.sg/archivesonline/
6. Chew, D. (Interviewer). (1992, December 23). Oral history interview with Mrs Goh Heng Chong [Cassette recording no. 1392/02/01, pp. 7, 10–11]. Retrieved from National Archives of Singapore website: http://www.nas.gov.sg/archivesonline/
7. Teo, S. K. (1925, January 27). Chinese and England. The Straits Times, p. 10. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
8. Chinese woman barrister. (1932, August 16). The Straits Times, p. 18. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
9. Malathi, D. (2007, October). 40 Law Society and legal firsts facts. Retrieved 2016, December 30 from Law Gazette website: http://www.lawgazette.com.sg/2007-10/legalfirst.htm
10. Chew, D. (Interviewer). (1992, December 23). Oral history interview with Mrs Goh Heng Chong [Cassette recording no. 1392/02/01, p. 7]. Retrieved from National Archives of Singapore website: http://www.nas.gov.sg/archivesonline/
11. Social and personal. (1931, June 27). The Straits Times, p. 10. Retrieved NewspaperSG.
12. Assizes triumph for Mrs Lo. (1932, January 9). The Straits Times, pp. 12, 16. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
13. Straits budget supplement [Microfilm no.: NL 2193]. (1932, January 14). The Straits Budget, p. 93.
14. Woman assigned for the defence. (1932, January 8). The Straits Times, p. 14; Assizes triumph for Mrs Lo. (1932, January 9). The Straits Times, pp. 12, 16. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
15. Negligence that was not criminal. (1932, May 6). The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser (1884–1942), p. 8. Retrieved from NewspaperSG; Singapore Council of Women’s Organisations. (2014). Teo Soon Kim. Retrieved 2016, December 30 from Singapore Women’s Hall of Fame website: http://www.swhf.sg/the-inductees/20-law/158-teosoon-kim
16. Chinese woman barrister. (1932, August 16). The Straits Times, p. 18. Retrieved from NewspaperSG; Singapore Council of Women’s Organisations. (2014). Teo Soon Kim. Retrieved 2016, December 30 from Singapore Women’s Hall of Fame website: http://www.swhf.sg/the-inductees/20-law/158-teosoon-kim
17. Rojak Librarian. (2014, April 11). Teo Soon Kim (pioneer female lawyer). Retrieved 2017, January 5 from Rojak Librarian website: http://mymindisrojak.blogspot.sg/2014/04/teo-soon-kim-pioneer-female-lawyer.html
18. Singapore Council of Women’s Organisations. (2014). Teo Soon Kim. Retrieved 2016, December 30 from Singapore Women’s Hall of Fame website: http://www.swhf.sg/the-inductees/20-law/158-teosoon-kim
19. Chew, D. (Interviewer). (1992, December 23). Oral history interview with Mrs Goh Heng Chong [Transcript of cassette recording no. 1392/02/01, pp. 2, 4]. Retrieved from National Archives of Singapore website: http://www.nas.gov.sg/archivesonline/
20. The wedding of Singapore’s first lady lawyer. (1928, December 22). Malayan Saturday Post, p. 15. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
21. Chew, D. (Interviewer). (1992, December 23). Oral history interview with Mrs Goh Heng Chong [Transcript of cassette recording no. 1392/02/01, p. 8]. Retrieved from National Archives of Singapore website: http://www.nas.gov.sg/archivesonline/; Obituaries. (2002, May 12). The Straits Times, p. 30; Former OCBC Bank chairman dies. (2002, May 11). The Straits Times, p. 2. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
22. Suryadinata, L. (Ed.). (2012). Southeast Asian personalities of Chinese descent. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, p. 1157. (Call no. RSING 959.004951 SOU)
The information in this article is valid as at 2015 and correct as far as we are able to ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. Please contact the Library for further reading materials on the topic.
The information on this page and any images that appear here may be used for private research and study purposes only. They may not be copied, altered or amended in any way without first gaining the permission of the copyright holder.
Lim Peng Siang (b. 1872, Fujian, China–d. 1944, Singapore) was a Chinese merchant who made significant contributions to Singapore’s economic and social developments in the early 1900s. He was a prominent leader of the Chinese community and held key positions in a number of public and private companies. He founded...
Tommy Koh Thong Bee (b. 12 November, 1937, Singapore–) is an ambassador-at-large at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a position he has held since 1990. Koh is a top-notch negotiator and a seasoned diplomat who is well known at home and abroad. ...
The premiership of Lee Kuan Yew, which lasted over three decades from 5 June 1959 to 28 November 1990, was a dynamic period that saw the transformation of Singapore into one of Asia’s most stable and prosperous countries. Lee identified the five components of successful nation-building as stability, education, attracting...
James Walter Davy Ambrose (b. 1909, Penang, Malaya–d. 28 October 1992, Singapore), an ethnic Indian, was a high court judge in the Singapore legal system. Between 1936 and 1958, he held various portfolios in the legal and judicial services of Malaya, including the post of magistrate in Penang and district...
The Opium Treatment Centre opened in February 1955 on St. John’s Island for the treatment and rehabilitation of opium addicts. The centre was the colonial government’s first attempt at treating addicts; prior to this, opium addicts were charged in court and sent to prison....
The Queen’s Scholarship was an annual education scheme introduced by the colonial government in 1885 to enable promising students in Singapore and Malaya to enrol at a British university. It was the colony’s most prestigious academic prize until it was replaced in 1959 by the Singapore State Scholarships (known today...
Fong Swee Suan (Dr) (b. 27 October 1931, Senggarang, Batu Pahat, Johor, Malaya–4 February 2017, Singapore) was a trade unionist who was active in the Singapore labour scene during the 1950s and 1960s. He is often associated with Lim Chin Siong, a fellow trade union activist. Fong was also one...
Officially registered as a society in 1999, the Cat Welfare Society is a predominantly volunteer-run non-profit organisation that aims to protect the wellbeing and lives of cats in Singapore. The society achieves this through sterilisation programmes and education initiatives, as well as by working closely with various stakeholders such as...
SilkAir Flight MI 185, while on its way to Singapore from the Indonesian capital of Jakarta, nosedived into Musi River near the city of Palembang in South Sumatra, Indonesia, on 19 December 1997 at about 4.13 pm local time. The plane was almost completely destroyed and all 104 people on...
In May 1987, the Ministry of Home Affairs arrested 16 people under the Internal Security Act (ISA) for their involvement in a “Marxist conspiracy”. They were detained without trial for between one month and three years. Tan Wah Piow, a former University of Singapore Students’ Union president residing in the...