The Best I Could

296 pages

English language

Published Sept. 10, 2009 by Marshall Cavendish Editions, Marshall Cavendish Corp..

ISBN:: 978-981-261-457-5

(1 review)

The Best I Could traces the life and career of Subhas Anandan, an advocate whose tireless devotion to the Singapore criminal justice system is legendary. In this highly personal autobiography, first published in 2009, Subhas describes not only the many sensational cases he covered, including those of Took Leng How, Anthony Ler and Ah Long San, but also his views on mandatory death sentences and ‘police entrapment.'Subhas Anandan, who passed away in January 2015 surely was the face of criminal defense in Singapore. But why did he choose to represent clients who were to all intents and purposes guilty? And were the criminals he represented the monsters they were made out to be? Did he ever feel sorry for the clients he represented? What were his views on the death penalty, and which parts of the legal system did he want reformed? Read all about this in The Best I …

The Best I Could traces the life and career of Subhas Anandan, an advocate whose tireless devotion to the Singapore criminal justice system is legendary. In this highly personal autobiography, first published in 2009, Subhas describes not only the many sensational cases he covered, including those of Took Leng How, Anthony Ler and Ah Long San, but also his views on mandatory death sentences and ‘police entrapment.'Subhas Anandan, who passed away in January 2015 surely was the face of criminal defense in Singapore. But why did he choose to represent clients who were to all intents and purposes guilty? And were the criminals he represented the monsters they were made out to be? Did he ever feel sorry for the clients he represented? What were his views on the death penalty, and which parts of the legal system did he want reformed? Read all about this in The Best I Could.

1 edition

Huey reviewed The Best I Could by Subhas Anandan

Accessible and candid

4 stars

In this semi-autobiography, Subhas describes his upbringing and some of the well-known cases that he handled. As he says, he writes for the man in the street, so there is hardly any legal language and certainly no legal analysis.

Considering he was one of the most well-known members of the Criminal Bar, I found that the book provided context for why certain aspects of criminal practice are to the way they are and why certain changes were made to the law. Many famous names feature in the book, including David Marshall, who defended Subhas when he was framed for gang activities, Francis Xavier who reportedly still owes Subhas money, and Chan Sek Keong who was Subhas's pupil master.

Subjects

Lawyers
Trials (Murder)
Biography

Places

Singapore