Tanaya Shekhar Kinjavdekar
Senior Associate
Tanaya graduated with a Bachelor of Laws from the Singapore Management University. At the core of her practice is defending and protecting the rights of the individual, having gained experience in criminal litigation, in family law practice and a variety of civil disputes, including a focus in the niche field of medical law.
Her experience in criminal litigation includes acting in matters involving a wide range of offences such as white-collar crimes (e.g. corruption, cheating, Companies Act offences, forgery and even UN Sanction Charges), sexual offences, mischief, theft, criminal intimidation, rioting, traffic offences, offences for causing hurt, military court charges and regulatory offences. Through her passionate advocacy, she has obtained favourable outcomes for clients on various occasions. For example:
- Following Representations written by Tanaya to the Prosecution, no further action was taken against our client, who was being investigated for the consumption of drugs. Tanaya urged the Prosecution to give our client, a first-time offender, another chance on account of his unique personal circumstances and the steps he was taking at seeking help for his addiction issues. Through such early intervention, our client, a single father of 2 young children, could remain with his children and continue his rehabilitative journey away from drugs, without a criminal record.
- In another case, our client was being investigated for using threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour and for carrying an offensive weapon in public. Following representations written by Tanaya, the investigations against him were discontinued with a stern warning issued to him. Tanaya highlighted to the authorities that our client was merely 15 years of age and had never had any infractions with the law previously. She emphasised the bright future and prospects which lay ahead for him, which would be jeopardised due to a naïve error in judgment. Our client was eventually able to pursue his education overseas and continue to pursue his passion.
- In a rare turn of events, a charge under section 376A of the Penal Code (sexual penetration of a minor below 16 years of age) was dropped against our client with a conditional warning in lieu of continued prosecution issued. Working with a forensics psychiatrist, Tanaya presented to the Prosecution our client’s mental state and highlighted the extenuating personal circumstances of our client. She further emphasised our client’s strides at rehabilitation and his prospects for the future, should he be afforded another chance (which he eventually was!)
- Liew Michael Marcus v Public Prosecutor and other appeals [2024] SGHC 4: On appeal before the High Court, Tanaya successfully argued for the conviction of her client for a Rioting Charge to be overturned. Tanaya delved into the legal requirements to prove rioting and highlighted that the facts did not support such a charge. Instead of serving an imprisonment term of 15 months, her client merely had to pay a fine after the Court ordered a reduction of the charge to one of causing hurt. Read the case here.
- In one case, our client was charged under section 354 of the Penal Code (outrage of modesty). Tanaya assessed the evidence available and raised doubts regarding the merits of the Prosecution’s case through representations. Eventually, the Prosecution acceded to our request for composition and the Court issued a discharge amounting to an acquittal in our client’s favour.
- A Mandatory Treatment Order was issued in favour of our client, who faced charges under the Protection from Harassment Act, including for threatening to kill his mother and himself. With the help of a forensics psychiatrist, Tanaya highlighted our client’s psychiatric history and mental condition which contributed to his offending behaviour. Instead of traditional sentencing options (e.g. imprisonment terms or fines), our client was ordered to seek psychiatric treatment, with an emphasis on rehabilitation.
More uniquely, in a quasi-criminal setting, Tanaya has assisted in the defence of medical and dental practitioners before the Singapore Medical Council, Singapore Dental Council and on appeals before the Court of Three Judges. In one such instance, Tanaya innovatively made use of the phrasing of the charges and the prosecution’s own supporting evidence to argue that disciplinary proceedings against a medical practitioner were unwarranted. Her cleverly-crafted representations led to the SMC prosecution’s complete withdrawal of the charges preferred against the medical practitioner before the matter could be heard.
Tanaya has also assisted on a wide range of civil disputes, including family proceedings, medical negligence claims, contractual debt recovery proceedings, probate proceedings, taxation proceedings and defamation claims at the State Court and High Court levels. She understands that litigation can be costly and stressful and carefully weighs the pros and cons of any course of action when advising clients on the most effective strategy. To avoid protracted and costly court proceedings, Tanaya has often carefully scrutinised complex documents, including expert medical reports and medical records, to quantify claims and advise clients on achieving favourable settlements before proceedings are even commenced. That said, where any offers for settlement are unacceptable, Tanaya does not shy away from putting up a strong fight by pressing on to trial. She works closely with her clients and the appropriate experts involved to examine the facts and present them in the most strategic and favourable manner before the Court.