As I knew the author of the book, having worked with him when I was a pupil at a law firm, and as I had once been very interested in the subject matter of the book, I agreed to attend. It was agreed that I would purchase it and then claim for it if I thought it would be useful, a good read and cost less than $100.
It was quite a grand affair, attended by a Judge of Appeal and some of the Who's Who of the legal community, the food exquisite and the serving attendants meticulous. (I would have taken a picture but you don't go holding your digital cam over your plateful of food when there are judges, past and present, around you) There was a long queue forming at the book stand and it seemed that every attendee was buying a copy. I for one was quite undecided when I found the price to be around $150.
Apart from that, I felt happy at seeing many of my old friends, colleagues and peers, albeit a little jealous to realize how far they had progressed in legal circles, being successful partners in reputable law firms and/or owning their own small but flourishing practices.
But it was when the honourable Judge of Appeal Mr Justice Chao Hick Tin made his introductory and commendatory speech about the book that I realised that for all I appreciate about not having to handle demanding clients and pressing deadlines, I was still very interested in the law and its development. I found myself nodding with approval as the judge listed landmark developments in the law of Interlocutory Injunctions as well as the jurisprudential attitude towards it. I found myself noting with interest a comment which seemed at odds with the writer's personal views on Performance Bonds which he had expressed to me years ago in his cramped office stacked high with files.
If I had any doubts as to whether to buy the book, they were gone then, although there remained a slight unease as to how to explain why such a small volume could cost that much (it's not uncommon for legal books actually). And even that unease was gone, totally overtaken by nostalgia, when I opened the book to find, under the Case List, that one of the injunctions which I had handled before had been commented upon inside the book.
'I couldn't have been that bad a lawyer, right?' I asked myself. 'I could do all this even then and even after three years I'm surprised I still understand this subject. Maybe I can still do this..' I thought as tantalizing scenarios and possibilities played out in my head...
But that was before the combination of events that night - which would make it one of the worst I have had to endure in a long while....
An abrupt jolt to the dream - but is it dead?
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