Malaysian-born Ng Jern Fei has been appointed as Queen’s Counsel, the highest rank that can be awarded to barristers in the U.K.
The China Daily website said Ng was appointed on Monday following a 15-year track record.
With this appointment, Ng Jern Fei now stands among the top 10 percent of the United Kingdom’s current population of 17,000 barristers. This is a remarkable milestone for him and a source of inspiration for many who are struggling to break the barriers in their respective fields.
In spite of his demanding career, Ng has not let go of his roots. He continues to take private Mandarin lessons and makes conscious efforts to instill the Chinese cultural heritage in his children.
“My wife and I have taken a conscious decision to only speak Mandarin with our children, and help them preserve their Chinese roots and identities,” he said.
Ng Jern Fei hopes that his achievements will serve as encouragement for the ethnic Chinese community worldwide
“I am proud to be Chinese, and I hope my achievements will help encourage more ethnic Chinese to dream bigger and achieve their full potential.”
However, the path to this achievement wasn’t always smooth. Ng Jern Fei remembers feeling discouraged in 2001 when senior barristers advised him to consider a career other than being a barrister after he graduated with a law degree from the University of Cambridge.
“Because of what I was being constantly told, there really was a time when I believed that for an ethnic Chinese like me to become a barrister was a dream I could never even begin to imagine,” says the 38-year-old.
Jern Fei Ng studied in Malay at school in Malaysia and is said to have had a tough time adjusting to English-speaking U.K.
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