Law Society of Singapore president Lisa Sam had urged him to resign, saying his comments on LinkedIn were unacceptable.

The society confirmed Chia’s resignation at about noon today, saying it would take effect immediately, The Straits Times reported.

“We thank Chia for his service and contributions during his tenure on council and wish him well in his future endeavours,” it said in a statement.

Chia’s LinkedIn remarks on March 22 concerned a case involving Lev Panfilov, a Singapore permanent resident from Russia, who was convicted of raping a woman he had met on Tinder.

The comments, which appeared to shift blame to the victim, sparked public outrage and criticism from legal experts, advocacy groups, and government officials.

Chia had said that those who indulged “in one-night stands may wanna take note to protect themselves from attack, or accusations of attack”.

He also referred to the victim’s age and her occupation as an actress and model before stating that she was “not exactly a babe in the woods?”.

Chia defended his comments, saying they were aimed at drawing people’s attention to their situational awareness to guard against assault.

Law and home affairs minister K Shanmugam however said that those representing the legal profession must be mindful that their statements do not dismiss victims’ concerns as it could discourage them from reporting such crimes.

He said his concern was that some people might think the views Chia expressed were indicative of the norms in Singapore.