Loo Han Keang was a very successful businessman in the oil and gas industry before he became a lawyer. He studied for his first degree in Business and Finance in England. His experiences in life was wide ranging which saw him working as an accounts manager and even as a postman in England while he was a student. As a talented young man, he was hand-picked to be an MBf Finance Manager at a very young age. However, he left MBf Finance Bhd for more challenges in the oil and gas industry. Even though he already had a degree in Business & Finance and qualified as a Company Secretary, he felt a thirst for the pursuit of more knowledge. His interest in legal studies led him to take up law as an external student for LL.B, University of London.
As an external law student, Loo Han Keang was a very determined student, a trait which his partner in his law firm soon came to realise as his hallmark. He met his future partner Ooi Tze Kean while studying law together in an evening class. The chemistry between them were as natural as petrol catches on fire.
Upon finishing his Bar Finals, he chambered in the legal firm of Messrs Cheang & Ariff. He joined the legal firm of T. K. Ooi & Rakan-Rakan as a partner and the firm’s name was changed to T. K. Ooi, Loo & Partners.
In the early days as a lawyer, Loo Han Keang was very actively participating in the Bar Council’s activities including taking part in the Bar Mini Marathons. Like many other lawyers, he attended Court and shared with his friends and partner(s) on his experiences and encounters in Court. He was a good storyteller and had many originally created jokes to share.
As a lawyer and friend, he was very much liked by everyone. He was approachable and understanding. He met his sweetheart Sally Ooi Lye Choon in London while studying for his first degree. His wife is a very enterprising lady who runs a thriving trading business and is also a devoted and loving wife. He was blessed with 4 children from his marriage, the eldest of whom a bright girl, Loo Joanne, is currently studying for her Law Finals. The second child, also a beautiful girl is in a Secondary School doing her Form Five. His 2 youngest children is a pair of intelligent twin boys who are studying in Form One. Loo Han Keang has always been a loving husband and a caring father who take the studies of his children seriously. He encouraged his children to study hard and to have fear in God. As a devout Christian, he attended church regularly with his family.
Loo Han Keang is a man of many talents which only his wife and his law partner has the rare privilege to witness. He always emphasises the theory of street-wise for the safety of everyone. As a man who believes in the value of time, he worked very hard and was one who never waste any time. Throughout his life, he never knew that there was a time bomb ticking inside him until he discovered in the middle of the year 2003 that his liver was ravaged by cancer.
In October, 2003, Loo Han Keang went for a liver transplant in Singapore. The transplant was a successful one after having received a part of a new liver from a donor who is a member of his Christian group.
He returned from Singapore after the successful transplant and recuperated at home. In less than 5 months, he yearned to return to office despite persuasion not to do so. The workaholic in him saw him working as though nothing had happened until he suffered a liver rejection symptom in late May 2004. He passed away peacefully in the presence of his relatives and family members on 20 June 2004 at the age of 51 years old.
His closest friend and partner, Ooi Tze Kean, remembers him “as a man of fine distinction, determined, accommodating, a companion par excellence, an entertainer, an actor in his own right and the number one in public relation”. Ooi Tze Kean feels that it is indeed a privilege and an honour to be his partner. The partnership of his legal firm had lived up to the maxim “Till death do us apart” for a full 14 years. His demise is a great loss to the firm and to all who had come in touch with him in one way or another.
May he rests in peace and the beautiful memory of him remains forever.