On 1 February 2017, the Supreme Court of Singapore and the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware announced that they will formally implement the Guidelines for Communication and Cooperation between Courts in Cross-border Insolvency Matters ("Guidelines").  … Read more

Indonesia’s Criminal Procedure Code (“KUHAP”) was last revised in 1981. Many are of the view that it has not kept up with legal developments since then and that it is in need of substantial amendments. In the past month, there… Read more

In line with its increased commitment to combat money laundering and terrorist financing in Singapore, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has ordered the closure of Falcon Private Bank Ltd, Singapore Branch (Falcon Bank). On 11 October 2016, the MAS… Read more

The Hague Convention on Choice of Court Agreements (Hague Convention) officially came into force on 1 October 2016 and there are currently 30 signatory states, including all members of the European Union and Mexico.  As we have previously reported, Singapore… Read more

A joint statement issued by the United States and Singapore suggests that US authorities are seeking to accelerate off-shore tax enforcement aimed at US accountholders and financial institutions in Singapore. A joint statement was issued on 2 August 2016 to… Read more

Introduction The Singapore High Court has taken the rare step of allowing an English QC to appear before it in relation to an application to set aside an arbitral award made in an investor-state arbitration; the first successful ad hoc… Read more

For the first time, a court has adopted the ‘centre of main interest’ (COMI) as grounds at common law to recognise foreign insolvency proceedings. The decision earlier this year by the High Court of Singapore (the Court) recognised a Japanese… Read more

As we previously reported, the recently established SICC is up and running (see here).  It issued its first judgment in May 2016 (see here) and has since continued to be active in resolving ongoing disputes in a speedy manner, with… Read more

Please click here to preview this publication. As a result of a rise in global economic activities around the region, Asia is experiencing the inevitable increase in commercial and investment disputes, both litigation and arbitration, with a multi-jurisdictional dimension. Our… Read more

On 12 May 2016, the Singapore International Commercial Court (SICC) issued its first written judgment.  The dispute, which arose out of a joint venture agreement between Australian and Indonesian and Singaporean parties, was the first case brought before the SICC… Read more

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) recently announced that it has withdrawn approval from the Singapore branch of an international bank due to serious breaches of anti-money laundering (AML) requirements, poor management oversight, and gross misconduct by certain bank staff. MAS also… Read more

In our previous article, we discussed Singapore's signing of the Hague Convention on Choice of Court Agreements (the Convention) on 25 March 2015 and the likely effect this would have on the Singapore International Commercial Court (SICC) and Singapore's profile as… Read more

The Singapore Ministry of Law is seeking public feedback on a draft Mediation Bill. The Bill will give effect to one of the key recommendations of the International Commercial Mediation Working Group (ICMWG) in 2013, being the enactment of a… Read more

As dispute resolution professionals, users, judges, arbitrators and mediators prepare to convene in Singapore for the inaugural event of the Global Pound Conference series, Herbert Smith Freehills sheds light on ADR trends in the city state. ... Read more

On Wednesday 13 January 2016, a cross section of our clients based in Singapore joined our Disputes and Corporate Crime & Investigations teams and Bankim Thanki QC, a leading commercial advocate and litigator who has practised extensively in the region… Read more

On 10 January 2016, the Singapore Academy of Law (SAL) published the results of its study on preferences for the choice of governing law and jurisdiction made by those involved in cross-border transactions "in Singapore and the region" (the Study).  The… Read more

Herbert Smith Freehills Senior Associate Emmanuel Chua has published an article titled "The growth of hybrid dispute resolution processes in Asia – Singapore and the Arb-med-Arb protocol" in CIArb Malaysia, newsletter of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Malaysia Branch. This… Read more

MULTIPLE PROCEEDINGS IN INTERNATIONAL ARBITRATION This year's Herbert Smith Freehills-SMU Asian Arbitration Lecture will be delivered by Professor Gabrielle Kaufmann-Kohler, followed by commentary from Alastair Henderson, Managing Partner of Herbert Smith Freehills Singapore and Head of International Arbitration Southeast Asia.… Read more

Herbert Smith Freehills is pleased to announce the launch of The Global Pound Conference (GPC) Series 2016-17. The aim of this ambitious worldwide conference series is to build a global conversation about the current landscape of civil and commercial dispute resolution and how… Read more

The Singapore Court of Appeal ("CoA") has delivered its judgment in Citiwall Safety Glass Pte Ltd v Mansource Interior Pte Ltd [2015] SGCA 42.  Overturning the High Court's decision, the CoA held that the time limits applicable in statutory adjudication… Read more

There have now been four court judgments in Singapore relating to the enforceability of a Dispute Adjudication Board's ("DAB") decision under the FIDIC Red Book form of contract. The latest judgment is PT Perusahaan Gas Negara (Persero) TBK v CRW Joint… Read more

In the recent landmark decision of Re Vanguard Energy Pte Ltd [2015] SGHC 156, the Singapore High Court confirmed that litigation funding may, in the context of insolvency and under the appropriate circumstances, be permitted in Singapore. This decision is… Read more

Recent amendments to the Organic Act on Counter Corruption B.E. 2542 (1999) have created a new suite of bribery offences for foreign public officials, international organisation workers and state officials who ask for or accept bribes and for individuals and… Read more

In Humpuss Sea Transport Pte Ltd (in compulsory liquidation) v PT Humpuss Intermoda Transportasi TBK and another [2015] SGHC 144, the Singapore High Court has clarified the law in relation to service of court process on a foreign party to… Read more

Over the past two years we have witnessed an exponential increase in global efforts to combat corruption. Nowhere is this more visible than Asia, where a number of countries have recently passed new anti-corruption legislation or taken steps to strengthen… Read more

The Thai Civil Procedure Code has been amended to allow for class action suits to be brought by large groups of plaintiffs for breach of civil wrongs, including breach of tort, breach of contract and breach of labour rights. The… Read more

The Singapore Court of Appeal (the "CoA") recently delivered its judgment in CKR Contract Services Pte Ltd v Asplenium Land Pte Ltd and Another [2015] SGCA 24. In a landmark ruling, the CoA found that where parties to a construction… Read more

Last week, we published the first article from our ADR in Asia Guide. This summarised the main ADR processes and their use across Asia. Here, you can access the second article from our Guide - a practical guide to mediation.… Read more

We previously reported the publication of our new ADR in Asia Guide. As well as distilling the results of our client survey on mediation in Hong Kong, the Guide contains a summary of the main ADR processes and their use… Read more

In our previous article The New Frontier, we discussed the launch of the Singapore International Commercial Court ("SICC") and in particular we questioned whether issues of cross border enforceability might impact the effectiveness of the new SICC.  Last week, Singapore… Read more