PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE - March 2019
It has been an eventful start for the Singapore Institute of Arbitrators (SIArb) for 2019. In 2018, SIArb launched the Guidelines on Party-Representative Ethics (“Guidelines”). It was thus timely that the year kicked off with a discussion on the issue of party representative ethics on 24 Jan 2019. Are such guidelines of any real value? What practical steps could be taken to ensure that such guidelines are effective. It was a robust discussion chaired by Chan Leng Sun SC, with valuable insights from Mr Gary Born, Michael Hwang SC, Professor Lucy Reed and VK Rajah SC. The global diversity of standards and the lack of any common regulator emerged as a key obstacle to a clear pathway forward. My own takeaway is that the existence of challenging obstacles must not deter us. Ethics is ultimately fundamental integrity, which is foundational to international arbitration. SIArb is committed to working with our members, arbitral institutions, bar associations and end-users towards always raising the bar on the issue of ethics. It is when we suddenly find ourselves thinking that ethics is not important or beyond control that we would be too far down the slippery slope.
Read More Dinesh Dhillon President, SIArb 2017-2019
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CASE LAW DEVELOPMENTS |
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Tours Pvt Ltd v Hilton International Manage (Maldives) Pvt Ltd, [2019] SGCA 10
By Tham Wei Chern, Daniel Lee – Fullerton Law Chambers LLC
A. Facts 1. Hilton obtained a Singapore-seated ICC award against Sun arising out of Sun’s repudiation of a hotel management agreement. Sun had counterclaimed for fraudulent misrepresentation and breach of duty of care and skill. 2. Hilton attempted to enforce the award in the Maldives (the “Maldives Enforcement”). 3. Sun simultaneously commenced court proceedings in the Maldives, essentially re-litigating the issues that had been decided in the arbitration (the “Maldives Suit”). 4. Instead of immediately applying (in the Singapore Courts) for an order for Sun to cease the Maldives Suit, Hilton instead challenged the Maldives Suit on jurisdictional grounds and failed before the Maldives Courts.
BAZ V BBA, [2018] SGHC 275
By Tham Wei Chern, Daniel Lee – Fullerton Law Chambers LLC
A. Facts 1. The Plaintiff sought to enforce, in Singapore, a Singapore seated ICC award. The Defendants resisted the enforcement. 2. The arbitration arose out of a transaction in which the Plaintiff bought shares in a company owned by the Defendants. The Plaintiff commenced arbitration proceedings against the Defendants for fraudulent misrepresentation, on the grounds that the Defendants had concealed information on scandals and regulatory breaches, which had reduced the true value of the shares. The Plaintiff was successful in the arbitration and obtained an award in its favour.
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in the hot seat! |
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In each issue of our newsletter, we interview an SIArb member to get their views on the alternative dispute resolution scene in Singapore, and to obtain some insight into what makes them tick. In this issue, we interview Prof. Leslie Chew SC.
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Recent Events |
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Developments in Singapore Arbitration (12 February 2019)
Singapore’s prominence in the international arbitration scene continues to rise in 2018. While Singapore arbitration landscape remained relatively stable in 2018 – with no new rules or procedures being introduced – the number of reported court decisions arising from or relating to arbitration have increased, reflecting the buzz in this space. In the past year, the Singapore Courts have had the occasion to revisit established principles and navigate new territory in the law relating to and governing arbitrations. These include 4 applications to set aside arbitral awards; 2 applications to review the arbitral tribunal’s jurisdiction; and the usual stream of stay applications.
Party-Representative Ethics: Time To Move The Needle? (24 January 2019)
The 10th anniversary of the SIArb symposium did not fail to live up to expectations. With a diverse number of thought-provoking questions submitted by the audience beforehand, each session navigated several areas of controversy, and also gave rise to some very helpful contributions from audience members based on their own experience (submitted within the confines of the "Chatham House" rules!). Last but not least, the all-female cohort of moderators for the sessions served as a radical and refreshing departure from the usual line-up of conference chairs.
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Upcoming Events |
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Date
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Event
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28 March 2019
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11 April 2019
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26, 27 & 29 April 2019
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30 April 2019
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07 May 2019
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13 June 2019
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30 September 2019
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SIArb Annual General Meeting
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10, 11, 18, 19 & 21 October 2019
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Fellowship Assessment Course 2019 (FAC)
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26 November 2019
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SIArb Commercial Arbitration Symposium 2019
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27 November 2019
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SIArb Annual Dinner 2019
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05 December 2019
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SIArb Annual Debate 2019
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View our Past & Upcoming Events HERE
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announcements |
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New Members The Institute extends a warm welcome to the following members:
Associates
- Ramesh Bharani Nagaratnam
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Members
- Christopher Rudland
- Mohammed Forrukh Rahman
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Fellows
- Stephen Strick
- Siraj Omar
- Catherine Lim
- Chan Kah Chong
- Peng Kong Luke
- Doan Thuan Hai
- R.V.S. Mani
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View our Member Listing HERE. |
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Call for Contribution of Articles |
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Disclaimer The SIArb Newsletter is a quarterly of the publication of the Singapore Institute of Arbitrators. Distribution is restricted to members and those organisations and institutions of higher learning associated with the Institute.
The Institute does not hold itself responsible for the views expressed in the Newsletter which must necessarily lie with the contributors. |
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