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Full-Text Articles in Law

Against Populist Isolationism: New Asian Regionalism And Global South Powers In International Economic Law, Pasha L. Hsieh Dec 2018

Against Populist Isolationism: New Asian Regionalism And Global South Powers In International Economic Law, Pasha L. Hsieh

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This article provides the most up-to-date examination of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which is poised to become the world’s largest free trade agreement (FTA). It argues that the 16-country mega-FTA will galvanize the paradigm shift in Asian regionalism and build a normative foundation for the Global South in international economic law. Based on intertwined theoretical and substantive claims, this article opens an inquiry into the assertive legalism of developing nations in the new regional economic order. It further manifests the pivotal force of emerging economies against populist isolationism in the Trump era that undermines the neoliberal foundation of …


Book Review: The Negotiator's Desk Reference, Dorcas Quek Anderson Dec 2018

Book Review: The Negotiator's Desk Reference, Dorcas Quek Anderson

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Negotiation theory and practice have evolved at a phenomenal pace since thepublication of Fisher and Ury’s seminal work Getting to Yes.1 The sheer breadth of topics inThe Negotiator’s Desk Reference2 (“NDR”) attests to how negotiation has advanced as a multidisciplinary field. Published in 2017 to replace its predecessor The Negotiator’s Fieldbook,3the NDR comprises 101 chapters written by very prominent academics and practitioners drawnfrom a wide range of professions, disciplines and cultures. According to its editors, more thanhalf of the contents are new, reflecting the new frontiers of the negotiation field.


Contemporary Issues In Mediation (Vol 3)Joel Lee & Marcus Lim Gen Eds, Eunice Chua Dec 2018

Contemporary Issues In Mediation (Vol 3)Joel Lee & Marcus Lim Gen Eds, Eunice Chua

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This is a book review of the third volume of Contemporary Issues in Mediation, published by the SingaporeInternational Mediation Institute.


Protecting Consumers' Personal Data In The Digital World: Challenges And Changes, Man Yip Dec 2018

Protecting Consumers' Personal Data In The Digital World: Challenges And Changes, Man Yip

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

At the Personal Data Protection Seminar 2017, Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, Minister for Communications and Information, said that Singapore must “aspire towards a high standard of data protection that strengthens trust with the public, gives confidence to customers whose data is collected and used, while providing an environment for companies to thrive in the digital economy”.


Protecting Consumers' Personal Data In The Digital World: Challenges And Changes, Man Yip Dec 2018

Protecting Consumers' Personal Data In The Digital World: Challenges And Changes, Man Yip

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

At the Personal Data Protection Seminar 2017, Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, Minister for Communications and Information, said that Singapore must “aspire towards a high standard of data protection that strengthens trust with the public, gives confidence to customers whose data is collected and used, while providing an environment for companies to thrive in the digital economy”.


Quest For Relevance: Whither The Asean Charter In Shaping A Shared Regional Identity And Values, Tan K. B. Eugene Dec 2018

Quest For Relevance: Whither The Asean Charter In Shaping A Shared Regional Identity And Values, Tan K. B. Eugene

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Promulgated in 2007, the Charter of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) reaffirms ASEAN’s longstanding policy of non-interference in member-states’ internal affairs and the retention of consultation and consensus as fundamental tenets of decision-making in ASEAN. This essay considers the role of soft law in the interpretation and development of the ASEAN Charter. It also considers whether the Charter will help ASEAN achieve integration as well as promote democracy, human rights and development in an immensely diverse region comprising half a billion people. The essay argues that although the Charter is a binding legal instrument, the text enables a …


Stamp Duty Relief And Anti-Avoidance Provisions, Vincent Ooi Dec 2018

Stamp Duty Relief And Anti-Avoidance Provisions, Vincent Ooi

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Reliefs from stamp dutyIn certain circumstances, stamp duty reliefs may be applicable to instruments that would otherwise be dutia-ble, provided that the reliefs are claimed within specified statutory time limits. Such reliefs are distinct from stamp duty remissions, which may be granted by the Minister through the exercise of his powers under Sec-tion 74 of the Stamp Duties Act (Cap 312, 2006 Ed.). Under Section 74 of the Stamp Duties Act, the Minister has the discretion to prospectively or retrospectively reduce or remit duties subject to such conditions as he may impose. This power may be exercised on a general …


Gst Contract Review, Vincent Ooi Dec 2018

Gst Contract Review, Vincent Ooi

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

GST contract review—overviewTax lawyers are often asked to review a commercial contracts from a Goods Services Tax (“GST”) perspec-tive. This note focuses on contracts for the supply of services or goods, and not a contract for the sale and purchase of a business.Understanding the GST consequences of the contractThe contract that you are asked to review will usually contain a GST clause, but it is insufficient to look only at that clause. As further explained in Practice Note: How to review a commercial contract for GST purposes, you should also review the whole contract so that you can establish:• What …


"Decisional" And "Operational" Negligence, Vincent Ooi Dec 2018

"Decisional" And "Operational" Negligence, Vincent Ooi

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This article draws a distinction between “decisional” negligence, which concerns the negligence exhibited by a professional advising his client in a decision to pursue a course of action, and “operational” negligence which concerns the manner in which a professional acts upon his client’s instructions to pursue a course of action. With the advent of Montgomery, the distinction between the two kinds of negligence has been thrown into focus in the context of medical negligence. The distinction is an important one for two reasons: 1) the “standard of care” test to be applied; and 2) the measure of damages.


“Insensitive Advertising” Of Foreign Domestic Workers In Singapore: A Violation Of Human Dignity, Benjamin Joshua Ong Dec 2018

“Insensitive Advertising” Of Foreign Domestic Workers In Singapore: A Violation Of Human Dignity, Benjamin Joshua Ong

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower has suspended the licence of an employment agency for advertising the services of foreign domestic workers in an “insensitive” manner which portrayed the workers as a “commodity that can be bought and sold”. It also prosecuted the agency and the employee responsible for the advertisements; the employee has pleaded guilty. The Ministry’s actions are a welcome development in the evolution of the concept of a right to human dignity in Singapore law.


Dual-Class Shares In Singapore – Where Ideology Meets Pragmatism, Pey Woan Lee Dec 2018

Dual-Class Shares In Singapore – Where Ideology Meets Pragmatism, Pey Woan Lee

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This article seeks to understand the rationale for and potential implications of the introduction of dual class shares (DCS) in Singapore. It does so by first considering the theoretical as well as evidential arguments for and against the use of DCS, followed by a survey on the reception (or otherwise) of such structures in four common law jurisdictions with vibrant capital markets, viz., Canada, the United States, United Kingdom and Hong Kong. It observes that the chief argument cited by business founders to justify the use of DCS structures is the desire to enhance a firm’s long-term profitability by shielding …


Arb-Med-Arb In Cross-Border Disputes, Janet C. Checkley, Nadja Alexander Dec 2018

Arb-Med-Arb In Cross-Border Disputes, Janet C. Checkley, Nadja Alexander

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

To satisfy the needs of an increasingly diverse set of legal cultures meeting in the global marketplace today, dispute resolution mechanisms must continually evolve. One of the recent solutions to arise out of the blending of legal cultures is evolutionary rather than revolutionary, because it is in fact not new at all: multi-tiered dispute resolution.


Mediation, Dorcas Quek Anderson, Sabiha Shiraz Dec 2018

Mediation, Dorcas Quek Anderson, Sabiha Shiraz

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

No abstract provided.


The European Union And The Establishment Of Marine Protected Areas In Antarctica, Nengye Liu Nov 2018

The European Union And The Establishment Of Marine Protected Areas In Antarctica, Nengye Liu

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This paper examines how the EU can best use its powers to establish marine protected areas (MPAs) in Antarctica. It first discusses the EU’s role in Antarctic governance and legal basis for the EU’s actions, with particular focus on the pending Joined Cases C-625/15 and C-659/16 at the Court of Justice of the European Union. Secondly, the paper analyses the negotiation process of the EU’s MPA proposals in the Southern Ocean within the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources. Thirdly, it provides suggestions regarding the EU’s potential actions that might help achieve proposed Antarctic MPAs.


All Eyes Will Be On How Heng And His 4g Team Lead Singapore, Tan K. B. Eugene Nov 2018

All Eyes Will Be On How Heng And His 4g Team Lead Singapore, Tan K. B. Eugene

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

In a commentary, SMU Associate Professor of Law Eugene Tan said the choice of Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat as the People’s Action Party’s first assistant secretary-general should not come as a surprise as he was the only fourth-generation (4G) leader to be made a full Minister upon winning his maiden election in 2011, helming the Education Ministry between 2011 and 2015. He opined that Mr Heng’s 4G team will have to stamp their distinctive collective identity and leadership ethos as governance becomes increasingly complex.


Chartering Legal Strategies For Investor Protection In Initial Coin Offerings, Aurelio Gurrea-Martinez Nov 2018

Chartering Legal Strategies For Investor Protection In Initial Coin Offerings, Aurelio Gurrea-Martinez

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

While many securities regulators are still debating whether and, if so, how to regulate Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs), this new source of finance keeps growing worldwide. In 2017, companies raised around 3.7$ billion. In the first three quarters of 2018, this figure reached more than $17 billion. Therefore, despite the scepticism that some authors and regulators have raised about the use of ICOs, the truth is that the market is buying this product. With this in mind, I provide an outline of what kinds of legal strategies would be appropriate to protect purchasers and prospective purchasers of tokens, including purchasers …


Whole-Of-Society Approach Needed Against Truth Decay, Tan K. B. Eugene Nov 2018

Whole-Of-Society Approach Needed Against Truth Decay, Tan K. B. Eugene

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

In a commentary, SMU Associate Professor of Law Eugene Tan opined that technology has compounded the problem of fake news and that governments and legislation are not the only means to curb them. This is especially so when blunt legislation may end up eroding the fundamental liberty of freedom of speech and expression. He sought the use of a multi-pronged, multi-stakeholder approach against disinformation campaigns and with trusted sources of information being boosted to produce real information for the public.


Singapore Case Note Part 2: What Happens When A Party To A Mediated Settlement Agreement Has A Change Of Heart?, Nadja Alexander, Shou Yu Chong Nov 2018

Singapore Case Note Part 2: What Happens When A Party To A Mediated Settlement Agreement Has A Change Of Heart?, Nadja Alexander, Shou Yu Chong

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

In October, we reported on a recent case from the Singapore High Court: Chan Gek Yong v Violet Netto. In that post, we examined the High Court’s attitude towards parties who have had a change of heart after agreeing to conclude a Mediated Settlement Agreement (‘MSA’) and wish to challenge its validity. Last month we focused on one of the plaintiff’s (Mdm Chan) allegations, namely that the co-mediators put pressure on her to sign the MSA. As readers will recall, the High Court found there was no evidence to substantiate this claim. However this was not Mdm Chan’s only argument!


Premature Service Of Payment Claims Under The Building And Construction Industry Security Of Payment Act: Audi Construction Pte Ltd V Kian Hiap Construction Pte Ltd, Benjamin Joshua Ong Nov 2018

Premature Service Of Payment Claims Under The Building And Construction Industry Security Of Payment Act: Audi Construction Pte Ltd V Kian Hiap Construction Pte Ltd, Benjamin Joshua Ong

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

In Audi Construction Pte Ltd v Kian Hiap Construction Pte Ltd, the Singapore Court of Appeal considereda payment claim to have been validly served although it was served earlier thanthe contractually stipulated date. This was because the service of the paymentclaim was “effective” only from the contractually stipulated date, and theclaimant had had a “good reason” to serve the payment claim early. This notecritically examines the reasoning in Audi vis-à-vis the existing law, the principleof freedom of contract, and the intentions of the parties in that case. In theabsence of future judicial elaboration on the “effective service” and “goodreason” doctrines, …


Three “Pitfalls” For The Unwary: Third-Party Funding In Asia, Darius Chan Nov 2018

Three “Pitfalls” For The Unwary: Third-Party Funding In Asia, Darius Chan

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

For some time, practitioners would have seen news alerts headlining that third-party funding is permitted in Singapore and Hong Kong for arbitration and arbitration-related court proceedings. Digging a little deeper beyond the shiny new labels, this article highlights three practical “pitfalls” which practitioners would have to be mindful of when dealing with third-party funding in Singapore and Hong Kong.


Does Investor-State Arbitration Have A Future? Keynote Speech By Sir Christopher Greenwood, Lixin Chen, Aaron Yoong Nov 2018

Does Investor-State Arbitration Have A Future? Keynote Speech By Sir Christopher Greenwood, Lixin Chen, Aaron Yoong

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

SMU Asian Arbitration Lecture, jointly organised with the Centre for Cross-border Commercial Law at the Singapore Management University, took place on 18 October 2018. The distinguished event, graced by Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon, hosted a panel comprising: Sir Christopher Greenwood, DAG Lionel Yee, Judith Gill QC and Alastair Henderson (moderator). This post takes a closer look at the keynote speech delivered by Sir Christopher Greenwood


Whole-Of-Society Approach Needed Against Truth Decay, Eugene K. B. Tan Nov 2018

Whole-Of-Society Approach Needed Against Truth Decay, Eugene K. B. Tan

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

In an age of pervasive informationflows, governments do not defeat fake news. It's the people as a society whodo.The threatof deliberate falsehoods, or more popularly "fake news", posesserious threats to the democratic wellbeing of societies. The marketplace ofideas increasingly suffers from truth decay, propagated online or offline,imperilling an already vulnerable information ecosystem. In turn,this compromises the functioning of a democracy, which is premised on citizenshaving a shared reality rather than multiple distorted realities.


Unravelling Civil Conspiracy, Pey Woan Lee Nov 2018

Unravelling Civil Conspiracy, Pey Woan Lee

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This article seeks to understand civil conspiracy through the lens of its historical rationale. It identifies that purpose to be the protection of public interests as the tort was originally fashioned as an extension of criminal conspiracy to counter serious social ills. For lawful means conspiracy, this rationale is exemplified by the requirement for improper or illegitimate motive whilst “unlawful means” serves the same function in the context of unlawful means conspiracy. Counter-intuitively, understanding the tort in this way provides a means of restricting the tort and reigning in its “revolutionary” tendencies. Recognising the tort’s policy-based foundation would, it is …


Shining A Light On Tax Avoidance, Hern Kuan Liu, Vincent Ooi Nov 2018

Shining A Light On Tax Avoidance, Hern Kuan Liu, Vincent Ooi

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Tax avoidance is a technical legal term which has a precise meaning in law. This can be compared to the more general term of "tax dodging", which has no such technical legal meaning. In light of this, we think it might be useful to explain the concept of tax avoidance.


Compelling Trustees To Exercise Their Discretion: A Principle Of Non-Intervention?, Hang Wu Tang Nov 2018

Compelling Trustees To Exercise Their Discretion: A Principle Of Non-Intervention?, Hang Wu Tang

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This article explores the limitsof the principle of non-interference and examine situations where the courtshave overridden the discretion of the trustee and compelled the trustee to actin a particular manner. While there havebeen numerous instances where the courts have avoided the trustee’s act, thecases where the courts have actually compelled a trustee to exercise a power ina particular manner are relatively few. The thesis of this article is that amore helpful way to conceptualise the philosophy behind the judicial control ofa trustee’s discretion is not to say that the court is bound by a so-calledprinciple of non-interference; rather, the contention …


Disruptive Technologies And Sustainable Development: Implications For Southeast Asia, Ching-Fu Lin, Han-Wei Liu Nov 2018

Disruptive Technologies And Sustainable Development: Implications For Southeast Asia, Ching-Fu Lin, Han-Wei Liu

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Disruptive technologies, including artificial intelligence, distributed ledger technologies, and the internet of things, are driving a transformative reorganisation of economic structures. If correctly harnessed, these emerging technologies have the potential to assist economies in creating new efficiencies, boosting productivity, and enhancing international trade. This paper explores the scope for these technologies to contribute to sustainable development, highlighting how they could be deployed and implications for Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, and Vietnam.


Family Law, Siyuan Chen Oct 2018

Family Law, Siyuan Chen

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

No abstract provided.


Reframing The Sustainable Development Goals To Achieve Sustainability In The Anthropocene — A Systems Approach, Michelle Mei Ling Lim, Peter Sogaard Jorgensen, Carina Wyborn Oct 2018

Reframing The Sustainable Development Goals To Achieve Sustainability In The Anthropocene — A Systems Approach, Michelle Mei Ling Lim, Peter Sogaard Jorgensen, Carina Wyborn

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Griggs et al. (2013) redefine sustainable development as “development that meets the needs of the present while safeguarding Earth’s life-support system, on which the welfare of current and future generations depend.” We recommend this as the end goal that the United Nations sustainable development goals (SDGs) should strive to achieve. Integration across the SDGs is less than what is required from a science perspective. Effective implementation of the SDGs will require States to attend to trade-offs and overlaps. We argue that continuous failure to address integration within the SDGs will jeopardize realization of this ultimate end goal. Therefore, we adopt …


2018 Changes To The Evidence Act And Criminal Procedure Code - The Criminal Justice Reform Bill And Evidence (Amendment) Bill, Siyuan Chen, Eunice Chua Oct 2018

2018 Changes To The Evidence Act And Criminal Procedure Code - The Criminal Justice Reform Bill And Evidence (Amendment) Bill, Siyuan Chen, Eunice Chua

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Various portions of the Evidence Act and Criminal Procedure Code were amended in 2018 vide the Criminal Justice Reform Bill and Evidence (Amendment) Bill; this was a continuation of a series of gradual but important changes to the criminal justice system that had begun in 2010 when the old Criminal Procedure Code was replaced. This legislation comment outlines and briefly analyses some of the most substantive changes brought about by the 2018 amendments: the video-recording of interviews in criminal proceedings; the introduction of a psychiatrist panel to regulate the reception of evidence from expert psychiatric witnesses in criminal proceedings; and …


An Interview On Scholar-Practitioner-Profile With Prof. Nadja Alexander, Gläßer Ulla, Nadja Alexander Oct 2018

An Interview On Scholar-Practitioner-Profile With Prof. Nadja Alexander, Gläßer Ulla, Nadja Alexander

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

The following interview with Prof. Dr. Nadja Alexander (Academic Director of the Singapore International Dispute Resolution Academy, Singapore Management University, and practicing mediator) is the prelude to a Interview series (see Gläßer, ZKM 2018, 97 ff., in this issue), in which experts from different countries who shape the professional life as scholar-practitioners in the field of mediation / ADR are presented. Das nachfolgende Gespräch mit Prof. Dr. Nadja Alexander (Academic Director der Singapore International Dispute Resolution Academy, Singapore Management University, und praktizierende Mediatorin) bildet den Auftakt einer Interview-Serie (s. Gläßer, ZKM 2018, 97 ff., in diesem Heft), in der Expertinnen …