On 19 May 2020, Professor Lawrence Boo and Ms Christine Artero (The Arbitration Chambers, Singapore) delivered what has now become a traditional feature in the SIArb calendar: their talk on “Developments in Singapore Arbitration 2019”. This annual round up, which focuses in detail on the arbitration cases considered by the Singapore courts in the last calendar year, is a must for arbitration practitioners seeking to stay abreast of the latest developments in Singapore arbitration law. This was reflected in the 155 attendees for this year’s event.
The big difference this year, however, was that those 155 people attended virtually, as the talk was delivered in webinar format - a first for SIArb’s CPD programme.
Following the Singapore Government’s advice to avoid physical gatherings in order to control Covid-19, SIArb postponed this year’s talk from February, when it was originally scheduled. However, we were determined to ensure that Lawrence and Christine could deliver their talk on the rescheduled date in May, despite the Circuit-Breaker. Extreme situations often prompt innovation, as human beings find ways to adapt, and so it has been with Covid-19. The webinar format not only allows us to reach members whilst they are locked down, but also enabled members based overseas to join the event.
This year’s talk started with a brief review by Lawrence of non-judicial developments, before Christine discussed the reported judgments on stay applications, arbitration-related injunctions and jurisdictional appeals. Lawrence then returned to cover the rich seam of cases on setting aside applications and enforcement of awards. Moderator Andrew Pullen (Fountain Court Chambers) then posed questions submitted by attendees electronically during the talk.
The CPD programme continues online over the coming months: members can find details of our webinars planned for July, August and September on the website.
Reported by:
Andrew Pullen – Fountain Court Chambers