The 7th SIEL Conference on Rethinking Global Economic Governance was held virtually from 7 – 9 July 2021. The event saw opening remarks from Peter Van den Bossche and Andrea Sironi. The opening keynote event saw Giorgio Sacerdoti interviewing Mario Monti, President of Bocconi University. The conference included several roundtables on international economic governance, including inter alia on the future of international investment regulation, the global minimum tax initiative, trade policy etc. Closing remarks for the conference were delivered by Isabelle Van Damme and Markus Wagner, SIEL Executive Vice Presidents. 

Mark McLaughlin (Global Visiting Assistant Professor, Singapore Management University and SIDRA) spoke on Panel VIII: The Challenges of Regulating the Behaviour of State-Owned Enterprises, moderated by Suresh Nanwani (Professor, Durham University). Mark presented on ‘Regulating State-owned Enterprises in Chinese Investment Treaties’. Other distinguished panellists include Freya Baetens (Professor of Public International Law, Oslo/Leiden University), Wei Yin (Associate Professor, Southwest University of Political Science and Law) and Lu Wang (Lecturer, University of New South Wales).

The ICC Annual Arbitration & ADR Conference: Connecting the World of International Arbitration & ADR took place on 23rd – 25th June 2021. One of the key findings of the 2021 White & Case and Queen Mary University International Arbitration Survey is that Singapore has become the joint top-preferred seat in the world for international arbitrations, alongside London. Webinar 6 of the Conference discusses Singapore as the preferred seat: A blip or an unstoppable force, and how should young arbitration practitioners view the trend? 

Moderated by Guy Pendell, speakers Philippa Charles, Abraham Vergis SC, Darius Chan, Jelita Pandjaitan and Koh Swee Yen shared their views at this session. The distinguished speakers spoke about the rise of Singapore as a preferred seat and the reasons and factors for its success. They also discussed whether Singapore has what it takes to maintain its ranking and the implications of Singapore and Hong Kong (which also gained popularity compared to its 2018 ranking) as preferred seats for businesses, law firms and lawyers. Finally, having regard to where arbitrations are being seated, the session also touched on what young arbitration practitioners should take into consideration as they develop their practice.

On 3 June 2021, SIDRA hosted a webinar on China’s Investment Treaty Policy and Practice: Arbitration Clauses limited to Compensation due to Expropriation. Allison Goh (Research Associate, SIDRA) acted as moderator. Dr. Matteo Vaccaro-Incisa (Head, International Law & Arbitration, Carnelutti Law Firm) provided an in-depth examination of arbitration clauses limited to compensation due to expropriation in China’s investment treaties, and explored the limitations of such clauses. In doing so, Dr. Matteo compared and evaluated the relevant case law, including court decisions from Singapore, Stockholm, and London. Jonathan Lim (Counsel, WilmerHale) provided commentary from a practitioner perspective. As experienced counsel in both commercial and investment arbitrations across common law and civil law jurisdictions, Jonathan raised thought-provoking issues and the webinar concluded with insightful comments from both speakers.

The Asian Society of International Law 8th Biennial Conference was held from 24 – 28 May 2021, consisting of a diverse mix of presentation panels and in-depth speaker sessions. The conference explored the role of international law in managing the challenges faced by post-pandemic Asia and sought to identify and address key legal issues relating to the place of international law in the future of Asia.

Mark McLaughlin (Global Visiting Assistant Professor at SMU) spoke on Day 1 of the conference on a panel discussing international economic law, chaired by Imogen Saunders (The Australian National University). Mark’s presentation was titled ‘Is Covid-19 a catalyst for investor-state mediation? The case of belt and road disputes’. Other distinguished speakers included Salamah Ansari (Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode) and Jagna Mucha (University of Warsaw). 

Allison Goh (Research Associate, SIDRA) spoke on Day 2 of the conference, on a panel on Investment Law chaired by Vivienne Bath (Centre for Asian and Pacific Law, Sydney Law School). Allison spoke about green financing disputes under the Belt and Road Initiative.Other distinguished speakers included Jose-Miguel Bello y Villarino (Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Spain)/ University of Sydney), Juan Du (Xi’an Jiaotong University) and Munkhselenge Purevdorj (National University of Mongolia). 

Darius Chan (Associate Professor of Law, SMU Yong Pung How School of Law, Deputy Director of SIDRA) spoke at the YSIAC-CIArb YMG Webinar on 7 May 2021. The webinar titled ‘Popular or Polar Opposites? Perceptions about Arbitration Practice from the US and Singapore’ allowed panellists, Darius Chan, Justin R. Rassi (Associate, Debevoise & Plimpton), Samantha Tan (Senior Associate, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer) and Kirsten Teo (Senior Legal Consultant, De Almeida Pereira DC) to exchange perspectives about the practice of arbitration from various parts of the globe, focusing on how clients and lawyers in the US and in Singapore perceive arbitration. The discussion touched on the effectiveness of arbitration as a mechanism for dispute resolution, the enforceability of arbitral awards, and Singapore common law versus US common law practice in various areas of arbitration. The panellists also discussed their experiences in practice and networking.  The diverse audience consisted of arbitrators, in-house counsel, legal practitioners, and students. The engaging discussion was moderated by Adriana Uson (Head (Americas), Singapore International Arbitration Centre).

On 30 March 2021, SIDRA presented a webinar on practical tips for younger practitioners on China-related disputes. The webinar focused on a practitioner perspective with regards to China-related disputes. The distinguished speakers included Crystal Wong (Partner, Lee Hishammuddin Allen & Gledhill), Nelson Goh (Senior Associate, Debevoise & Plimpton) and Sophia Feng (International Counsel, Allen & Gledhill). The speakers shared their practical experiences and anecdotes, having represented Chinese clients in various jurisdictions, including the United Kingdom, Malaysia, China, and Singapore. The discussion touched on the entire life cycle of a dispute, from pitching clients, the pre-trial process, the proceedings and finally, the enforcement process. The lively and interactive session was moderated by Rachel Tan (Research & Development Operations Lead, SIDRA).

On 9 March 2021, SIDRA presented a webinar on the China International Commercial Court (CICC). In 2018, China launched the CICC, a one-stop dispute-resolution platform that integrates litigation, mediation, and arbitration. Dr. Jiang Huiqin (Associate Professor, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Visiting Faculty, SMU School of Law) gave insight into the workings of the CICC by analysing its legal design, latest developments, and practical operations. Dinesh Dhillon (Co-Head, Allen & Gledhill’s International Arbitration Practice) provided a comparative angle to the discussion by sharing his recent experience as counsel in Kiri Industries Ltd v Senda International Capital Limited and another [2020] SGHC(I) 27 before the Singapore International Commercial Court (SICC). Ryce Lee (Research Associate, SIDRA) acted as moderator for the informative discussion, as Dr. Jiang and Dinesh shared their perspectives on the role of international commercial courts in the international dispute resolution landscape.

On 4 February 2021, SIDRA and UNSW Law & Justice’s Herbert Smith Freehills China International Business and Economic Law (CIBEL) Centre jointly presented a webinar introducing the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). The RCEP will be the world’s largest Free Trade Agreement. Members include the 10 ASEAN nations, Australia, China, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea. Together, the RCEP members comprise nearly 30% of the global population and global GDP.

The webinar provided participants with an overview on the RCEP’s trade implications, and its impact on international dispute settlement in the region. Heng Wang (Professor at UNSW Law & Justice, Co-Director of HSF CIBEL Centre) introduced participants to the RCEP and its trade implications. Mark McLaughlin (Global Visiting Assistant Professor at SMU) discussed investment protections under the RCEP. Kun Fan (Associate Professor at UNSW Law & Justice) delved into the RCEP's implications on international dispute settlement. Guillermo García-Perrote (Senior Associate at Herbert Smith Freehills) provided commentary from a practitioner perspective, as an international arbitration lawyer specialising in infrastructure and energy disputes. Allison Goh (Research Associate, SIDRA) acted as moderator. The webinar concluded with questions from webinar attendees and a lively discussion among the panellists, touching on topics such as investor-state dispute settlement mechanisms, the function of parallel multilateral treaties in the region, the role of the Singapore Convention in expediting the use of mediation and further discussion on the trade implications of the RCEP. The webinar was well-received by participants hailing from 21 countries and territories around the world.

On 29 January 2021, SMU Law Academy presented the ‘Not Your Average Covid-19 Webinar’. The webinar, moderated by Kevin Tan (Partner, Rajah and Tann Singapore LLP), welcomed distinguished panellists Ng Jern-Fei QC (Queens’ Counsel, Essex Court Chambers) and Chen Xiaoshan (Partner, DLA Piper Shanghai) and Chan Wei Jian (Barrister, Essex Court Chambers). The webinar consisted of a robust discussion between panellists on the similarities and differences in the approaches to COVID-19 under English, Hong Kong, PRC, and Singapore law, covering topics relating to both liability and quantum. The webinar also touched on perspectives from the judiciary as to how disputes with a COVID-19 dimension should be case managed, the approaches taken by Hong Kong, PRC, and Singaporean courts to the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak in 2002-2004, the applicability of these approaches to COVID-19, and the lessons that can be gleaned for English lawyers. The panellists also discussed the use of certifying documents such as China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) force majeure certificates as proof of the facts related to force majeure in disputes governed by PRC law, as well as the relevance of COVID-19 to quantum disputes, and how indeterminacy arising because of COVID-19 can be managed as a matter of procedure.

On 5 November 2020, SIDRA and the British Institute of International and Comparative Law (BIICL) jointly presented a webinar on the Implications of China’s Doctrine of Strict State Immunity on Belt & Road Disputes. Charles Tay (Singaporean-qualified lawyer, Zhong Lun Law Firm) provided participants with an overview of the concept of strict state immunity and potential applications in relation to disputes under the Belt and Road. Chiann Bao (Independent Arbitrator and Honorary Senior Fellow of BIICL), provided commentary from her perspective as a seasoned arbitrator currently based in Hong Kong. Duncan Speller (Partner, Litigation/Controversy Department, WilmerHale), provided his perspective as counsel who has been involved in some of the leading cases on state immunity issues, in multiple jurisdictions including England and the DIFC. The webinar also dealt with effects of crown immunity in Hong Kong, immunity disputes that may arise in the BRI context in relation to state-owned-enterprises and issues of waiver and other possible mechanisms for dealing with immunity. The thought-provoking webinar was moderated by Allison Goh (Research Associate, SIDRA). The webinar was attended by dispute resolution practitioners, in-house counsel, academics, and students from 22 countries and territories around the world.

On 30 October 2020, SIDRA Deputy Director Darius Chan spoke at the 2nd Webinar of the “New Developments in Advanced Legal Education” series organized by SMU School of Law in collaboration with Fudan University Law School. The webinar which centred on dispute resolution, was co-moderated by Zhang Wei (Associate Dean, SMU) and Chen Li (Associate Dean, Fudan University Law School) and consisted of four presentations by Darius Chan (Associate Professor, SMU) Dr. Cai Congyan (Professor, Fudan Law School), Dorcas Quek (Assistant Professor, SMU) and Dr. Xiong Hao (Associate Professor, Fudan Law School) respectively. Darius Chan spoke on ascertaining the governing law of the arbitration agreement, with a comparison of three recent decisions from the English, Singapore, and Chinese Courts. 

On 9 October 2020, SIDRA hosted a webinar on China and International Adjudication, focusing on China's approach in its investor-state and inter-state disputes. Professor Chester Brown (Professor of International Law and International Arbitration, University of Sydney Law School, Barrister at 7 Wentworth Selborne Chambers and Essex Court Chambers) spoke on litigation and arbitration and Dr. Mark McLaughlin (Global Visiting Assistant Professor, SMU School of Law) discussed mediation and dispute resolution mechanisms under the Belt and Road Initiative. The panellists also provided their perspectives on key investor-state cases to which China has been a party. Moderated by Rachel Tan (Research & Development Operations Lead, SIDRA), the panellists and participants engaged in a lively discussion on conciliation and mediation as well as China's approach to investor-state dispute settlement, before the webinar came to a close.

On 17 September 2020, SIDRA and International Trading Institute (ITI) jointly presented a webinar on the Belt and Road Initiative: Maritime Silk Road. Dr. Mark McLaughlin (Global Visiting Assistant Professor, SMU School of Law), kickstarted the discussion with an introduction to the Maritime Silk Road. Punit Oza (Registrar of Singapore Chamber of Maritime Arbitration, Board member of Klaveness Asia Pte Ltd) and Louisa Follis (Senior Analyst, Clarksons Platou), provided their perspectives as seasoned shipping and maritime experts, on the commercial impact of the Maritime Silk Road on shipping routes and trade. The webinar was moderated by Baldev Bhinder (Managing Director, Blackstone & Gold), a legal expert in the commodities sector. The webinar concluded with a lively Q&A with webinar participants, as the panellists shared their concluding thoughts on the Maritime Silk Road and its foreseeable impact on trade, business and dispute resolution in the region.

On 10 September 2020, Allison Goh (Research Associate, SIDRA) and Shouyu Chong (Research Fellow, SIDRA, Doctoral Research Student, King’s College London) were speakers at the Conference on Public-Private Law Approaches to the COVID-19 Pandemic, hosted by SMU School of Law. The conference provided a platform for the exchange of comparative scholarly insights into how different legal systems had grappled with public and private law aspects of the pandemic.

After welcome remarks from SMU Vice Provost Professor Lee Pey Woan, the Keynote Address was given by Professor Anselmo Reyes SC (International Judge, SICC). There followed two public law-themed panel sessions on “COVID-19 and the Rule of Law” and “New Landscapes in Public Law”, chaired respectively by Jaclyn Neo (NUS) and Maartje de Visser (SMU). In the afternoon, the focus shifted to private and commercial law topics, where three panel sessions were convened on “International Trade and Corporate Law Issues” (chair: Eu-Jin Teo, University of Melbourne), “Revisiting the Law of Contract” (chair: Samuel Becher, VUW) and “Commercial Law and Litigation in Extraordinary Times” (chair: Ardavan Arzandeh, University of Bristol). The Conference closed with SMU School of Law Dean, Professor Goh Yihan, sharing his thoughts for the future.

On 14 July 2020, SIDRA held a webinar on Conflict of Laws in BRI Disputes: A Comparative Approach. Panellists Professor Darius Chan (Deputy Director of SIDRA, Director of SMULA), Dr. Christopher Boog (Vice Chair of International Arbitration Practice Group, Schellenberg Wittmer), and Patrick Zheng (Head of Dispute Resolution Practice, LLinks Law Offices) discussed conflict of laws issues in the BRI context. The event was moderated by Allison Goh (Research Associate, SIDRA), and saw participants tuning in from 27 countries and territories around the world. The panellists discussed conflict of laws issues relating to determination of the law of the governing contract, the law of the arbitration agreement, and the competing choices of law in interim measures. The webinar provided a substantive, yet practice-oriented review of the approach taken in relation to resolving conflict of law issues from the common law, Chinese, Swiss, and German law perspectives.

On 14 February 2020, SIDRA held a talk headlined by Heng Wang (Professor at UNSW Law & Justice) on the topic of commercial mediation in China. Professor Wang gave an insightful presentation, introducing participants to cross-border commercial mediation in China. Professor Wang provided an overview of key commercial mediation institutions in China, their functions, and interactions with the courts. Professor Wang also spoke on the role of commercial mediation in the Belt & Road Initiative, and the foreseeable impact of the Singapore Convention of Mediation. Professor Wang concluded his talk with the challenges faced by the expansion of commercial mediation in China, as well as his thoughts on the future of commercial mediation in China and its impact on the Belt & Road Initiative.