Singapore, 25 April 2013 – Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon called for courts in major commercial centers around the world to look at bridging differences in their commercial laws as a way to keep up with the changing business environment. He said that where laws diverge, it can adversely impact businesses operating in across different jurisdictions.

In his keynote speech at the opening of the inaugural conference organised by Singapore Academy of Law and the Chancery Bar of England and Wales on commercial litigation, CJ Menon also observed that in a borderless business world, the outcome of major cross-border litigation can have ramifications across the globe. He added that this conference provides a valuable forum for stakeholders in the legal community to identify the scope for enhancing commonalities of laws amongst various jurisdictions, understand the differences and discuss how such differences might be abridged.

The conference titled “Finance, Property and Business Litigation in a Changing World” will be held from 25 – 26 April 2013. Over 1.5 days, eminent speakers and panelists include the former Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong, Lord Mance (Supreme Court of United Kingdom), Justice Quentin Loh, Mr Timothy Fancourt QC (Falcon Chambers, UK) and law practitioners and senior academia from Singapore and overseas will discuss the legal issues, trends and developments in modern commercial litigation including wealth management and trusts. The conference will also cover other topics such as banking and insolvency litigation, company shareholder and joint venture disputes.

Some 300 legal professionals and academics including more than 40 representatives from the Chancery Bar of England and Wales are attending the conference which is being held at the Supreme Court auditorium.

About Singapore Academy of Law

The Singapore Academy of Law (the “Academy”) is the umbrella body of the legal community in Singapore and has close to 10,000 members.

The work of the Academy is focused on three key areas: supporting the growth and development of the Legal Industry; building up the intellectual capital of the legal profession by enhancing Legal Knowledge; and improving the efficiency of legal practice through Legal Technology. The work of the Academy is driven by these three core mandates. This in turn is directed towards raising the standard and quality of legal practice and building a strong and dynamic legal community in Singapore.

Besides its role as the official law reporting agency in Singapore, the Academy’s other functions include providing continuing legal education for its members, publishing legal literature, promoting legal research and legal studies, the reform and development of the law and alternative dispute resolution

For more details on the Academy, visit www.sal.org.sg.