Speech by Ms Indranee Rajah, Senior Minister of State for Law & Finance, at the Launch Ceremony of the ICC’s Case Management Office in Singapore

23 APR 2018

23 Apr 2018 Posted in Speeches

Mr Alexis Mourre, President of the ICC International Court of Arbitration
Mr Alexander Fessas, Secretary-General of the ICC International Court of Arbitration
Members of the Legal Profession
Friends from Overseas
Ladies and Gentlemen

  1. Good evening.

  2. It gives me great pleasure to be here today to witness the launch of the ICC International Court of Arbitration’s case management office in Singapore.

  3. It seems not too long ago that I witnessed the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Singapore Ministry of Law and the ICC Court at the 3rd ICC Asia Conference in Singapore.

  4. Under the terms of the MOU, we agreed to work together to:
    1. Set up an ICC Court case management office in Singapore to serve the arbitration needs of businesses in Asia; and
    2. Develop and promote Singapore as a seat and venue for arbitration in Asia through advancing thought leadership, developing manpower talent and arbitration services, and undertaking joint marketing.

  5. Today, less than a year later, the case management office in Singapore is set up and ready to start operations.

  6. This is testament to the strong partnership that Singapore and ICC have forged over the years and our shared goal to promote open trade and commerce, and to provide quality dispute resolution services to businesses, around the world, and particularly in Asia.

    Rise of Asia

  7. The economic centre of gravity of the world is shifting to Asia. Asia is projected to grow at over 6% this year, more than double the expected growths of all other regions in the world.

  8. As the economic centre of gravity shifts to Asia, legal activities and dispute resolution services will follow. Between 2014 and 2019, global legal services are projected to grow at 3.3 per cent a year. Over the same period, legal services in the Asia-Pacific region are expected to grow at 5.5 per cent. This is a 2.2 percentage point difference in growth rate. This is compounded each year, and the gap widens each year. Here in Singapore, we are already seeing phenomenal growth in the number of dispute resolution cases, managed out of Singapore.

  9. These emerging trends will be accelerated by China’s Belt and Road initiative (BRI) which will be a game changer. The BRI is a grand, ambitious vision to bolster a sprawling network of land and sea links which recalls the ancient overland Silk Road economic belt connecting China to Europe, together with the Maritime Silk Road connecting Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.

  10. The BRI will catalyse infrastructure developments, creating opportunities for companies in Asia. Already, an estimated US$900 billion in projects in countries along the Belt and Road have been planned or are underway. The BRI will significantly boost connectivity, enhance the flow of goods and services, and further invigorate trade and economic growth.

    Singapore as a Key Node in Asia

  11. The rise of Asia will see the rise of a few business centres in Asia, to serve Asia and to link Asia with the rest of the world. Singapore is well-poised to be one such centre, a key node for technology, innovation and enterprise in Asia, and around the world. The Singapore node has a few defining features.

  12. First, it is open and pro-business. Singapore is ranked, by the World Bank, the 2nd easiest place to do business in the world, after New Zealand, and the easiest place to do business in Asia. Trade amounts to more than three times our GDP.

  13. Second, we have a strong rule of law, a trusted legal system and quality jurisprudence. Singapore offers stability and certainty for businesses seeking to make high-value, long-term investments in Asia.

  14. Third, because it is open, it is also inclusive. Singapore is home to over 7,000 MNCs, 8,000 Indian companies and 7,500 Chinese companies. We have a diversified eco-system, with many different players, from all over the world, and a level playing field, for all players.

  15. Fourth, it is a connector of demand and services. Singapore is a strategic hub for businesses to capture opportunities in this part of the world. Let me explain how we do this in two areas, in infrastructure and dispute resolution services.

    In Infrastructure Services

  16. I will deal first with infrastructure services. Asia’s rapid urbanisation, development, and population growth means that there is a wide infrastructure gap to be filled. Many projects are looking for financing, and financiers are looking for projects to fund. However, the projects are unable to obtain financing due to lack of bankability, usually occasioned by the lack of proper project preparation, project structuring, and technical issues.

  17. Singapore is well placed to address these challenges:
    1. First, we are a leading financial centre, with commercial banks that have project finance teams. We are also a place for multilateral development banks which offer a critical source of infrastructure finance and project structuring expertise.
    2. Second, we also have strong professional service providers, including accountancy, engineering, architecture, and project management firms, as well as law firms which have project financing and infrastructure dispute resolution expertise.

  18. To better connect infrastructure demand and services, Singapore has recently announced that it is setting up an Infrastructure Office. This is known as Infrastructure Asia. The Infrastructure Office will bring together local and international firms across the infrastructure value chain to develop, finance, and execute projects. It will be a platform to connect infrastructure stakeholders, enable information exchange on infrastructure opportunities in Asia, facilitate infrastructure investments and financing, and help infrastructure players, including professional service providers, to access opportunities.

    In Dispute Resolution

  19. While Singapore as a connector of infrastructure services is fairly recent, Singapore has been a connector of dispute resolution services for many years, bringing together businesses, dispute resolution institutions, arbitrators, mediators and legal counsel, here, in Maxwell Chambers.

  20. Building on this foundation, our vision is to grow Singapore as a global Asia node with legal and dispute resolution services as one key pillar. The strength of a node is best measured by the activities it hosts and the linkages it has with the rest of the world, and in dispute resolution, by the number of dispute resolution institutions it is home to.

  21. I am happy to announce that, with the establishment of the ICC case management office in Singapore and the Permanent Court of Arbitration’s (PCA) Singapore office, Maxwell Chambers will be home to five, the largest number of, case management offices in the world. This high concentration affirms Singapore’s node status, as an open and inclusive base for major dispute resolution players to access and capture opportunities in Asia.

  22. We will not stop there. We will further strengthen our position in two ways.

  23. First, infrastructure. To meet growing demand, we are refurbishing the adjacent building to expand Maxwell Chambers. When completed next year, it will add 120,000 square feet of office space, tripling Maxwell Chambers’ current size.
    1. The new building, called Maxwell Chambers Suites, will house, over four floors, 50 new offices for international dispute resolution institutions, arbitration chambers, law firms, and ancillary legal services. It will house ICC’s case management office, ICC Asia regional office and ICC Academy.
    2. The existing building will be dedicated to hearing and preparation rooms for commercial dispute resolution cases. An overhead link-bridge will connect the two buildings for convenient access between offices and hearing rooms.

    We welcome you to take up office space in the expanded Maxwell Chambers.

  24. Second, services. Maxwell Chambers understands the business of dispute resolution intimately, and exists to serve the specialised needs of dispute resolution practitioners and commercial parties that use their space. Maxwell Chambers is committed to constantly improving their services and facilities to address evolving user needs and expectations. Earlier this month, we launched the “Smart Maxwell” initiative, to leverage technology to enhance convenience, comfort and security for users. Through this initiative, Maxwell Chambers will take hearing facilities into the digital age and continue to set the standard for a world-class hearing centre.

    Conclusion

  25. I am sure that ICC Court’s case management office will feel right at home here at Maxwell Chambers in Singapore, a key node of dispute resolution work in the world and in Asia.

  26. The office is off to an auspicious start with the lion dance just now.

  27. I am confident that it will grow from strength to strength as it ramps up its case management services and activities here, to serve the dispute resolution needs of the international business community in this part of the world.

  28. Thank you, and I wish all ofyou a pleasant evening ahead.

Last updated on 24 Apr 2018