SMU Lexicon: Updating and Rectifying the Constitution: Wong Souk Yee v Attorney-General

Reading Time: 6 minutesI.   Introduction The High Court in the recent matter of Wong Souk Yee v Attorney-General[1] introduced techniques of statutory interpretation heretofore absent from Singapore constitutional law. In interpreting Article 49(1) of the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore[2] (“the Constitution”), Chua Lee Ming J (“Chua J”), faced with a seemingly conflicting provision in s 24(2A) […]

Cambodia: Legal Update September 2019

Reading Time: 2 minutesREINSURANCE BUSINESS LICENSING REINSURANCE ACTIVITIES IN CAMBODIA, Prakas № 323 of the Ministry of Economic and Finance (“MEF”), dated 20 March 2019. Pursuant to Article 41 of the Insurance Law (“Insurance Law 2014”) dated 4 August 2014, insurance activities in Cambodia are categorized into four types including (i) life insurance, (ii) general insurance, (iii) reinsurance […]

SMU Lexicon: The Impact of TFL Management v Lloyds Bank and Relfo v Varsanion Requirements of Enrichment and “At the Claimant’s Expense”

Reading Time: 20 minutesI. Introduction Under the seminal House of Lords decision of Banque Financiere de la Cite v Parc (Battersea), a claimant can make a claim in unjust enrichment if the following elements are shown:[1] The defendant has been enriched; The enrichment was at the claimant’s expense; The enrichment was unjust; and There are no defences. The […]

SMU Lexicon: Singapore’s Approach Towards Adopting the Multi-Factorial Approach in Insolvency Proceedings

Reading Time: 5 minutesIntroduction In cross-border insolvency, there are two contrasting approaches. On the one hand, there is the territorial approach, focused primarily on the interest of the local creditors.[1] On the other, there is the universal approach, where one court leads the administration of the insolvency proceedings, and other courts cooperate with the main action.[2] For the […]

SMU Lexicon: Assistance in Public Lotteries: The Approach in Bijabahadur

Reading Time: 11 minutesIntroduction In the 19th century, illegal gaming activities managed by syndicates were part of the general crime that was rampant in Singapore (then known as the Straits Settlement). This was a serious problem as the early inhabitants of Singapore became addicted to gambling, leading to undesirable outcomes.[1] Gambling activities came to be regarded as vices […]

SMU Lexicon: Negotiating Damages for Breach of Contract: Morris-Garner v One-Step (Support) Ltd [2018] UKSC 20

Reading Time: 16 minutesIntroduction At the quantification stage in breach-of-contract claims, claimants must sometimes think out of the box. Where no loss has been suffered or loss is hard to prove, one solution is to argue for “negotiating damages”, or damages for breach of contract assessed by reference to the sum a claimant could hypothetically have received in […]

Indonesia: Indonesia Plans to Have E-Litigation

Reading Time: 2 minutesThis year, the Supreme Court of the Republic of Indonesia is planning to implement the e-litigation system for the first time in Indonesia. Such implementation is a breakthrough for court proceedings in the country, because e-litigation would allow the disputing parties to submit or exchange court documents (e.g. statement of claim, reply, response, rebuttal and […]

Myanmar Legal Update: Deployment of Employees in Myanmar

Reading Time: 2 minutesEmployment law in Myanmar is still a work in progress. Rather than a single labour code, a patchwork of labour legislation covers different aspects of the employment relationship. Currently, the rules and regulations regarding foreign workers are regularly changing and requirements by the authorities may vary from application to application. We understand that the Ministry […]

DDoS attack – cybercrime for misusing a victim’s computer through the victim’s website

Reading Time: 4 minutesIntroduction In a recent case HKSAR v Chu Tsun Wai [2019] HKCFA 3, the Court of Final Appeal (“CFA”) set out the basis to which a cyber-attacker may be found guilty for damaging the other’s property by misusing the victim’s computer through the victim’s website. Background On 12 October 2014, Mr Chu Tsun Wai (“Mr Chu”) took […]

Myanmar Tax Update: Significant Changes Under the New Tax Administration Law

Reading Time: 2 minutesOn 7 June 2019, the Union Parliament (“Pyidaungsu Hluttaw”) enacted Law No. 20 otherwise known as the Tax Administration Law (“TAL”). This TAL is one of the major pieces of tax legislation being introduced in Myanmar as part of the Internal Revenue Department’s (“IRD”) tax reform program. This Law aims to modernize and provide guidance […]

The Remembrance and the Forgetting: Singapore’s Mental Capacity Act, Nine Years On

Reading Time: 9 minutesIntroduction Like most developed nations, Singapore has a gradually aging population.[1] The proliferation of this new demographic profile raises a host of pressing issues, particularly that of rising incidences of dementia among the aged.[2] Given that many of those who might suffer from dementia will have accumulated considerable assets and are therefore at risk of […]