Singapore — The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) announced on Monday, July 15, that President Halimah Yacob, upon the advice of Prime Minster Lee Hsien Loong, appointed three new Judges of the High Court, as well as an International Judge for the Singapore International Commercial Court.
Effective August 1, Judicial Commissioner (“JC”) Pang Khang Chau (彭康钊); JC Audrey Lim Yoon Cheng (林茵倩); and JC Ang Cheng Hock (洪清福) will function as Judges of the High Court. Arjan Kumar Sikri has been appointed International Judge (“IJ”) of the Singapore International Commercial Court (“SICC”) from 1 Aug 2019 till 4 Jan 2021.
In August 2016, Pang Khang Chau, or JC Pang, was appointed as JC of the Supreme Court. According to the statement form the PMO, “he specialises in shipping and insurance, intellectual property as well as company, insolvency, and trusts. He also hears criminal trials. Prior to this, JC Pang was the Director-General of the International Affairs Division in the Attorney-General’s Chambers (“AGC”) where he advised the government on international law matters and represented the government in international negotiations and disputes.”
JC Pang is also President of the International Law Association (Singapore Branch), as well as Vice-Chairman of ASEAN Law Association’s Singapore National Committee.
As for Audrey Lim Yoon Cheng, or JC Lim, she was also appointed as a JC of the Supreme Court in August 2016. Previous to this post she served as the Deputy Chief Legislative Counsel in the AGC, as well as worked in the Supreme Court, State Courts, and the AGC since 1994. JC Lim “handles civil matters (primarily in companies, insolvency, and trust), criminal matters and family cases” according to the statement from the PMO.
JC Lim is a member of several committees such as the Rules of Court Working Party, Family Justice Rules Working Party, Singapore International Commercial Court Rules Working Party and Law Reform Committee of the Singapore Academy of Law (“SAL”) and is also on the Board of the Singapore Mediation Centre.
JC Ang Cheng Hock (JC Ang) was appointed JC of the Supreme Court in May 2018. Before this post, he was a a senior partner in Messrs Allen & Gledhill, and a member of its Litigation and Dispute Resolution department.
According to the PMO press statement, “his areas of expertise include civil and commercial litigation, international arbitration and corporate-related disputes. He was appointed a Senior Counsel in 2009.”
Apart form judicial duties, he is also the Vice-Chairman of the Professional Affairs Committee and the Chairperson of the Professional Values Chapter, both under the SAL. JC Ang also serves as a Board Member of the Singapore Institute of Legal Education and is a member of the Supreme Court’s Civil Justice Commission and the Ministry of Law’s Civil Justice Review Committee.
Arjan Kumar Sikri is the newest International Judge for the Singapore International Commercial Court. Mr Sikri, a former Judge of the Supreme Court of India from April 2013 to March 2019, was appointed Judge of the High Court of Delhi in July 1999 and served as the Acting Chief Justice of Delhi High Court from October 2011, the press release from the PMO states.
Furthermore, “As a Judge, Mr Sikri issued a number of landmark judgments, particularly in the field of commercial and arbitration laws, tax laws, intellectual property matters and economic laws. He retired as the second most senior judge of the Supreme Court of India in Mar 2019.
He is currently a Visiting Professor in two National Law Schools in India and conducts arbitration and mediation sessions. Mr Sikri was conferred Doctor of Laws Honoris Causa in November 2013. In 2007, Managing Intellectual Property Association (MIPA) selected him as one of the 50 most influential persons in Intellectual Property in the world.”
At the moment, with the inclusion of the three 3 new High Court Judges and the International Judge, Singapore’s Supreme Court now has 23 Judges (including four Judges of Appeal and the Chief Justice), four Judicial Commissioners, four Senior Judges and 17 International Judges in all./ TISG