Singapore edged closer to its goal of becoming a centre for commercial dispute resolution this week with the launch of the Singapore International Commercial Court (SICC). Its 11 international judges, who will work alongside local judges, include Sir Vivian Ramsey, a former High Court judge.
Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon, who made the appointments, said increased commercial activity in Asia was likely to be accompanied by a rise in commercial disputes. There was therefore a need for a commercial court to resolve these disputes and lay the groundwork for a body of supporting commercial law.
A central training centre for judges, the Singapore Judicial College, has also been launched. Previously, courts organised their own training programmes.
Chief Justice Menon said: “The immediate objective is to bring all our judicial training under the auspices of the College and to develop and strengthen the curricula so as to enhance our ability to discharge our judicial functions.
“This will cover induction as well as continuing training and development of our judges; but it will also extend to technical assistance and educational programmes that we may offer to colleagues from other jurisdictions to share experiences, including our experience built up over the years in such areas as the use of technology, organisational excellence, active case management and judiciary-led reforms.”
