Professional notice
A former member is now Singapore’s senior law minister
- People in Who’s Who:
- 2
- Pending cases as counsel:
- 41
- Value of pending counsel work:
- US$17 billion
- Treaty cases:
- 1
- Current arbitrator appointments:
- 7 (of which 5 are as sole or chair)
- No. of lawyers sitting as arbitrator:
- 3
This firm can trace its origins to 1859 and John Simons Atchison – the first qualified lawyer to arrive in the former British colony.
Today, Drew & Napier prides itself on being one of the largest players in the Singapore arbitration market, with six senior counsel now devoting substantial time to the area. All of which, by the way, are home-grown. Between them, they handle court work relating to arbitration, plus a number of specific forms of arbitration such as construction and shipping.
The department has grown in sync with Singapore’s emergence as a centre for international cases and several of the senior names are sitting as arbitrators.
Cavinder Bull SC, one of the senior partners in the practice, is a well-known international name. He’s currently vice president of the Asia Pacific Regional Arbitration Group and deputy chairman of SIAC. Other names to know include Davinder Singh SC and Jimmy Yim SC.
Who uses it?
Asian multinationals, to a large extent. For example, the firm is advising an Indonesian conglomerate on a property development dispute and recently counselled an Indian investment company on a telecoms case. It boasts a number of major Malaysian clients including Berjaya Group, automotive manufacturer Sapura Industrial and oil and gas company Petra Energy.
It has also worked for a French pharmaceutical company, the World Sport Group, a Singaporean defence company and the Berjaya Group in Malaysia. The government of Laos is also a client.
Track record
In 2012, Cavinder Bull SC and his team helped Singapore’s main power provider settle an US$80 million dispute with Australian listed company Downer over the construction of an underground electrical services tunnel. The Australian side reportedly paid US$40 million to settle the dispute.
The firm also advised a US subsidiary of an Indian telecoms conglomerate against Malaysia’s leading mobile phone company. And it secured instructions from the local subsidiary of a foreign company in a US$3.2 billion case against a state government for allegedly breaching an agreement over the construction of a waterfront city.
Recent events
Indranee Rajah SC left in November 2012 to become Singapore’s senior minister for law and education, continuing a tradition that has seen various former Drew & Napier lawyers enter politics.
Its current caseload includes defending a number of Indonesian companies against a US$3.5 billion UNCITRAL share purchase dispute. It is representing 20 respondents in a US$500 million ICC claim in the pharmaceutical sector.
Drew & Napier is also reported to be representing drinks manufacturer Fraser & Neave in a multimillion-dollar arbitration with Myanmar’s military over control of a Myanmar brewery.
Drew & Napier. Altogether World-Class.
Drew & Napier is home to one of the top arbitration practices in the world. We have 5 Senior Counsel, the largest number in any Singapore law practice. Together, they lead a team of over 100 lawyers in the International Arbitration practice. In the past 4 years, the value of arbitration matters we handled exceeded US$25 billion.
From Australia to India, Brunei to Switzerland, Thailand to the USA, our diverse range of clients count on us to solve their most challenging problems and show them the way forward. We represent Fortune 500 companies, MNCs and foreign governments. Our sterling reputation has led to more international law firms instructing us to act as counsel in arbitrations with little or no connection to Singapore.
Prestigious industry publications like Chambers & Partners, The Legal 500 and Global Arbitration Review consistently confirm our leadership with top-tier rankings in International Arbitration. Clients say Drew’s arbitration practice is "a very strong practice with some very talented individuals", "renowned for its intuitive and conscientious handling of disputes for leading regional and international companies, institutions and governments ", “They’re excellent. Whenever something needs to be handled with care, go to them”.
Many of our lawyers are panel arbitrators, fellows or members of a number of arbitration institutions.
We are dedicated to achieving winning outcomes.
Key contact:
Jimmy Yim, SC
Managing Director, Dispute Resolution
T: +65 6531 2504/2505
F: +65 6533 9029
Drew & Napier LLC
10 Collyer Quay
10th Floor Ocean Financial Centre
Singapore 049315
T: +65 6535 0733
F: +65 6535 4906
Website: www.drewnapier.com.