Leng Sun Chan SC

Practice Areas

Arbitration & related court applications; Commercial and corporate disputes; Court litigation; International trade, transport & commodities

Career

1989-1990: Associate, Raja, Darryl & Loh, Kuala Lumpur

1990-1993: Lecturer, Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore

1994-2011: Associate/Partner, Ang & Partners, Singapore

2002-2003: Legal Officer, United Nations Compensation Commission, Geneva (On sabbatical from Ang & Partners)

2011-2018: Principal, Baker McKenzie.Wong & Leow LLC; Global Head of Arbitration, Baker McKenzie

August 2018 – March 2021:

Senior Counsel and Arbitrator, Essex Court Chambers (Singapore Group Practice)

Since March 2021

Senior Counsel and Arbitrator, Duxton Hill Chambers (Singapore Group Practice)

Professional Memberships

Chartered Arbitrator

Securities Industry Council - Member

ICC Commission on Arbitration and ADR – Member

Singapore Institute of Arbitrators – Former President, Fellow

Singapore International Arbitration Centre - Panel Arbitrator, former Deputy Chairman and Member of SIAC Court

Singapore Chamber of Maritime Arbitrator - Panel Arbitrator

Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre – Panel Arbitrator

Korean Commercial Arbitration Board (KCAB) - Panel Arbitrator

International Centre for Dispute Resolution - Panel Arbitrator

China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (CIETAC) - Panel Arbitrator

Shanghai International Arbitration Center (SHIAC) – Panel Arbitrator

Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration (SCIA) – Panel Arbitrator

Xi’an Arbitration Commission – Panel Arbitrator

Qingdao Arbitration Commission – Panel Arbitrator

China Maritime Arbitration Commission (CMAC) - Panel Arbitrator

Asian International Arbitration Centre (AIAC) - Panel Arbitrator

Committee on the Singapore International Commercial Court - Member

Singapore International Mediation Center (SIMC) – Specialist Mediator Panel

SCMA-SIMC – Maritime Mediators Panel

KCAB International – International Mediation Panel

Personal

Leng Sun is a Senior Counsel of the Supreme Court of Singapore and a Chartered Arbitrator practicing with Duxton Hill Chambers. He is a member of the ICC Commission on Arbitration and ADR. He is formerly the Global Head of Arbitration of an international law firm and President of the Singapore Institute of Arbitrators (SIArb). He is the Deputy Chairman of the SGX Appeals Board. He is also a member of the Securities Industry Council which administers the Singapore Code on Take-overs and Mergers.

Leng Sun is qualified in Malaysia, Singapore and England. He has a broad commercial practice and has acted as counsel or sat as arbitrator in arbitrations seated in Asia, Europe and USA under ad hoc and institutional rules, such as ICC, SIAC, AIAC, SCMA, LMAA, ICDR, CIETAC, HKIAC, KCAB and UNCITRAL rules. He is a Chairperson of the arbitration panel jointly appointed by the EU and Korea under the protocol on cultural cooperation of the Korea-EU FTA. He had also served as a legal officer of the United Nations Compensation Commission in Geneva.

Leng Sun is a Specialist Mediator of the Singapore International Mediation Centre (SIMC). He is also appointed to the inaugural SCMA-SIMC Maritime Mediators Panel and the International Mediation Panel of KCAB International.

He has taught at the Law Schools of the National University of Singapore and the Singapore Management University, and given lectures at other universities such as Peking University, Harvard University, Columbia University and Yonsei University. Leng Sun is a member of the Programme Advisory Committee of the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) Law School and the International Advisory Board of the Durham International Dispute Resolution Institute.

Leng Sun is the author of the book, Singapore Law on Arbitral Awards and Co-Editor of Conflict of Laws in Arbitration. He has contributed chapters for numerous treatises, such as Tetley’s Marine Cargo Claims (4th Ed), The Role of Arbitration in Shipping Law, published by Oxford University Press (Goldby and Mistellis eds, 2016, The Developing World of Arbitration, published by Hart Publishing (Reyes and Gu eds, 2018) and ASEAN and the Belt and Road Initiative, published by Academy Publishing (Bitas ed, 2021).

He is recognized among the top lawyers worldwide by legal directories, described by WWL as being “among the very best disputes lawyers in the world” and in ALB Asia’s Super 50 Dispute Lawyers as “spectacular, with exceptional knowledge and depth of insight”.

Leng Sun has been conferred the Public Service Medal by the President of Singapore in 2023.

Work Highlights

SAMPLE CASES AS COUNSEL

Lead counsel for an investor awarded over USD70 million in damages against numerous companies for unlawful conspiracy to cause harm by way of a multi-jurisdictional fraud and misappropriation in JTrust Asia Pte Ltd v Group Lease Holdings Pte Ltd [2020] SGCA 95. A further judgment of over USD124 million was awarded in 2023 and upheld by the Appellate Division in Group Lease Holdings Pte Ltd & Anor v JTrust Asia Pte Ltd [2023] SGHC(A) 37. Landmark cases on Mareva injunctions pending appeal and post-judgment in JTrust Asia Pte Ltd v Group Lease Holdings Pte Ltd & Ors [2020] SGCA 54; [2021] SGCA 26.

Lead counsel for successful defendant in a leading case on a claim by the issuer of a letter of credit against the beneficiary arising out of a sale-and-buyback when the buyer became insolvent, in UniCredit Bank AG v Glencore Singapore Pte Ltd [2023] SGCA 41.

Lead counsel representing bunker barge owners in The “Luna” and another appeal [2001] SGCA 84, where the Court of Appeal allowed the bunker barge owners’ appeal in a landmark decision that found that the documents labelled “Bills of Lading” were not true bills of lading that evidenced contracts of carriage or functioned as documents of title.

Lead counsel in Court of Appeal decision that clarifies the law on proof of documents and contractual interpretation in a battle of the forms situation: CIMB v World Fuel Services [2021] SGCA 19.

Assisted in a successful claim by a water utility corporation against the Republic of Philippines in an UNCITRAL arbitration.

Lead counsel for sellers of a Japanese company against Korean buyers in an ICC arbitration over a post-acquisition dispute.

Lead counsel in an arbitration in China between a luxury car manufacturer and a distributor.

Lead counsel for an international software payment solutions provider in an arbitration against an electronic payments service provider for wrongful termination of a multi-million dollar project to migrate their existing payments platform.

Successfully set aside an injunction against a client’s calls on Refund Guarantees issued in connection with a rig construction, clearing the way for payment of close to EUR 100M for the client. Master Marine SA v Labroy Offshore Ltd [ 2012] [2012] 2 SLR 125. Lead counsel in the related arbitration.

Represented several companies and obtained a Mareva injunction against a director for breach of fiduciary duties and for control of company assets estimated at several hundred million USD.

Represented parties in a variety of maritime and shipbuilding disputes, in litigation and arbitration.

SAMPLE CASES AS ARBITRATOR

Dispute arising from EU sanctions against Russia.

Dispute arising from contracts for the supply of solar panels.

Numerous arbitrations relating to shipping and maritime disputes.

Dispute in oil & gas industry and offshore structure works.

Dispute arising from property development in China.

Dispute arising from property development in Cambodia.

Dispute arising from telecommunications projects in Myanmar.

Dispute arising from sale and purchase of various commodities e.g. optical fiber, coal, metals and oil.

Dispute over the design and construction of a goods manufacturing facility.

Dispute over carbon trading.

Dispute over an international distribution agreement.

Dispute arising from contract to manage a hospital in Philippines.

Dispute arising from sale and purchase of pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment.

Education

Awards