The ASEAN Law Conference

ABLI was the sole knowledge partner of the ASEAN Law Association’s (ALA) ASEAN Law Conference titled “The Power of One: Unlocking Opportunities in ASEAN Through Law” which was hosted in Singapore from 26 July to 28 July 2018. More than 400 participants and over 50 speakers attended the ASEAN Law Conference.

ABLI and its work received significant promotion at the ASEAN Law Conference.

ABLI is honoured that the following appeared at the conference as an ABLI representative:

Professor Joseph Weiler (ABLI Governor)

Professor Choong Yeow Chow (Foreign Judgments Project reporter from Malaysia)

Justice Kannan Ramesh (member of the Restructuring Project’s Advisory Committee)

Atty. JJ Disini (Data Privacy Project reporter from the Philippines)

Mr Francisco Ed. Lim (member of the Restructuring Project’s Advisory Committee)

Mr Lim Chong Kin (partner at ABLI Founding Partner)

Mr Davinder Bull SC (member of ABLI’s Advisory Board)

Dr Poomintr Sooksripaisarnkit (Foreign Judgments Project reporter from Thailand)

Professor Yeo Tiong Min (ABLI’s Academic Director)

In his Keynote Address on 26 July 2018, Mr Heng Swee Keat, Minister for Finance (Singapore) referred to ABLI and its Foreign Judgments Project as an example of “regional collaboration” that reminds “us of our potential for growth when we work together”.

In his speech at the Gala Dinner on 28 July 2018, The Honourable the Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon highlighted the importance of soft law instruments, as well as international conventions and model laws, in advancing the cause of legal convergence.  He cited ABLI as an example of “organisations that also conduct research on comparative ASEAN law to champion the cause of legal convergence in ASEAN commercial laws by identifying worthwhile projects and, after undertaking the requisite research and study, putting these across to the Law Ministers for them to consider enacting legislative change”.  He went on to describe the Foreign Judgments and Data Privacy Compendiums as “valuable resources which I think we can and should use as a springboard for our own efforts in harmonising dispute resolution mechanisms and substantive business laws”.

The Honourable the Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon also referenced the Emergence Conference in his Welcome Address on 26 July 2018 as one of the “numerous events and conferences” in “ASEAN Law Week” at which “hundreds of delegates – lawyers and non-lawyers alike – from all ten ASEAN states and more than a dozen other countries, have come to Singapore to debate, discuss and reflect upon the key legal issues that confront us; and – just as importantly – to reignite old friendships and build new ones”.

ABLI is delighted with the positive feedback on the work it is undertaking and the broad support for the importance of soft law.