Singapore annual ‘In Your Corner’ disputes conference returns in 2021 in virtual format: Wrap Up
Innovating in the time of a pandemic, the Dispute Resolution Group of Bird & Bird ATMD hosted its annual flagship ‘In Your Corner’ event virtually this year via a series of four virtual live panel sessions held every Thursday between 28 January and 25 February 2021. This is the fifth iteration of our IYC Disputes Conference, and the first in a virtual format for our participants.
The panels featured prominent speakers from the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), Singapore International Mediation Centre (SIMC), Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) and World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), who spoke alongside specialists from our Singapore dispute resolution team and colleagues from other Bird & Bird offices on a wide range of pertinent subjects covering ADR clauses, likely trends in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, Tech, Media & Telecoms Disputes and Crisis Management.
Notwithstanding the constraints imposed by the ongoing global pandemic, the conference managed to draw over 120 registrants comprising in-house counsel and directors of both local and international corporates across various sectors.
Highlights from IYC Virtual Disputes Conference 2021:
28 January 2021 – “Sun Tze’s Art of War: Picking The Battlefield - Understanding ADR Clauses”
Kicking off the series was our first live panel session on “Sun Tze’s Art of War: Picking The Battlefield - Understanding ADR Clauses”, moderated by our dispute resolution counsel Shaun Lee. Panellists include our Singapore corporate partner Sandra Seah and dispute resolution counsel Akshay Kishore, as well as guest speakers Abhinav Bhushan (Director, South Asia, ICC Arbitration & ADR International Court of Arbitration) and Huang Wenshan (General Counsel, Wavemaker Partners).
Following the opening address by Jonathan Choo (Partner, Singapore Dispute Resolution Group), Shaun led a lively discussion in person with fellow panellists on the market and industry specific trends in the choice of dispute resolution fora and clauses, as well as the severe implications on costs, speed and availability of remedies from the failure to pick a forum or wrong choice of forum.
Click here to read a summary of the first panel session or here to watch the full recording.
4 February 2021 – “Aftermath of Covid-19: An informed analysis to predict how dispute resolution process and preferences will evolve in the coming year(s)”
The second panel session “Aftermath of Covid-19: An informed analysis to predict how dispute resolution process and preferences will evolve in the coming year(s)” was led by Akshay Kishore with his fellow panellists Lijun Chui (Partner, Bird & Bird ATMD), Wee Meng Chuan (CEO, Singapore International Mediation Centre), Kevin Nash (Deputy Registrar and Centre Director, Singapore International Arbitration Centre), and Christopher Buay (Legal Director, SEA & ANZ, Johnson Controls). Speaking live together from the office with safe distancing, the panel engaged in a lively discussion on their observations and predictions in relation to the evolution of dispute resolution process and preferences in the coming year(s) on the back of changing global realities with the impact of the pandemic.
Click here to read a summary of the second panel session or here to watch the full recording.
Speaking live on-site and virtually, the panel talked about the proliferation of complex and often cross-border disputes as more businesses undergo digital transformation across all levels of operations, and discussed emerging trends regarding preferences for dispute resolution mechanisms, considerations about commencing legal proceedings, and practical solutions to resolve these disputes such as third party funding.
Click here to read a summary of the third panel session or here to watch the full recording.
25 February 2021 – “Crisis Management 101”
We concluded the four-part webinar series with the last panel session on “Crisis Management 101”, moderated and led by our Singapore dispute resolution partner Lijun Chui. The dynamic panel of crisis communications, investigations and data privacy experts included FTI Consulting’s Jason Liew (Senior Managing Director, Global Risk and Investigations) and Gino Bello (Managing Director, Technology), Belmont Communications Pte Ltd’s Holly Huang (Managing Director), and our partners Jeremy Tan and Jonathan Choo.
In a very lively and interactive session with the participants delivered from the office, the panellists discussed corporate nightmare scenarios and shared top tips for managing a crisis. Participants were able to take away key lessons on the types of business crisis, new amendments to the Singapore Personal Data Protection Act 2012, insights and trends on regulatory breaches and whistle-blowing reports, managing disputes risks during the pandemic, and greater risks of cyberattacks.
Click here to read a summary of the fourth panel session or here to watch the full recording.
All in all, this was a successful first virtual edition of our annual IYC disputes conference.
Lijun remarked, “We are very pleased that our fifth ‘In Your Corner’ Disputes Conference was so well-received and would like to thank all participants for joining us and their insightful questions. We would also like to thank our colleagues and the external speakers for making this a success”.
Jonathan also commented:
“On behalf of our entire team at Bird & Bird, we want to thank our clients for their continued support and for choosing to have us in their corner. We look forward each year to engaging with our clients and addressing dispute resolution topics that are particularly relevant for our clients’ sectors and industries.”
The team is heartened by the marked enthusiasm it has observed toward the first virtually-held edition of the conference, and looks forward to organising further webinars over the coming year.
