Justice Philip Jeyaretnam

Biography

Justice Philip Jeyaretnam is the President of the Singapore International Commercial Court. He was appointed Judicial Commissioner of the Supreme Court on 4 January 2021 and High Court Judge on 1 November 2021. His focus on the Bench has been in complex commercial cases, arbitration law, building and construction, company and trust law. He is also a member of the Judicial Service Commission, and the Presidential Council for Minority Rights.   In June 2022, he was appointed by the Chief Justice as the co-chair of the Commercial Practice Panel of the Supreme Court, to develop best practices for the management of commercial cases.

Justice Jeyaretnam read Law at Cambridge and graduated with First Class Honours in 1986. He was called to the English Bar in 1987 and to the Singapore Bar in 1988 and was conferred the title of Senior Counsel in 2003 at the age of 38, one of the youngest lawyers to be appointed Senior Counsel. In 1988, he received the Airey Neave Award for research on the rule of law. In 1990, he was given a Fulbright Fellowship, which took him to the University of Iowa International Writers’ Program and to Harvard Law School.

While in practice, he was recognised as an expert in commercial litigation, arbitration and construction law in all major legal publications. In 2020, the Law Society conferred on him the CC Tan Award. He was managing partner of Rodyk & Davidson LLP from 2011, and, following its combination with Dentons, ASEAN CEO.

He was the founding chairperson of the Society of Construction Law (Singapore), from 2002 to 2004, and served as the President of the Law Society during the years 2004 to 2007. From 2009 to 2020, he was a member of the Public Service Commission. A novelist and short story writer, he received the Young Artist of the Year Award for his literary work in 1993 and a SEA Write Award in 2003.

Speeches by Justice Philip Jeyaretnam

• Courts in the Climate Crisis: Accountability and Action Conference 2024
• International Bar Association Symposium 2024
• Conversations with the Community: Advancing the Environmental Rule of Law – Roles and Responsibilities of the Community on 26 July 2024
• Seah Choo Meng Public Lecture 2024
• 25th Annual IBA Arbitration Day - Mediation Breakfast 2024 
• 3rd Singapore-China International Commercial Dispute Resolution Conference 2023
• International Statutory Adjudication Forum Joint Conference 2023
• GAR Live 2023
• SMU's 9th Journal of Private International Law Conference 2023
• SMU's Trusts, Wealth Management and Philanthropy Conference 2023