Judicial system of Singapore
Encyclopedia
The full Judicial power in Singapore
is vested in the Supreme Court as well as subordinate courts by the Constitution of Singapore
. The Supreme Court consists of the Court of Appeal and the High Court
. The Court of Appeal exercises appellate criminal and civil jurisdiction, while the High Court exercises both original and appellate criminal and civil jurisdiction. The Chief Justice
, Judges of Appeal, Judicial Commissioner
s and High Court Judges are appointed by the President
from candidates recommended by the Prime Minister
. The prime minister must consult with the Chief Justice before recommending the judges. The current Chief Justice is Chan Sek Keong
.
In 2006, the subordinate courts initiated a pilot scheme to appoint specialist judge
s to the Bench. These judges will come from the legal profession and academia and the scheme is aimed at bringing additional expertise to the subordinate courts as well as giving practitioners and academics an insight to the workings of the judiciary of Singapore.
Jury trial
s were abolished in 1969 and the Criminal Procedure Code was amended in 1992 to allow for trials of capital offences to be heard before a single judge (Basically, a bench trial
in a diplock court). The Court of Appeal is Singapore's final court of appeal after the right of appeal to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council
in London was abolished in April 1994. The president has the power to grant pardon
s on the advice of the cabinet.
Singapore practices the common law
legal system, where the decisions of higher courts constitute binding precedent
upon courts of equal or lower status within their jurisdiction, as opposed to the civil law
legal system in the continental Europe. The current criminal code was preceded by the Indian Penal Code which was adopted when Singapore was a crown colony
.
In 2004, the US Department of State claimed that although Singapore's judicial system provides citizens with an efficient judicial process, the judiciary is largely compliant and the government often use defamation suits or the threat of such actions to discourage public criticism and intimidate the press.
, and is a popular jurisdiction for arbitration and trial in South-East Asia. The Canadian
case of Oakwell Engineering v. Enernorth Industries
called into question this impartiality and raised the issue of whether the judgments of Singaporean courts are enforceable outside Singapore, but claims of links between the judiciary, business and the executive arm in Singapore which were alleged to suggest a real risk of judicial bias were dismissed in appeals to the Court of Appeal for Ontario and Canadian Supreme Court.
The United States Department of State
claims the President of Singapore
and the Minister for Home Affairs
have substantial de facto judicial power, leading "to a perception that the judiciary reflected the views of the ruling party in politically sensitive cases." In addition, Singapore's "judicial officials, especially the Supreme Court, have close ties to the ruling party and its leaders". The President appoints judges to the Supreme Court on the recommendation of the Prime Minister and in consultation with the Chief Justice. The President also appoints subordinate court judges on the recommendation of the Chief Justice.
Government leaders historically have used court proceedings, in particular defamation suits, against political opponents and critics, leading to a perception that the judiciary reflected the views of the ruling party in politically sensitive cases. Notable cases include those against opposition leaders J. B. Jeyaretnam
and Chee Soon Juan
. Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong
, in his 2009 keynote speech to the New York State Bar Association International Section, said: "Commonwealth judiciaries like ours have a common tradition that judges do not defend their judgments in public. They let their judgments and the reasons for their decisions speak for themselves. This is where I will leave this particular issue."
) survey reported Hong Kong
and Singapore have the best judicial systems in Asia
, with Indonesia
and Vietnam
the worst: Hong Kong's judicial system scored 1.45 on the scale (zero representing the best performance and 10 the worst); Singapore with a grade of 1.92, followed by Japan
(3.50), South Korea
(4.62), Taiwan
(4.93), the Philippines
(6.10), Malaysia (6.47), India
(6.50), Thailand
(7.00), China
(7.25), Vietnam's (8.10) and Indonesia (8.26). In 2010, the Rule of Law Index by the World Justice Project ranked Singapore number one for access to civil justice in the high-income countries group.
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
is vested in the Supreme Court as well as subordinate courts by the Constitution of Singapore
Constitution of Singapore
The Constitution of Singapore is the supreme law of Singapore and it is a codified constitution.The constitution cannot be amended without the support of more than two-thirds of the members of parliament on the second and third readings . The president may seek opinion on constitutional issues...
. The Supreme Court consists of the Court of Appeal and the High Court
High Court of Singapore
The High Court of the Republic of Singapore is the lower division of the Supreme Court of Singapore, the upper being the Court of Appeal. It consists of the Chief Justice of Singapore and the Judges of the High Court. Judicial Commissioners are often appointed to assist with the Court's caseload...
. The Court of Appeal exercises appellate criminal and civil jurisdiction, while the High Court exercises both original and appellate criminal and civil jurisdiction. The Chief Justice
Chief Justice of Singapore
The Chief Justice of Singapore is the highest post in the judicial system of Singapore. The Chief Justice is appointed by the President, chosen from candidates recommended by the Prime Minister. The present Chief Justice is Chan Sek Keong....
, Judges of Appeal, Judicial Commissioner
Judicial Commissioner
A Judicial Commissioner in Singapore is appointed to the Supreme Court by the President of Singapore on the advice of the Prime Minister, and has the powers of a Judge. A person may be appointed a Judicial Commissioner if he/she has been a "qualified person" within the meaning of section 2 of the...
s and High Court Judges are appointed by the President
President of Singapore
The President of the Republic of Singapore is Singapore's head of state. In a Westminster parliamentary system, as which Singapore governs itself, the prime minister is the head of the government while the position of president is largely ceremonial. Before 1993, the President of Singapore was...
from candidates recommended by the Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Singapore
The Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore is the head of the government of the Republic of Singapore. The President of Singapore appoints as Prime Minister a Member of Parliament who, in his opinion, is most likely to command the confidence of a majority of MPs.The office of Prime Minister...
. The prime minister must consult with the Chief Justice before recommending the judges. The current Chief Justice is Chan Sek Keong
Chan Sek Keong
Chan Sek Keong is the current Chief Justice of Singapore, having taken over from the former Chief Justice Yong Pung How on 11 April 2006. Chan was formerly the Attorney-General of Singapore, before being succeeded by Chao Hick Tin on 11 April 2006....
.
In 2006, the subordinate courts initiated a pilot scheme to appoint specialist judge
Specialist judge
The appointment of Specialist Judges is part of a pilot scheme by Singapore's Subordinate Courts to bring experienced and well-respected members of the legal profession or academia to the Bench to preside over cases in the Subordinate Courts....
s to the Bench. These judges will come from the legal profession and academia and the scheme is aimed at bringing additional expertise to the subordinate courts as well as giving practitioners and academics an insight to the workings of the judiciary of Singapore.
Jury trial
Jury trial
A jury trial is a legal proceeding in which a jury either makes a decision or makes findings of fact which are then applied by a judge...
s were abolished in 1969 and the Criminal Procedure Code was amended in 1992 to allow for trials of capital offences to be heard before a single judge (Basically, a bench trial
Bench trial
A bench trial is a trial held before a judge sitting without a jury. The term is chiefly used in common law jurisdictions to describe exceptions from jury trial, as most other legal systems do not use juries to any great extent....
in a diplock court). The Court of Appeal is Singapore's final court of appeal after the right of appeal to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council
Judicial Committee of the Privy Council
The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council is one of the highest courts in the United Kingdom. Established by the Judicial Committee Act 1833 to hear appeals formerly heard by the King in Council The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is one of the highest courts in the United...
in London was abolished in April 1994. The president has the power to grant pardon
Pardon
Clemency means the forgiveness of a crime or the cancellation of the penalty associated with it. It is a general concept that encompasses several related procedures: pardoning, commutation, remission and reprieves...
s on the advice of the cabinet.
Singapore practices the common law
Common law
Common law is law developed by judges through decisions of courts and similar tribunals rather than through legislative statutes or executive branch action...
legal system, where the decisions of higher courts constitute binding precedent
Precedent
In common law legal systems, a precedent or authority is a principle or rule established in a legal case that a court or other judicial body may apply when deciding subsequent cases with similar issues or facts...
upon courts of equal or lower status within their jurisdiction, as opposed to the civil law
Civil law (legal system)
Civil law is a legal system inspired by Roman law and whose primary feature is that laws are codified into collections, as compared to common law systems that gives great precedential weight to common law on the principle that it is unfair to treat similar facts differently on different...
legal system in the continental Europe. The current criminal code was preceded by the Indian Penal Code which was adopted when Singapore was a crown colony
Crown colony
A Crown colony, also known in the 17th century as royal colony, was a type of colonial administration of the English and later British Empire....
.
In 2004, the US Department of State claimed that although Singapore's judicial system provides citizens with an efficient judicial process, the judiciary is largely compliant and the government often use defamation suits or the threat of such actions to discourage public criticism and intimidate the press.
Judicial independence
Singapore has a reputation for fairness and impartiality in commercial lawCommercial law
Commercial law is the body of law that governs business and commercial transactions...
, and is a popular jurisdiction for arbitration and trial in South-East Asia. The Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
case of Oakwell Engineering v. Enernorth Industries
Oakwell Engineering v. Enernorth Industries
Oakwell Engineering v. Enernorth Industries was an appeal by Enernorth Industries Inc...
called into question this impartiality and raised the issue of whether the judgments of Singaporean courts are enforceable outside Singapore, but claims of links between the judiciary, business and the executive arm in Singapore which were alleged to suggest a real risk of judicial bias were dismissed in appeals to the Court of Appeal for Ontario and Canadian Supreme Court.
The United States Department of State
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
claims the President of Singapore
President of Singapore
The President of the Republic of Singapore is Singapore's head of state. In a Westminster parliamentary system, as which Singapore governs itself, the prime minister is the head of the government while the position of president is largely ceremonial. Before 1993, the President of Singapore was...
and the Minister for Home Affairs
Ministry of Home Affairs
Ministry of Home Affairs is a name for an interior ministry. It may refer to:*Ministry of Home Affairs *Ministry of Home Affairs...
have substantial de facto judicial power, leading "to a perception that the judiciary reflected the views of the ruling party in politically sensitive cases." In addition, Singapore's "judicial officials, especially the Supreme Court, have close ties to the ruling party and its leaders". The President appoints judges to the Supreme Court on the recommendation of the Prime Minister and in consultation with the Chief Justice. The President also appoints subordinate court judges on the recommendation of the Chief Justice.
Government leaders historically have used court proceedings, in particular defamation suits, against political opponents and critics, leading to a perception that the judiciary reflected the views of the ruling party in politically sensitive cases. Notable cases include those against opposition leaders J. B. Jeyaretnam
Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam
Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam was a politician and lawyer from Singapore. He was the leader of the Workers' Party from 1971 to 2001...
and Chee Soon Juan
Chee Soon Juan
Chee Soon Juan, PhD is a politician and political activist from Singapore. He is currently the leader of the opposition Singapore Democratic Party ....
. Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong
Chan Sek Keong
Chan Sek Keong is the current Chief Justice of Singapore, having taken over from the former Chief Justice Yong Pung How on 11 April 2006. Chan was formerly the Attorney-General of Singapore, before being succeeded by Chao Hick Tin on 11 April 2006....
, in his 2009 keynote speech to the New York State Bar Association International Section, said: "Commonwealth judiciaries like ours have a common tradition that judges do not defend their judgments in public. They let their judgments and the reasons for their decisions speak for themselves. This is where I will leave this particular issue."
Ranking
The 14 September 2008 Political and Economic Risk Consultancy (PERCPERC
PERC may stand for:* Policy and Economic Research Council, a Durham, North Carolina-based economic policy think tank* Pan-European Regional Council the European trade union arm of the International Trade Union Confederation...
) survey reported Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
and Singapore have the best judicial systems in Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, with Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
and Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
the worst: Hong Kong's judicial system scored 1.45 on the scale (zero representing the best performance and 10 the worst); Singapore with a grade of 1.92, followed by Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
(3.50), South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
(4.62), Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
(4.93), the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
(6.10), Malaysia (6.47), India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
(6.50), Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
(7.00), China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
(7.25), Vietnam's (8.10) and Indonesia (8.26). In 2010, the Rule of Law Index by the World Justice Project ranked Singapore number one for access to civil justice in the high-income countries group.
See also
- High Court of SingaporeHigh Court of SingaporeThe High Court of the Republic of Singapore is the lower division of the Supreme Court of Singapore, the upper being the Court of Appeal. It consists of the Chief Justice of Singapore and the Judges of the High Court. Judicial Commissioners are often appointed to assist with the Court's caseload...
- Lawyers in SingaporeLawyers in SingaporeLawyers in Singapore are part of a fused profession, meaning that they may act as both a solicitor and as an advocate, although lawyers usually specialize in one of litigation, conveyancing or corporate law....
- Judicial officers of the Republic of SingaporeJudicial officers of the Republic of SingaporeThe judicial officers of the Republic of Singapore work in the Supreme Court and the Subordinate Courts to hear and determine disputes between litigants in civil cases and, in criminal matters, to determine the liability of accused persons and their sentences if they are convicted.In the Supreme...
- Supreme Court of Singapore