Expansion of Permanent Court of Arbitration Singapore Office
5 September 2025 Posted in Press releases
1. The new and expanded Singapore office of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in Maxwell Chambers Suites was officially launched today by Minister for Law and Second Minister for Home Affairs, Mr Edwin Tong SC and the PCA Secretary-General H.E. Marcin Czepelak. To facilitate the PCA Singapore Office’s next phase of growth, the Singapore Ministry of Law (MinLaw) has worked with the PCA to enable the appointment of additional legal officers in Singapore, as well as to move the Office to new premises more than double the size of its previous site.
2. Following the signing of the Host Country Agreement between the PCA and MinLaw in 2017, the PCA Singapore Office was first set up in 2018 at Maxwell Chambers. On 19 November 2019, the PCA Singapore Office was relocated to its prior site at Maxwell Chamber Suites.
3. The PCA Singapore Office is the PCA’s first office in Asia, outside of its headquarters in The Hague, Netherlands. It administers PCA proceedings, and promotes Singapore as a venue for international arbitration and PCA services throughout the region, serving the dispute resolution needs of States and businesses in Asia.
4. Since its operations in 2018, the PCA Singapore Office has administered, provided support to tribunals and acted in appointing authority matters in more than one hundred cases. PCA proceedings conducted in Singapore include high-profile investor-state arbitration cases such as Philip Morris Asia Limited (Hong Kong) v. The Commonwealth of Australia, and the landmark inter-State conciliation between Australia and Timor-Leste on the delimitation of a permanent boundary between maritime zones in the Timor Sea. In addition, the PCA Singapore Office has served as a platform for outreach activities in the region.
5. With effect from 5 September 2025, Ms Ashwita Ambast will take over the reins from Dr. Túlio Di Giacomo Toledo as the PCA Representative in Singapore and the new address of the PCA Singapore Office will be Maxwell Chambers Suites, 28 Maxwell Rd #04-01, Singapore 069120.
6. Minister for Law and Second Minister for Home Affairs Mr Edwin Tong SC said: “Singapore is committed to upholding international law, and supporting institutions including dispute resolution entities like the PCA that underpin the multilateral system. We warmly welcome the PCA’s expanded presence in Singapore and deepening our partnership. We look forward to working with the PCA to increase the number of PCA proceedings held in Singapore, and also broadening the scope and impact of the PCA’s outreach and capacity-building activities.”
7. PCA Secretary-General H.E. Marcin Czepelak said: “The inauguration of the PCA’s new and expanded Singapore office marks another key moment in our long-standing partnership with Singapore and our commitment to serving the Asia-Pacific region. This expansion is particularly significant at present, with over a quarter of the States appearing as parties in PCA-administered cases belonging to the Asia-Pacific Group—more than from any other UN Regional Group. Adding capacity to our Singapore Office will further strengthen the PCA’s ability to provide efficient and high-quality dispute resolution services to users of PCA services, including States, international organisations, State-controlled entities, and private parties, and underscore the enduring importance of Singapore as a hub for international dispute resolution.”
MINISTRY OF LAW
PERMANENT COURT OF ARBITRATION
5 SEPTEMBER 2025
Last updated on 5 September 2025