Keynote Address by Senior Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Law and Ministry of Social and Family Development, Mr Eric Chua at the ‘Mediation Through Asian Perspectives Building Trust in Commercial Dispute Resolution’ Seminar by The Law Society of Singapore

26 August 2026 Posted in Speeches

Honourable Justices,

Distinguished guests,

Friends,

Ladies and gentlemen,

Introduction

1.  First of all, a very good morning to all of you, and thank you to the Law Society for this invitation once again.

2.  To our friends joining us from abroad, a very warm welcome to sunny Singapore. Now I should say upfront that I am not a lawyer by training. So I perhaps come to mediation from a slightly different angle and direction.

3.  I come to it through people. Through my work not just at the Ministry of Law, but also the Ministry of Social and Family Development, and also as a Member of Parliament in Singapore, I have seen how disagreements that begin quite small sometimes can harden into disputes.

4.  A disagreement between neighbours over noise, shared spaces, or simply a misunderstanding can, over time, become deeply personal. By then, the dispute is seldom only about the original issue. It is often also about dignity, trust, and whether someone feels that he or she has been heard.

5.  And sometimes, what people need is not simply a determination of who is right or wrong. They need a way to move forward. Now that, to me, is one of the great strengths of mediation.

6.  And today, I would like to share some reflections on why mediation matters to Singapore and Singaporeans, and what we can do to strengthen it for the future.

Why Mediation Matters to Singapore

7.  This year, 2026, is an especially meaningful year for Singapore to be talking about mediation, because we commemorate the Bicentennial of the Second Charter of Justice. The Charter laid an important foundation for Singapore’s modern legal system and the development of the Rule of Law in this land.

8.  Of course, it began in a very different historical context. Following independence, Singapore had to adapt our legal system to our own circumstances and make it truly our own. Today, the Rule of Law is a critical pillar of both our economy as well as our society.

9.  For a small and open economy like Singapore, businesses and investors value certainty, stability, as well as the protection of their rights. And as a densely populated, multicultural and multiethnic society, Singaporeans need confidence that there are clear rules that apply fairly to everyone.

10.  But the law and mediation do quite different things. The law gives us the rules and guardrails. Mediation, on the other hand, creates space for people to find common ground within them. The law can determine rights. Mediation can sometimes preserve relationships. And choosing mediation does not mean avoiding difficult issues.

11.  Often, it requires parties to confront those issues more honestly, because ultimately, they themselves have to take responsibility for finding a way forward. That is true whether the dispute is between two neighbours, members of a family, or two multinational companies.

12.  The stakes may be different, but the human dynamics are often surprisingly very similar.

13.  Singapore has therefore invested steadily in mediation over the years. At the community level, the Community Mediation Centre (CMC) has helped neighbours resolve disputes and preserve social harmony.

14.  In our legal system, we have progressively strengthened the framework supporting amicable dispute resolution and mediation. Internationally, institutions such as the Singapore International Mediation Centre (SIMC) have helped establish Singapore as a trusted venue for resolving cross-border disputes.

15.  SIMC’s caseload has grown steadily to around 100 cases a year, with a settlement rate of about 70 per cent. Singapore also played an active role in the negotiations that led to the Singapore Convention on Mediation, strengthening the international framework for enforcing mediated settlement agreements.

16.  These efforts reflect a simple belief: Mediation is not a secondary form of dispute resolution. It is, in fact, an important part of how a mature legal system helps people and businesses resolve differences constructively.

Looking Ahead

17.  But looking ahead, the environment in which mediation operates is changing. Businesses are becoming more complex. Technology is moving at lightning speed. Regulatory environments are evolving. And many commercial relationships now span different jurisdictions, cultures and business practices.

18.  So the question before us is not simply whether mediation will remain relevant. I believe it will. The more important question is: How do we ensure that people continue to trust mediation as the disputes themselves become more complex?

19.  Today, I would suggest three things. First, expertise. Second, trust. And third, partnership.

First: Deepen Expertise

20.  First, on deepening expertise. Mediators today increasingly need to understand more than the law. Take artificial intelligence for example. A dispute involving an AI business may touch on contract law, intellectual property, data, technology, regulation and commercial strategy, all at the same time.

21.  A mediator does not need to be an AI engineer. But he or she needs enough understanding of the business and technological context to ask the right questions, identify the real interests at stake, and help parties see possible ways forward.

22.  And this is because the best mediators are not simply called upon for their legal reasoning. Unlike adjudication, mediation is not principally about declaring which party has the stronger legal case.

23.  The best mediators are often those who can think creatively, look beyond stated positions, uncover the underlying interests of the parties involved, and identify areas where their objectives may still overlap. And that requires knowledge not just of the law, but of industries, markets and how businesses actually operate.

24.  There is therefore no real endpoint to professional development. Practitioners must continue learning from one another, exchanging experiences, and staying abreast of changes in the sectors they serve.

25.  Platforms such as Singapore Convention Week are therefore valuable precisely because they allow practitioners, businesses and thought leaders from different jurisdictions to share knowledge and learn from one another.

Second: Protect Trust

26.  Second, on protecting trust. Expertise is important, but before a mediator can properly engage the parties, the parties must first trust the mediator. This becomes even more important in an uncertain geopolitical environment. Businesses must have confidence that, when disputes arise, they can turn to forums which are independent, neutral and fair, regardless of where the parties come from.

27.  In mediation, the composition of panels can help provide that assurance. International panels with different areas of expertise can give parties confidence that their circumstances will be properly understood and that all sides will be treated fairly.

28.  Codes of Conduct, disclosure requirements and other safeguards are also important in protecting impartiality. This commitment to neutrality and fairness is not simply a procedural nicety.

29.  Neutrality builds legitimacy. And legitimacy builds confidence in the process. But fairness also requires something more. It requires cultural awareness.

30.  Mediators and counsel working across borders increasingly need to bridge differences not only in law and business practice, but in the way people communicate.

31.  Sometimes, some cultures favour direct and explicit communication. Others rely much more heavily on context, tone, silence or implication. In one setting, silence might be interpreted as agreement. Yet in another, it may signal discomfort or even disagreement. Directness may be valued as honesty in one culture, but experienced as aggression in another.

32.  A mediator who fails to recognise these subtle differences risks misunderstanding what the parties are really saying. A good mediator therefore has to hear not only the words being spoken, but sometimes what is actually being communicated around the words.

33.  This is another reason why international gatherings such as today’s are valuable. They help us understand not just different legal systems, but different people and different ways of seeing this world.

Third: Work in Partnership

34.  Finally, no single institution can build a strong mediation ecosystem alone. Practitioners tell us what users need. Businesses tell us what works in practice and where the pain points are. Researchers help us understand emerging trends and anticipate what may come next. Training institutions build capability. Courts and governments create the enabling legal and institutional frameworks.

35.  But our task is to make these different parts work together. The Ministry of Law in Singapore will continue to play our part, including through platforms such as Singapore Convention Week, bringing together different parts of the mediation community and facilitating the exchange of knowledge and experience. But ultimately, a strong mediation ecosystem depends on everyone who is part of it.

Conclusion

36.  Now earlier I began by saying that I come to mediation through people. And I would like to end there too. Whether we are dealing with neighbours, families or multinational businesses, disputes ultimately involve people with different interests, different perspectives, and sometimes very different ideas about what is fair.

37.  The best type of mediation does more than bring a dispute to an end. It creates enough understanding, and enough trust, for people to move forward together. Singapore can continue to be a place where parties from different countries, cultures and legal traditions know that they will be heard fairly, that is something worth building and protecting.

38.  In a world that is becoming more complex, and sometimes more divided, the ability to find common ground is not becoming less important. It is, in fact, becoming more important than ever before. That is why mediation matters. And that is why the work all of you do matters.

39.  Thank you, and I wish all of you a fruitful and engaging morning ahead. Thank you very much.

Last updated on 26 August 2026