Fines for breaches of the Personal Data Protection Act 2012 (“PDPA”) are going to get heftier: up to 10% of annual Singapore turnover or up to S$1 million (whichever higher). We set out 10 simple steps to secure your organisation’s information technology (IT) systems to reduce the risk of PDPA breaches.

Covenant News (October 2020)

If you are a director or owner of a company in substantial debt, financial distress or becoming insolvent, you may want to do your best to resuscitate the company. If you seek to restructure debts, rationalise assets and reorganise the firm early, you may be able to avoid the company’s downfall.

In this article, we address some questions you may have if you are a creditor of a Singapore company that has entered or is entering into liquidation or winding up due to insolvency or otherwise.

Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) systems, automated decision-making, and autonomous vehicles are become increasingly ubiquitous. While these can benefit society, there can be significant risks of harms and unfair outcomes from their use.

If your business is experiencing a slow-down because of the Circuit Breaker and social distancing measures during this COVID-19 outbreak, now is the best time to repair legal foundations, review internal systems, and position your business for when things pick up again. Here are 6 key areas you should review.

If a person copies, stores or circulates confidential information without permission, but not use it to another person’s detriment, would the person be liable for breach of confidence? Prior to this landmark decision by Singapore’s apex court, the answer was “No”.

How should courts divide matrimonial assets in “highly unusual” marital breakdowns? The three-step structured approach to the division of matrimonial assets is a useful starting point for courts to determine the appropriate ratio to be ascribed to each party. However, should courts depart from this starting position where a party is found to have made negative contributions to the family in the course of the marriage? In this "highly unusual" case, the Court of Appeal held, inter alia, that the Wife’s contributions to the family should be ascribed a negative value. Notwithstanding this, the Court of Appeal reversed the High Court’s decision by affirming the three-step structured approach to grant division of the matrimonial assets 75:25 in favour of the Husband.

Appeal made by the deceased’s employer and its insurer against work injury compensation dismissed by court

If your business has been affected by COVID-19, consider if you may seek temporary relief under the new law or object to another party relying on such relief.

Covenant News (April 2020)

A commentary on 3 Corporate Services Pte Ltd v Grabtaxi Holdings Pte Ltd [2020] SGHC 17

Amelia* is turning 18 years old this year and has just gotten out of an abusive relationship with her now ex-boyfriend. Around the time of the breakup, she found out that she was about eight weeks pregnant with her ex-boyfriend’s child. When she told him about the pregnancy, he told her in no uncertain terms that he wanted nothing to do with her or her child. Strangely, however, he is adamant that the child should not be given up for adoption. He told her to choose between aborting the pregnancy or raising the child on her own. Amelia has since been kicked out of her family home and is distraught and at a loss as to what to do.

The outbreak of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (now designated by the World Health Organization as COVID-19), continues to dominate the news and capture our attention. In the first few days after the first reports of cases in Singapore, long queues formed outside retailers such as Guardian and Watsons as ordinary citizens tried to purchase surgical and/or N95 masks.

The current outbreak of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV), or the Wuhan coronavirus, as it is more commonly known, has sparked alarm and concern cross the globe. The number of persons infected have surpassed that of SARs, with no signs of abating. Given how contagious the virus appears to be, health authorities around the world are pulling out all stops to minimise the risk of the virus spreading within their communities. One of the key strategies in fighting the contagion is to identify and isolate persons who may be carriers of the virus.

MAS has issued the Guidelines on Licensing for Payment Service Providers, Guideline No: PS-G01 (18 December 2019) and specimen forms for PSA.

In recent times, there has been a noticeable rise in reported “outrage of modesty” and “insult of modesty” cases[1]. This has been identified as a key concern for the authorities, who have been noted to state that they will be working closely with “stakeholders and the community to prevent and deter” such cases.

We responded to the invitation for feedback under the Public Consultation on Recommendations submitted by the Committee to Review and Enhance Reforms in the Family Justice System by the Ministry of Law and the Ministry of Social and Family Development. In our work with various social service agencies ("SSAs”) in Singapore, Covenant Chambers LLC has received several enquiries where non-parents are seeking to apply to be guardians of a child.

In a welcome move for the medical profession, the Court of Three Judges set aside the Singapore Medical Council’s conviction of a psychiatrist for giving out a patient’s confidential medical information to a next-of-kin in a medical emergency. The SMC’s conviction of the National University Hospital (NUH) psychiatrist for disclosing the patient’s medical information without verifying the requester’s identity sparked an outcry amongst members of the medical profession, who expressed concern that the Tribunal’s decision would fuel the practice of defensive medicine.

Covenant News (November 2019)