Benjamin graduated from the National University of Singapore with a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) in 2013. He was called to the Singapore Bar in 2014. Since graduating, he has garnered significant experience in admiralty and shipping matters by acting for shipowners, charterers, shipyards, and banks in a variety of shipping-related matters such as shipbuilding, charterparty, commodities and international trade disputes.
In addition to admiralty and shipping disputes, Benjamin also has broad expertise in representing and advising clients on a range of civil and commercial dispute resolution matters, including commercial contracts, trust, insurance, employment, insolvency, and high-value matrimonial disputes. At present, he is acting for a major state-owned oil trading company in proceedings which arise from the financial collapse of Hin Leong Trading (Pte) Ltd, one of Asia’s largest oil traders, in 2020.
Benjamin has appeared at all levels before the Singapore courts and some of his matters involved novel issues of law. These include: (a) 3 Corporate Services Pte Ltd v Grabtaxi Holdings Pte Ltd [2020] 4 SLR 941, which involved the issue of whether a contract in aid of cybersquatting is legally enforceable in Singapore; (b) Lau Soon v UOL Development (Dakota) Pte Ltd [2022] 3 SLR 625, which involved the issue of whether a housing developer’s claim for stakeholding monies held by the Singapore Academy of Law can be time-barred; and (c) The “Jeil Crystal” [2021] SGHC 292, which involved the issue of whether a warrant of arrest of a vessel can be upheld on the basis of an amended claim which was not pleaded at the time the warrant was issued.
Benjamin also has an active arbitration practice and has handled a range of arbitration matters in various disputes which include those governed by the SIAC and LMAA Rules. These include: (a) disputes relating to delay in delivery under a contract for the construction and sale of a jack-up drilling rig with a contract value exceeding US$180 million; (b) disputes under a contract for the sale and purchase of an insurance company; and (c) charterparty disputes relating to claims for demurrage and detention of vessels.
Outside of work, Benjamin enjoys reading and travelling.
Case Highlights
- Acted for a ride-hailing company in successfully defending a claim for breach of contract for the sale and purchase of a domain name, which involved novel legal issues on cyber-squatting and whether a contract in aid of cyber-squatting is legally un-enforceable for being contrary to public policy in Singapore (3 Corporate Services Pte Ltd v Grabtaxi Holdings Pte Ltd [2020] 4 SLR 941).
- Acted for a ride-hailing company in a claim for breach of employment contract, which involved obtaining an injunction to restrain usage and disclosure of proprietary information to competitors.
- Acted for a private client in a dispute relating to a trustee’s power to exclude a beneficiary’s interest under a discretionary trust, and a trustee’s duty to account to beneficiaries (Jethanand Harkishindas Bhojwani v Lakshmi Prataprai Bhojwani [2021] 3 SLR 1055).
- Acted for a private client in a successful claim for breach of confidence, which involved issues relating to the disclosure and usage of surreptitiously obtained documents in legal proceedings. This case also involved obtaining an injunction against the defendants, including a law firm, to deliver up all the surreptitiously obtained documents which amounted to over 50,000 unique documents (Jethanand Harkishindas Bhojwani v Lakshmi Prataprai Bhojwani and others [2022] 3 SLR 1211).
- Acted for a private client in a dispute with a property developer, which involved novel legal issues relating to the nature of stakeholding monies held by the Singapore Academy of Law and whether a claim for such stakeholding monies can ever be time-barred (Lau Soon and another v UOL Development (Dakota) Pte Ltd and another appeal [2022] 3 SLR 625).
- Acted for a joint venture company in an arbitration against a Chinese shipbuilder, in a dispute relating to a contract for the construction and sale of a jack-up drilling rig with a contract value exceeding US$180 million.
- Acted for a bank in an admiralty claim relating to a switched bill of lading, which involved a novel question of whether a warrant of arrest can be upheld based on a cause of action which was not originally pleaded by the arresting party at the time the warrant was issued (The “Jeil Crystal” [2021] SGHC 292).
- Acting for a seller in defending an application to set aside an arbitration award relating to disputes for the sale and purchase of iron ore fines. This case deals with the issue of whether an award should be set aside or remitted to the arbitral tribunal.
- Acting for a charterer in a dispute relating to wrongful termination of a charterparty on the basis that the charterer’s confirmation of the disponent owner’s nomination of a vessel was allegedly late.
- Acting for a seller in disputes relating to a contract for the sale and purchase of iron ore pellets. This case concerns the effect of COVID-19 on shipping operations and how it affects parties’ obligations and liabilities under international sale and purchase contracts.
- Acting for a charterer in a dispute with a disponent owner. One of the issues in dispute is whether a disponent owner can maintain a claim for underperformance loss based on alleged hull fouling of a vessel in a voyage charterparty.
- Acted for a shipyard in an admiralty claim for repair works carried out on a vessel.
- Acted for a bank in an admiralty claim for mis-delivery of cargo without presentation of the bills of lading. One of the issues in dispute was whether a document constituted a bill of lading.
- Advised an insurer on policy liability under a contractor’s all risk policy in relation to damage caused by floods.
- Acted for a ride-hailing company in a dispute relating to the registration and use of a domain name under the Singapore Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (Grabtaxi Holdings Pte Ltd v Clay Branding Pte Ltd [SDRP-2020/02]).
Appointments
- Member, Law Society of Singapore
- Member, Singapore Academy of Law
Education
Bachelor of Laws (Honours), National University of Singapore
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