Bernice Yeoh became executive director of the Singapore Chamber of Maritime Arbitration (SCMA) last May. She shares with ALB how she plans to utilise SCMA’s strengths to catapult Singapore to the forefront of international maritime arbitration.

ALB: Can you tell us about your role with SCMA and the focus of your mission? How do you plan to enhance SCMA’s institutional reputation?

Bernice Yeoh: I see SCMA serving as an integral component of Singapore’s continued development as an international maritime centre and a centre for international arbitration. My role as SCMA’s executive director is to work with our partners and stakeholders to grow SCMA to serve the needs of the international maritime and trade sectors, and in particular those with an Asian element.

Our collaboration with our partners and stakeholders to strengthen and enhance SCMA’s reputation entails a “3A” approach:

Awareness: Renew efforts in in-person marketing to raise awareness of SCMA arbitration. Since the reopening of economies, we have partnered with local and international players to roll out more educational seminars on pertinent and current issues of interest in Singapore and overseas.

Adoption: Ensure relevance and attractiveness of SCMA’s arbitration rules to increase adoption. We regularly review the SCMA arbitration rules. SCMA’s 4th Edition Rules, launched on January 1 2022, seek to keep costs in check, and streamline arbitral proceedings. Against the backdrop of increased attention to environmental sustainability and in keeping with how businesses are increasingly electronically conducted, we have adopted electronic methods including electronic service of documents, electronic signing of awards, and virtual case management meetings and hearings.

Adding value: Ensure that SCMA adds value to our members and industry. We continually seek to help our members keep up to date on relevant industry trends and developments on multiple channels and via various avenues, including conducting various courses.

ALB: What do you think are the advantages of a specialist arbitration institution like SCMA compared to more general ones?

Yeoh: One clear advantage of adopting specialised rules such as the SCMA Rules is the ability to draw on specialist expertise. Many of the legal issues in shipping, for example, charter parties, bills of lading, marine insurance, and bunker disputes, are unique to the shipping industry. These parties require not only the application of legal principles, but also knowledge of the industry and its practices.

The SCMA, being attuned to the industry’s needs and preferences, offers a non-administered arbitration model with a dedicated, full-time Secretariat. According to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, shipping remains an important mode of transport with approximately 90 percent of global trade still carried by sea. As shipping and international trading are inextricably linked, the SCMA Arbitration Rules can be used by not only maritime players (for disputes relating to charterparties, bills of lading, shipbuilding and repair, ship sale and purchase, etc.) but are also suitable for the trading and commodity players who also often face issues arising out of their carriage contracts. Where appropriate, SCMA has also developed customised rules to cater to specific sector of the industry.

ALB: In what areas do you foresee challenges facing the market and how is SCMA equipped to address these concerns under your leadership?

Yeoh: In the present VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity) global environment, challenges continue to confront us, for example, for a traditional industry like shipping to digitalise. While digitalisation offers many benefits, it also presents challenges in terms of cybersecurity risks, which could lead to ship collisions, resulting in damage to ships, bodily injury to crew, or loss of cargo.

Increasingly stringent environmental regulation has also placed more demands on seafarers and operators. The International Maritime Organization’s Carbon Intensity Indicator regimes, for example, could potentially give rise to disputes in areas such as the allocation of responsibility and cost of regulatory compliance and possible business disruptions due to non-compliance. The transition to new fuels as a replacement for heavy fuel oil for decarbonisation is also fuelling a wave of challenges.

A common thread running through all these challenges is that there are often no clear-cut answers or precedents. In any dispute resolution involving arbitration, we would therefore require subject matter experts in these new or emerging areas to be empanelled. To continue to remain relevant and attractive, SCMA would have to ensure that our arbitrators are diverse and possess the requisite knowledge and technical/commercial expertise to arbitrate in disputes relating to these new and emerging areas. We will continue to strive to have a good spread of both legal and industry practitioners, with varied expertise including knowledge of new and emerging issues.