Siraj Omar SC, former co-head of dispute resolution at Big Four firm Drew & Napier, has launched his own law firm specialising in commercial dispute resolution, marking a significant departure from one of Singapore's oldest law practices.

The new firm, Siraj Omar LLC, will be jointly led by Siraj and Allister Tan, who also exits his director position at Drew & Napier. Joining them are Drew lawyers Larisa Cheng, Joelle Tan, Fitzgerald Hendroff, and Robbie Tan.

With 27 years of active trial and appellate practice, Siraj has established himself as a prominent figure in Singapore's legal scene, handling landmark cases across banking, consumer protection, debt restructuring, and insurance sectors.

His expertise extends to international arbitration, where he serves on the Board of Directors of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) and its Board Executive Committee. Siraj is also a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, the Singapore Institute of Arbitrators, and the Singapore Academy of Law.

Siraj rejoined Drew & Napier in 2019, having begun his career at that firm. Between those stints, he launched Premier Law – which became RPC’s joint law venture firm in Singapore – and was a senior partner at local law firm Tan Kok Quan Partnership.

Meanwhile, Allister Tan has 16 years of insurance sector expertise, including advising insureds, insurers, reinsurers, and brokers across all insurance lines, handling matters from coverage disputes to regulatory issues. His practice also encompasses commercial litigation and arbitration, with particular focus on banking, contractual, fraud, and employment-related disputes. Tan was also previously at RPC Premier Law and joined Drew & Napier in 2019 as part of Siraj’s team.

"Our aim is to use the skills and experience garnered over almost three decades in practice to work with our clients to resolve their disputes in a manner consistent with their commercial objectives," Siraj said in a statement.

The new firm will focus on providing strategic solutions for complex, high-stakes legal challenges, according to the statement.

Singapore’s disputes landscape has seen a number of experienced practitioners set up their own firms. Two recent examples are Sreenivasan Narayan SC, who left the managing partner role at K&L Gates Straits Law to set up Sreenivasan Chambers, and former Oon & Bazul commercial arbitration head Suresh Divyanathan, who established Dauntless Law Chambers.