SINGAPORE CONVENTION
WEEK EVENTS
SINGAPORE CONVENTION WEEK EVENTS
Appetites and Challenges for International Commercial Arbitration in A New and Multipolar World Order
by European Chinese Arbitrators Association
28 August 2025, Thursday
17:30 – 19:30
Helmsman LLC
As global order shifts and geopolitical spheres reshape traditional paradigms, what trends and challenges have emerged that affect the role that arbitration plays as a key choice of dispute resolution mechanism for international commercial disputes? This seminar will explore how shifting economic and political dynamics between the US and China influence international commercial dispute resolution in Asia, identify emerging trends in arbitration and institutional practices, legal issues, and discuss challenges presented by divergent legal and regulatory landscapes.
*This event is a hybrid event.
Moderators

Colin SEOW
Managing Director, Colin Seow Chambers LLC
Colin is Managing Director of Colin Seow Chambers LLC, and he specialises in representing clients in complex commercial dispute (including disputes involving shareholders, building and construction, trade and commodities, fuel supply contracts, and cryptocurrencies/cryptoassets).
He actively sits as arbitrator in both domestic and international commercial disputes, and is a board member of the European Chinese Arbitrators Association in Vienna.
Colin is qualified to practise law in Singapore, England and Wales, New York and before the DIFC Courts. He graduated with a LLB (First Class Honours) from the National University of Singapore, and holds a LLM degree from Harvard University.

Julie RANEDA
Partner, Schellenberg Wittmer and Managing Director, Schellenberg Wittmer Pte Ltd
Julie Raneda, FCIArb, is a Partner in Schellenberg Wittmer’s International Arbitration Practice and the Managing Director of the firm’s Singapore office.
Julie regularly represents clients in complex international commercial, investment and sports arbitration matters. She has acted as both counsel and arbitrator in arbitrations globally, governed by diverse legal systems.
Julie is one of the few lawyers in the region qualified to provide civil law advice across a broad spectrum of jurisdictions.
She also the Co-Chair of the firm’s Sanctions Group, bringing deep expertise in advising clients on international trade sanctions.
Her areas of specialization encompass construction and engineering, energy, life sciences, supply and manufacturing, distribution and international sales.
Speakers

Christopher LAU SC
Senior Counsel; Chartered Arbitrator; Former Vice President of London Court of International Arbitration
A Senior Counsel, Chartered Arbitrator and a former Vice President of the LCIA Court, Christopher’s arbitration practice encompasses investment as well as all aspects of commercial disputes including construction, corporate, energy, maritime, pharmaceuticals, aerospace, communications, insurance, automotive industry, military & defence procurements involving the laws of various common and civil law jurisdictions. Christopher has served in over 200 international arbitrations conducted either on an ad hoc basis or under, among others, AIAC (formerly KLRCA), DIFC-LCIA, HKIAC, ICC, ICDR, JCAA, KCAB, LCIA, LMAA, SCMA, SIAC and UNCITRAL arbitration rules. Amounts in dispute in several arbitrations exceeded USD 1 billion.

NG Jern-Fei KC
King’s Counsel; Arbitrator, Temple Chambers, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region; Advocate, Duxton Hill Chambers, Singapore; Foreign Lawyer, Lim Chee Wee Partnership, Malaysia
Ng Jern-Fei KC specialises in commercial litigation and arbitration, with 20+ years' experience appearing before courts and tribunals and sitting as arbitrator in different jurisdictions. He has acted as counsel in some 350 cases and as arbitrator in some 30 cases (as presiding, sole and co-arbitrator).
Jern-Fei has been described as a “legal hotshot” by Singapore's Straits Times and as a “top lawyer” in an article published in the South China Morning Post. Jern-Fei acts for a number of Asian governments and for many of China’s State-owned enterprises and Malaysia’s government-linked corporations in arbitrations across different jurisdictions.

Una KHNG
Director, Helmsman LLC Singapore
Una heads the Commercial Disputes Practice Group at Helmsman LLC. Her practice covers both domestic and international disputes across a broad spectrum - including complex financial products, cryptocurrencies, joint venture and shareholder disputes, breaches of trusts and fraud, amongst others. Una is experienced in litigation and arbitration, and is a Fellow of the Singapore Institute of Arbitrators.
Una graduated from the University of Cambridge with First-Class Honours. Before joining Helmsman, Una held appointments as District Judge and Assistant Registrar of the Supreme Court of Singapore, and Deputy Divisional Registrar of the Singapore International Commercial Court.

Adriana USON
Director and Head, Amercias, Singapore International Arbitration Centre
Adriana Uson, Director & Head (Americas) at the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC), oversees SIAC’s initiatives across the Americas. In 2020, she led the establishment SIAC’s first office outside Asia in New York.
With over a decade in dispute resolution, she has been a disputes lawyer at a global firm, arbitrator, and institutional representative, administering hundreds of cases and assisting in drafting multiple versions of the SIAC Rules.
Recognised by Who’s Who Legal, she has been described as “a brilliant and focused practitioner” who is “a pleasure to work with in every respect.”
Adriana represents SIAC at UNCITRAL Working Groups and is a Fellow of the Singapore Institutes of Arbitrators.