ASEAN's Liberalization of Legal Services: The Singapore Case
This article examines the liberalization of legal services in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (“ASEAN”) within the framework of the ASEAN Economic Community and ASEAN’s free trade agreements. Although trade in legal services is important to ASEAN’s goal as a “single market and production base,” the article challenges the weaknesses of ASEAN’s legal services liberalization. It then explores Singapore’s experiment on the regulations of foreign law firms and foreign lawyers, which have become substantially liberalized in the past decade. The article argues that while Singapore may serve as a positive example, ASEAN countries should be cautious of the gap between Singapore’s legal framework and the actual practice of foreign law firms. By analyzing the Singaporean concepts of Formal Law Alliances, Joint Law Ventures and Qualifying Foreign Law Practices, the article provides recommendations for ASEAN governments and legal communities for liberalization in the legal services sector.
The Japan―Singapore Economic Partnership Agreement
* Associate, International Trade/WTO Practice Group, Baker � McKenzie. Wong � Leow, Singapore. Former Singapore trade official (1996-1999). The author wishes to thank Dr Takashi Terada, Assistant Professor of Japan Studies at the National University of Singapore; Dr Choi Won-mog, Professor of Law at the Ewha Womans University, Seoul and former Deputy Director, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Republic of Korea; and Dr Mignon M.J. Chan, Director of International Affairs Division, Taiwan Institute of Economic Research and former Director-General, Pacific Economic Co-operation Council for their useful comments and personal views on the subject. The views expressed in this article, and errors, are the author's alone. The usual disclaimers apply. The author may be contacted at: Â«derek.loh@bakernet.comÂ» or Â«derekloh@hotmail.comÂ».
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982, A Commentary
Volume VI is the sixth substantive volume to be published in the series. It deals with the work of the First Committee at the Third UN Conference on the Law of the Sea, namely the international seabed area. The volume thus embraces the deep seabed mining regime set out in Part XI of the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea together with the 1994 Agreement on its implementation. Completion of this commentary was delayed first by the consultations and negotiations that commenced in 1990 and led to the 1994 Agreement and the entry into force of the Convention. It was further delayed until the Assembly of the International Seabed Authority approved the detailed mining regulations in 2000. Additional supplementary material can be found at UNCLOS 1982 Commentary: Supplementary Documents.