SAPURA FABRICATION SDN. BHD. & 3 Ors v GAS

[2025] SGCA 13 Court of Appeal 21 March 2025 • CA/CA 59/2024|CA/CA 60/2024 • 54 min read

28 cases cited (15 SG, 13 foreign) Cited by 1 case

Catchwords

Arbitration — Agreement — International — Enforcement of arbitration agreements Conflict of laws — Choice of law — Insolvency — Recognition and enforcement of foreign insolvency proceedings — Submission to foreign insolvency proceedings Insolvency Law — Cross-border insolvency — Recognition of foreign insolvency proceedings — Automatic moratorium arising on recognition as foreign main proceedings — Whether carve-out should be granted for arbitration to proceed — Article 20 UNCITRAL Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency

Practice Areas

Arbitration Conflict of laws Insolvency Law

Judges (3)

Kannan Ramesh Coram Steven Chong Delivered Sundaresh Menon Coram

Counsel (9)

Ascendant Legal LLC Firm Norton Rose Fulbright LLP Firm Oon & Bazul LLP Firm Chung Ka Kay Katie Counsel Respondent Eunice Chan Swee En Counsel Respondent Han Guangyuan Keith Counsel Appellant Lye Yu Min Counsel Appellant Teo Jim Yang Counsel Respondent Teo Jin Yun Germaine Counsel Appellant

Parties (6)

Sapura Fabrication Sdn Bhd Appellant Sapura Offshore Sdn Bhd Appellant Chew Seng Heng Appellant GAS Respondent Mohd Anuar bin Taib Appellant Norzaimah binti Maarof Appellant

Case Significance

[2025] SGCA 13 is a Court of Appeal decision dated 21 March 2025 concerning Arbitration, Conflict of laws, and Insolvency Law, specifically addressing agreement, choice of law, and cross-border insolvency. The judgment was delivered by Steven Chong, with Kannan Ramesh and Sundaresh Menon on the coram. The case was brought by Sapura Fabrication Sdn Bhd and others (appellant) against GAS (respondent). Legal representation was provided by Oon & Bazul LLP and Ascendant Legal LLC. The judgment cites 28 cases (15 Singapore, 13 foreign) and references 4 statutory provisions, including the Arbitration Act, the Insolvency, and the Restructuring and Dissolution Act. This decision has been cited by 1 subsequent judgment in the dataset.

Summary

Sapura Fabrication and Sapura Offshore, Malaysian companies undergoing insolvency proceedings, obtained recognition of their Malaysian proceedings as foreign main proceedings in Singapore under the UNCITRAL Model Law, triggering an automatic moratorium. The respondent GAS, a creditor with arbitration agreements in the contracts, sought a carve-out from the moratorium to commence arbitration. The Court of Appeal addressed the tension between insolvency moratoria and arbitration agreements but the appeals were ultimately withdrawn by the appellants, with no order as to costs.

What was decided in [2025] SGCA 13?

[2025] SGCA 13 (SAPURA FABRICATION SDN. BHD. & 3 Ors v GAS) is a Court of Appeal decision from 21 March 2025 addressing Arbitration, Conflict of laws, and Insolvency Law, specifically agreement, choice of law, and cross-border insolvency. The judgment was delivered by Steven Chong.

Who were the parties in SAPURA FABRICATION SDN. BHD. & 3 Ors v GAS?

The appellant in [2025] SGCA 13 was Sapura Fabrication Sdn Bhd, Sapura Offshore Sdn Bhd, and the respondent was GAS. Legal representation included Ascendant Legal LLC and Norton Rose Fulbright LLP. The case was decided on 21 March 2025 in the Court of Appeal.

Which judge decided [2025] SGCA 13?

[2025] SGCA 13 was delivered by Steven Chong in the Court of Appeal on 21 March 2025. Kannan Ramesh and Sundaresh Menon also sat on the coram. The case concerned Arbitration, Conflict of laws, and Insolvency Law.

What cases and statutes does [2025] SGCA 13 cite?

[2025] SGCA 13 cites 28 prior decisions, including 13 from foreign jurisdictions. It references Arbitration Act, Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act. The decision has itself been cited by 1 subsequent judgment.

Statutes Cited

Arbitration Act (Cap 10)

Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act

International Arbitration Act (Cap 143A)

s 6

Restructuring and Dissolution Act

Cases Cited (28)

SG (1)

[2024] SGHC 241

SLR (14)

[2011] 3 SLR 414 [2014] 2 SLR 545 [2016] 5 SLR 455 [2019] 1 SLR 10 [2019] 1 SLR 499 [2020] 1 SLR 1158 [2021] 1 SLR 1102 [2021] 4 SLR 526 [2023] 2 SLR 554 [2023] 2 SLR 655 [2023] 3 SLR 1604 [2024] 1 SLR 56 [2024] 2 SLR 516 [2024] 3 SLR 254

UK (8)

[1992] Ch 505 [2013] 1 AC 236 [2015] AC 616 [2015] EWHC 1500 [2016] EWHC 2228 [2016] UKSC 42 [2018] EWHC 1980 [2024] UKPC 16

AU (2)

[2018] SASC 156 [2023] NSWCA 246

MY (3)

[2021] 10 MLJ 327 [2023] MLJU 124 [2024] 3 CLJ 159

Cited By (1)

[2025] SGCA 17

UT Singapore Services Pte Ltd v Goh Thien Phong and others and another appeal

Judgment

Read the full judgment on the official Singapore Courts portal.

Read on eLitigation

Source: eLitigation ([2025] SGCA 13)