XLK v XLJ
Key facts
| Court | High Court (Appellate Division) |
|---|---|
| Decided | |
| Judges | Debbie Ong Siew Ling, Hri Kumar Nair |
| Charges / claim | Family Law, Civil Procedure |
| Counsel | Fervent Chambers LLC, Clarence Lun Yaodong |
Source: [2025] SGHC(A) 22, High Court (Appellate Division), decided — eLitigation. Updated .
Catchwords
Practice Areas
Parties (2)
Case Significance
[2025] SGHC(A) 22 is a High Court (Appellate Division) decision dated 5 November 2025 concerning Civil Procedure and Family Law, specifically addressing child, guardianship, and appeals. The judgment was delivered by Debbie Ong Siew Ling, with Hri Kumar Nair on the coram. The case was brought by XLK (applicant) against XLJ (respondent). Legal representation was provided by Fervent Chambers LLC. The judgment cites 14 cases (13 Singapore, 1 foreign) and references 1 statutory provision, namely the Guardianship of Infants Act. This decision has been cited by 1 subsequent judgment in the dataset.
[2025] SGHC(A) 22 explained
XLK v XLJ ([2025] SGHC(A) 22) is a Singapore judgment decided by the High Court (Appellate Division) on 5 November 2025. It is categorised under Family Law and Civil Procedure. Within this corpus it has since been cited by 1 other reported Singapore judgment, a measure of how often later decisions have referred to it. This page summarises what the reported decision covers and links the primary sources — the full judgment, the statutes it cites, and the other cases it engages with — so the decision can be read in context. It is reference information, not legal advice, and it does not state the outcome or any holding beyond what the official judgment records.
What is [2025] SGHC(A) 22 about?
XLK v XLJ ([2025] SGHC(A) 22) is a High Court (Appellate Division) decision from 2025. Its published catchwords are “Family Law — Child — Custody”, “Family Law — Guardianship — Welfare of child”, and “Civil Procedure — Appeals — Leave — Permission to appeal”, which indicate the subject matter the judgment addresses. The full reasoning and orders are in the judgment itself, linked below.
Which legislation does [2025] SGHC(A) 22 consider?
The judgment refers to Guardianship of Infants Act (Cap 122). The statutes cited are listed in full on this page, each linking to its primary text.
What earlier Singapore cases does [2025] SGHC(A) 22 cite?
Among the in-corpus authorities it refers to are [2025] SGHCF 50. The complete list of cases cited, and of later cases that cite this decision, is shown on this page.
How influential is [2025] SGHC(A) 22?
Within this corpus, [2025] SGHC(A) 22 has been cited by 1 later reported Singapore judgment. That count reflects references from other decisions held in this corpus only and is a conservative lower bound on how often the case has actually been cited.
Summary
A father sought permission to appeal a custody decision where existing Chinese court orders had granted custody to the mother, arguing the judge wrongly prioritised comity over the welfare of the child. The Appellate Division dismissed the application, holding that the judge had correctly applied the welfare principle as paramount and that comity does not override it in custody cases.
What was decided in [2025] SGHC(A) 22?
[2025] SGHC(A) 22 (XLK v XLJ) is a High Court (Appellate Division) decision from 5 November 2025 addressing Civil Procedure and Family Law, specifically child, guardianship, and appeals. The judgment was delivered by Debbie Ong Siew Ling.
Who were the parties in XLK v XLJ ([2025] SGHC(A) 22)?
The applicant in [2025] SGHC(A) 22 was XLK, and the respondent was XLJ. Legal representation included Fervent Chambers LLC. The case was decided on 5 November 2025 in the High Court (Appellate Division).
Which judge decided [2025] SGHC(A) 22?
[2025] SGHC(A) 22 was delivered by Debbie Ong Siew Ling in the High Court (Appellate Division) on 5 November 2025. Hri Kumar Nair also sat on the coram. The case concerned Civil Procedure and Family Law.
What cases and statutes does [2025] SGHC(A) 22 cite?
[2025] SGHC(A) 22 cites 14 prior decisions, including 1 from foreign jurisdictions. It references Guardianship of Infants Act. The decision has itself been cited by 1 subsequent judgment.
Statutes Cited
Cases Cited (14)
Cited By (1)
Related cases
Other Singapore judgments involving the same parties or counsel.
Referenced in
Statutes interpreted in this judgment
Legal concepts & references
Judgment
Read the full judgment on the official Singapore Courts portal.
Read on eLitigationSource: eLitigation ([2025] SGHC(A) 22)