Calvin Liang

Calvin is an advocate and barrister, practising as a member of the Bars of Singapore and England & Wales. 

Calvin’s areas of expertise are commercial and criminal disputes, as well as regulatory matters. He is engaged by domestic and international law firms, States/ Government-linked entities, financial institutions, corporations and lay clients.  He has been recognised as one of the leading international arbitration practitioners in the Asia-Pacific region with legal directories noting his “sharp legal acumen”, “extensive experience”, and “practical, thorough, and concise” style. In various judgments, the Singapore Courts have noted his “robust advocacy” and “detailed and helpful submissions.”

In international arbitration, he has acted as lead counsel and co-counsel alongside local and international law firms in joint venture disputes, cross-examining witnesses and experts on detailed, industry-specific issues and complex questions of valuation. He has obtained an award of around US$30 million relating to the Foreign Exchange Management Act (India), acted for an ASEAN State in a dispute with a utilities concession-holder, and represented a multinational telco in an investor-state dispute worth over US$5 billion. His cases have involved sectors including digital banking, infrastructure projects, steel manufacturing and fast-moving consumer goods.

As counsel before the Singapore Courts, he has successfully acted in the leading cases on the enforcement of interim measures granted by arbitral tribunals, cross-border injunctions, minority shareholders’ rights and the doctrine of abuse of process. Some examples include shareholders’ disputes and multi-jurisdictional fraud cases involving oil rigs in Mexican waters, an online trading platform, the Belt And Road Initiative and over US$2 billion worth of art.

Additionally, in the area of white-collar crime, Calvin has advised on corporate investigations and has acted for the finance manager of a megachurch in one of Singapore’s longest criminal trials. The High Court commended his “well-researched submissions” in a private sector corruption case.

Calvin taught Public Law at the National University of Singapore and the Singapore Management University. An article he co-authored in this area has been favourably cited by the Singapore Court of Appeal and the Federal Court of Malaysia.

Before joining private practice, he was a Justices’ Law Clerk and Assistant Registrar in the Supreme Court of Singapore. Apart from the law, Calvin loves Arsenal FC, his wife, two daughters and dog, Rosa Barks.

• 2009: LLB (First Class Hons), London School of Economics and Political Science
• 2010: BCL (Distinction), University of Oxford

• 2007: Sweet & Maxwell Prize for the best overall performance (LSE)
• 2007: Best performance for Criminal law (LSE)
• 2007: Blackstone Chambers Prize for Public Law (LSE)
• 2007: Dechert Prize for Property Law (LSE)
• 2013: One of the top five advocates at the Singapore International Arbitration Academy organised by the National University of Singapore's Centre for International Law. The judges were Lord Hoffmann, Toby Landau KC and Teresa Cheng SC.
• 2015: The Singapore Business Review included Calvin as the youngest lawyer in the list of Singapore's 40 most influential lawyers aged 40 and under.

Calvin's publications include:

• ‘The Application of Administrative Law Principles in Private Law: The Case for Convergence’, Singapore Journal of Legal Studies, Sep 2020, pp 427–447
• ‘How to Avoid Getting “Clubbed” to Death: A Survival Guide’, Singapore Law Gazette, Jun 2018 (winner of the 2018 Law Gazette prize for the best article by a young lawyer)
• ‘The relevance of the Singapore International Commercial Court to the spiliada test for forum non conveniens’, Lexology, 22 May 2017
• 'Fair Play and Match Fixing’, Singapore Law Gazette, Apr 2016, co-author
• 'The Constitution of Our Constitution: A Vindication of the Basic Structure Doctrine’, Singapore Law Gazette, Aug 2014, co-author
• 'Amenability to Judicial Review: the Ambiguity in Manjit Singh v Attorney­ General', Law Gazette, Apr 2013, co-author
• 'Alan Shadrake v Attorney-General [2011] SGCA 26: A Look at the Recent Decision on the Law of Contempt for Scandalising the Judiciary', Inter Se, Jul 2011, co-author

2021-2025

• Acting for the Singapore Institute of Legal Education in various regulatory matters: see e.g., Re DOC [2025] SGHC 72
• Acting for a major Southeast Asian conglomerate in a SIAC contract arbitration involving a USD500 million shareholders dispute over infrastructure projects.
• Acting for a global credit insurer in Singapore High Court proceedings concerning trade insurance claims, and involving allegations of fictitious trades and fraudulent conduct. Total claims being investigated under the policies exceed $55 million.
• As lead counsel, acting in a SIAC arbitration involving a dispute worth over US$ 100 million between joint venture partners of a digital bank: see CXG v CXI [2024] 3 SLR 1282.
• As co-counsel acting in a SIAC arbitration involving a dispute worth over US$ 30 million between Japanese and German joint venture partners over a Myanmar steel manufacturing plant.
• As lead counsel, acting in a dispute concerning solar power plants built in Pakistan as part of the Belt and Road Initiative.
• As lead counsel in a joint venture/ employment dispute in the fast-moving consumer goods sector in Singapore, India and Nepal: see Carlsberg South Asia Pte Ltd v Pawan Kumar Jagetia - [2023] SGHC(A) 29.
• Acting for a Chinese State-Owned Entity in a cross-border fraud investigation concerning the misappropriation of over US $35 million. Led by Aurill Kam.
• Acting for a company to set aside a SIAC arbitral award involving a US$463 mining concession in the Philippines. Led by Toby Landau QC: see CIP v CIQ [2022] 3 SLR 39.
• Acting in a SIAC arbitration involving a joint venture worth over US$ 4 billion in the fast-moving consumer goods sector in India and Nepal. Led by Toby Landau KC.
• Acting for a telecommunications company against a South Asian State in an investor-state dispute worth over US$ 5 billion. Led by Toby Landau KC.
• As lead counsel, acted for a Vietnamese coffee conglomerate in a dispute involving its Singapore subsidiary. This was part of a larger divorce settlement worth over US$ 345 million between the founder and his wife.
• Successfully acted as lead counsel in High Court proceedings to resist an application for leave to commence a statutory derivative action involving allegations of money-laundering.
• Successfully acted for an ASEAN State in Singapore Court proceedings to set aside an arbitral award for over US$ 145 million in a dispute involving a water concession agreement. Led by Toby Landau KC.
• Acting for creditors defrauded by the managing director of a company to challenge the rejection of their proof of debts by the judicial managers. The case involved questions on agency and authority: see Blasco, Martinez Gemma v Ee Meng Yen Angela and anors [2021] 3 SLR 1360.

2020

• SIAC arbitration between Indian and Mauritian interests: successfully obtained an arbitral award for over US$26 million in a dispute involving complex questions of Indian law relating to the Foreign Exchange Management Act 1999 regime.
• Christopher Yun Hian Chen v BHNV Online Ltd and ors [2020] SGHC 284: successfully acted in a multi-jurisdictional dispute (Romanian, Belize, Israel, Singapore and the UK) involving online trading of binary options. Prof Adrian Briggs QC and Prof Gerard McMeel QC provided expert evidence.
• Kho Long Huat v Jian Rong Engineering Pte Ltd [2020] SGHC 178: successfully obtained a buy-out order for a minority shareholder in dispute involving the setting aside a consent judgment. The decision was upheld on appeal to the Court of Appeal.
• Blasco Martinez Gemma and anor v Ee Meng Yen Angela and anor [2020] SGHC 247: application to set aside proof of debt involving points of law relating to the actual/ apparent authority of a managing director to bind a company.
• Oro Negro Drilling Pte Ltd and ors v Integradora de Servicios Petroleros Oro Negro SAPI de CV and ors [2020] 1 SLR 226 (SGCA): cross-border insolvency dispute over the control of oil rigs in Mexican waters worth approximately US$ 1.5 billion and the duties of foreign directors of Singapore companies. This is the leading Court of Appeal decision on cross-border injunctions to enforce negative covenants. Led by Toby Landau KC.

2019

• EQ Capital Investments Ltd v The Wellness Group Pte Ltd [2019] SGHC 154: dispute over the winding up on just and equitable grounds of one of the companies involved in TWG Tea. Led by Toby Landau KC
• Carlo Giuseppe Civelli v Philippe Emanuel Mulacek and anor [2019] SGHC 182: dispute involving the distribution of proceeds from the US$ 900 million sale of one of the largest vertical onshore gas wells in the world and the issuance of an anti-suit injunction to restrain proceedings in Texas. Led by Toby Landau KC.
• BMI Tax Services Pte Ltd v Heng Keok Meng and ors [2019] SGHC 9: dispute over alleged negligent tax advice rendered by a tax advisor to a medical professional and the interpretation of the tax avoidance provisions in the Income Tax Act. As lead counsel, Calvin successfully struck out substantial portions of the opposing party’s case leading to settlement.
• Public Prosecutor v Goh Boon Hong [2019] SGMC 49: dispute over the sentencing benchmark for offences under section 22(1)(d) of the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act. As lead counsel, Calvin obtained a fine for the accused instead of a custodial sentence as the Prosecution had argued for. The Prosecution subsequently withdrew its appeal
• Deccan Chronicle Holdings Limited v Danniyal Malik and ors [2019] (unreported): dispute over a bond placement by one of India’s largest English-language newspapers which was listed on the National Stock Exchange of India Limited. As lead counsel, Calvin successfully obtained the discharge of a Mareva injunction and proprietary injunction on the grounds of abuse of process.
• Acted in a dispute between a listed Japanese beverage company and its former chief executive involving the Securities and Futures Act.

2018

• The Wellness Group Pte Ltd v Paris Investment Pte Ltd and others [2018] 2 SLR 973 (SGCA): The first Singapore case and the most recent Commonwealth authority on the precise scope of a shareholder’s right in relation to the appointment of directors. Led by Toby Landau KC.
• Public Prosecutor v Lam Leng Hung and ors [2018] 1 SLR 659 (SGCA): acted for one of the accused persons in the “City Harvest Church” trial. The Court of Appeal adopted the defence’s interpretation of the offence of criminal breach of trust by a banker, agent, director etc. under section 409 of the Penal Code.

Pre-2018

• Rappo, Tania v Accent Delight International Ltd and anor [2017] 2 SLR 265 (SGCA): dispute involving over US$2 billion worth of art owned by a Russian oligarch, including works by Picasso, Monet, Rothko and Da Vinci. Successfully obtained a stay in favour of Switzerland in the first Court of Appeal case to consider the relevance of the Singapore International Commercial Court in determining the proper forum for cross-border disputes.
• Bouvier, Yves Charles Edgar and another v Accent Delight International Ltd and anor [2015] 5 SLR 558 (SGCA): Leading Court of Appeal decision on worldwide mareva and propretiary injunctions. This case garnered the“Matter of the Year” award at Asialaw Asia-Pacific Dispute Resolution Awards 2016.
• Song Meng Choon Andrew v Public Prosecutor [2015] 4 SLR 1090 (SGHC): Successfully acted on appeal for a private sector individual charged for corruption in a case involving novel points of law. The High Court commended Calvin for his “detailed and well-researched submissions.”
• Successfully obtained the removal of an Interpol Red Notice for an individual.
• Acted for one of Singapore’s largest banks against a construction company (in judicial management) for the wrongful re-routing of monies away from the bank. The case involved an in-depth analysis of the test for determining the nature of a security over assets.
• Acted as lead counsel for one of the world’s largest and oldest shipowners to obtain a search order against an ex-employee in a claim for breach of confidence and fiduciary duties. Final judgment was entered against the ex-employee who also received a custodial sentence for his contempt arising from the search order. The dispute involved cross-border cooperation with foreign legal counsel.
• Acted for a telecommunications company in a dispute arising from the procurement of broadcast rights to the English Premier League.