SINGAPORE Law and Practice Contributed by: Benedict Teo, Kelvin Tan, Kong Man Er and Shumin Lin, Drew & Napier LLC
14. Outlook 14.1 Proposals for Dispute Resolution Reform Some of the developing changes to the civil justice system relate to the use of artificial intelligence in liti- gation, the promotion of alternative dispute resolution and the tailoring of the adversarial system of litigation to certain employment claims: • The Singapore courts are leveraging artificial intelligence to enhance access to justice, includ- ing the use of AI systems to provide litigants with information regarding procedural steps, and the documentation required to support their claims. In April 2025, the Small Claims Tribunal launched an initiative introducing AI-powered translation services for court users, facilitating the transla- tion of court documents from English to the other official languages in Singapore: Mandarin Chinese, Malay and Tamil. In September 2025, the Singa- pore courts announced that starting from Novem- ber 2025, individuals who represent themselves at the Small Claims Tribunal will have access to a new generative AI tool which will assist them in under- standing the case and next steps. • On 23 September 2024, the Singapore courts issued a Guide on the Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence Tools by Court Users. The Ministry of Law followed this with a public consultation to seek feedback on a proposed guide for using gen- erative AI in the legal sector in September 2025, as part of the Ministry of Law’s ongoing efforts to support the transformation and digitalisation of the legal industry by harnessing the opportunities while navigating the challenges associated with using generative AI technology. • The Community Disputes Resolution (Amendment) Act 2024 introduces amendments that seek to
encourage the increased use of community media- tion at an early stage, pilot a new community rela- tions unit to address certain disputes, and enhance the processes and powers of the community dispute resolution tribunals. • In January 2025, Parliament passed the Workplace Fairness Act (WFA), setting the stage for additional safeguards against workplace discrimination. In November 2025, Parliament passed the Work- place Fairness (Dispute Resolution) Bill. The Bill prescribes procedural requirements for individuals to make private claims against their employers for workplace discrimination under the WFA. One key feature of the Bill is that it provides that the Sin- gapore courts are to adopt a judge-led approach when dealing with any action for workplace dis- crimination under the WFA, which differs from the adversarial approach that the Singapore courts generally adopt in litigation. It has been announced that the WFA will take effect in end-2027. 14.2 Growth Areas The rapid advancement of technology and the growing impact of artificial intelligence will increase access to justice and transform how the legal profes- sion works, including in areas such as due diligence, contract review, legal research and the production of documents. • The Supreme Court published a Guide on the Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence Tools by Court Users, applicable from 1 October 2024. • On 1 September 2025, the Ministry of Law pub- lished a draft Guide for Using Generative AI in the Legal Sector, with a public consultation exercise until 30 September. This allows legal and technol- ogy professionals, as well as the public, to provide input on ethical AI integration in legal practice.
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