SINGAPORE Law and Practice Contributed by: Mathiew Christophe Rajoo, Probin Dass and Tan Hui Tsing, DennisMathiew
well established that a clause merely purporting to incorporate the terms of a charterparty with - out express reference to the arbitration clause may not be sufficient to incorporate the arbitra - tion clause (this is a principle reiterated in The “Navios Koyo” [2021] SGCA 99 at [21]). There is Singapore case law to suggest that gen - eral wordings may be insufficient to incorporate an ancillary charterparty arbitration clause and that the same result must follow with regard to the charterparty jurisdiction clause (The “Dol - phina” [2012] 1 SLR 992). Parties should make clear in the bill of lading that the bill of lading is subject to an arbitration clause in the charter. Where an arbitration clause has been expressly incorporated into the charterparty, court pro - ceedings that had been commenced to arrest the vessel may be stayed upon an application for the same by any party to the arbitration agree - ment at any time after appearance and before filing pleadings/taking any other step in the court proceedings. The power of the court to grant a stay is found at Section 6(1) of the International Arbitration Act. 6.3 New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards Singapore is a party to the 1958 New York Con - vention, and the International Arbitration Act gives effect to the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards. Pursuant to the International Arbitration Act, some grounds to resist enforcement include: • a party’s lack of capacity to agree to arbitrate; • an invalid arbitration agreement is involved;
• a party is not given proper notice or is unable to present their case; • the award goes beyond the scope of the arbi - tration agreement; • the composition of the tribunal or procedure is not in compliance with the agreement or lex arbitri; • the award is not yet binding; • the award is set aside or suspended by a competent authority; • the subject matter of the dispute is not arbi - trable; and • the enforcement is against the state’s public policy. 6.4 Arrest of Vessels Subject to Foreign Arbitration or Jurisdiction Section 7 of the International Arbitration Act pro - vides that vessels may be arrested as security for a foreign arbitration. However, the Singapore court has held in DSA Consultancy (FZC) v The “Eurohope” [2017] 5 SLR 934 that a vessel can - not be arrested in Singapore as security for for - eign court proceedings. 6.5 Domestic Arbitration Institutes The Singapore Chamber of Maritime Arbitration specialises in maritime claims in the jurisdiction. 6.6 Remedies Where Proceedings Are Commenced in Breach of Foreign Jurisdiction or Arbitration Clauses The defendant can apply for a stay of proceed - ings in favour of the arbitration/jurisdiction clause under Section 6(1) of the International Arbitration Act. See 6.2 Enforcement of Law and Arbitra- tion Clauses Incorporated Into a Bill of Lading . However, a court is also at liberty to impose certain conditions as it may think fit for a stay granted under Section 6(2) of the International Arbitration Act. For example, in Splosna Plovba
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