SINGAPORE Law and Practice Contributed by: Foo Yuet Min, Kong Man Er, Shumin Lin and See Chern Yang, Drew & Napier LLC
lawyers will provide information such as the number of witnesses, the number of days the trial will take and the estimated costs of pro- ceeding to trial. Directions may also be given for parties to exchange lists of issues for expert witnesses. CCs may also be conducted by judges (JCCs). JCCs are usually scheduled after the completion of discovery, and again after the exchange of the affidavits of evidence-in-chief of the witnesses. Interlocutory Applications Once litigation has commenced, the parties may require a court decision on a variety of matters relating to the conduct of the case, such as an extension of time for filing pleadings or obtaining a summary judgment; see 4.1 Interim Applica- tions/Motions . Interlocutory applications are generally heard in private (ie, in chambers before registrars at first instance), although in some cases they are heard before judges. 7.3 Jury Trials in Civil Cases In Singapore, jury trials are not available under any circumstances. 7.4 Rules That Govern Admission of Evidence The admissibility of evidence is governed by the Evidence Act 1893. Evidence is admissible only if it is relevant, subject to any exclusionary rules. There are a number of exclusionary rules, including legal professional privilege (see 5.5 Legal Privilege ) and without prejudice communications (see 5.6 Rules Disallowing Disclosure of a Document ) and hearsay evidence.
Hearsay evidence refers to a person’s assertion made out of court, whether orally, in documen- tary form or in the form of conduct, which is then tendered to prove the truth of the matters to which it refers. Hearsay evidence is gener- ally inadmissible unless it falls within the scope of the exceptions specified in the Evidence Act. These exceptions include statements relating to the existence of any relationship by blood, mar- riage or adoption, or a statement that is made by a person who is dead or who cannot be pro- duced as a witness. 7.5 Expert Testimony Expert evidence is admissible on matters that require specialised knowledge or training, pro- vided that the expert evidence is sufficiently rel- evant and will help advance the court’s inquiry into the facts. No expert evidence may be used in court unless the court approves its admission. The parties must consider whether expert evidence will contribute materially to the determination of any issue that relates to scientific, technical or other specialised knowledge and whether such issue can be resolved by an agreed statement of facts or by submissions based on mutually agreed materials. The court must not approve the use of expert evidence unless it will contrib- ute materially to the determination of any issue in the case and the issue cannot be resolved by an agreed statement of facts or by submissions based on mutually agreed materials. As far as possible, parties must agree on one common expert; a party may not rely on expert evidence from more than one expert for any issue, except in a special case and with the court’s approval.
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