Singapore Management University School of Law

The Singapore Management University School of Law (SMU School of Law) is one of the six schools of Singapore Management University. It was set up as Singapore's second law school in 2007, 50 years after the National University of Singapore Faculty of Law and 10 years before Singapore University of Social Sciences School of Law. Before becoming a full-fledged law school covering all major areas of the law, the school was a Law Department within the School of Business between 2000 and 2007. It now offers a four-year undergraduate single Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree programme, and a double degree programme combining the law degree programme with one of SMU's existing non-law programmes: accountancy, business, economics, information systems, or social sciences; students can also do a second major. In addition to the LLB, the school offers a full-time two- to three-year graduate Juris Doctor (JD) programme as well as a Master of Laws (LLM) programme. The Dual LLM in Commercial Law, which confers LLM degrees from Queen Mary University of London and SMU, was launched in 2015.

The school took in around 120 students between 2007 and 2013. The intake after 2014 rose to more than 150, but is expected to be capped at 180 for LLB students. Admission to the law programme is competitive. In the 2015 University Admissions Exercise, both the 10th and 90th percentile had an Indicative Grade Profile (of Singapore-Cambridge GCE A-Level qualifications) of AAA/A; approximately 1,300 applicants were shortlisted for an interview and a written test.

In terms of student achievements, since the launch of its international moots programme in 2010, the school has been to the championship final of the largest and most established international moot court competitions including the Jessup (2013 and 2014), Vis (2015 and 2016), Vis East (2015 and 2016), Price (2010, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018), ICC (2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018), Frankfurt (2015 and 2017), IHL (2016), and International Maritime Law Arbitration Moot (2016). The school has also won on numerous occasions regional moots such as the LAWASIA and Asia Cup competitions. It holds the world records for most number of international moot championship finals in a season and most number of international moot championships in a season.

Based on the 2017 Graduate Employment Survey, 97.6% of the school's graduates found employment; the school's graduates also commanded the highest mean basic monthly salary among all schools in the university. Alumni of the school are very well-represented in the major law firms, the Supreme Court Justices' Law Clerk scheme, and postgraduate studies in leading universities such as Harvard and Oxford.

History and milestones


The School of Law was preceded by the Law Department, which was created in 2000 and part of the university's Lee Kong Chian School of Business, and headed by Professor Andrew Phang (now Judge of Appeal, Supreme Court of Singapore). A full-fledged law school was established in 2007 – 50 years after the establishment of the first and then-only law school in Singapore, National University of Singapore Faculty of Law — following the encouragement of the Singapore Government, which had, during a major review, discovered a shortage of qualified legal personnel in Singapore. The school's first dean was Professor Michael Furmston, a foremost authority on contracts and commercial law in the Commonwealth. He headed the school from its inception in 2007 to 2012. Professor Yeo Tiong Min was then the dean from 2012 to 2017. Associate Professor Goh Yihan has been the dean since 2017.

2007 2009
 * 5 January: SMU School of Law is officially launched with premises housed under the School of Business and School of Accountancy in Stamford Road
 * 1 August: Professor Michael Furmston is appointed as the school's first dean
 * 13 August: First intake of law students (116)
 * 30 January: Inaugural Law Play
 * 18 March: Launch of Doctor of Jurisprudence (JD) programme
 * 30 April: Establishment of Centre of Dispute Resolution and International Islamic Law and Finance Centre
 * 31 October: Memorandum of Understanding with the New York State Bar Association to partner for US internships, exchange programmes, and knowledge sharing

2010
 * 1 May: Launch of Continuing Legal Education programme (since re-branded as SMU Law Academy)

2011
 * 19 May: Launch of LLM (Master of Laws) programme
 * First batch of LLB and JD graduates

2012
 * 21 February: Professor Yeo Tiong Min (Singapore's first Honorary Senior Counsel) is appointed as the school's second dean

2013
 * 7 March: First Asian university to join the THEMIS network
 * November: Partnership with Yonsei University to set up dual JD programme

2014
 * 20 January: Groundbreaking ceremony for new law school building

2015
 * June: Signed first sponsorship and training agreement with WongPartnership
 * August: Launch of dual LLM with Queen Mary, University of London
 * Launch of Applied Research Centre for Intellectual Assets and the Law in Asia (ARCIALA)
 * Launch of Centre for Cross-Border Commercial Law in Asia (CEBCLA)

2016
 * December: Relocation to the new law school building at Armenian Street
 * Launch of Singapore International Dispute Resolution Academy (SIDRA)

2017
 * July: Associate Professor Goh Yihan is appointed as the school's third Dean
 * 9 October: Launch of Pro Bono Centre (PBC)

2018
 * June: School receives a $4.5m grant from the NRF and IMDA to helm a research programme on AI and data use
 * 26 July: Launch of LLM in Judicial Studies
 * 24 September: Launch of Centre for AI and Data Governance

Advisory Board
The Advisory Board features a wide range of professionals to provide all-encompassing and comprehensive advisory assistance to the School of Law. This includes Supreme Court judges, senior litigators, corporate lawyers, managing partners of law firms and partners of foreign law firms. The Advisory Board is currently chaired by former Judge of Appeal and Attorney-General VK Rajah SC.

Centres
The school houses five centres: the Centre for AI and Data Governance, the Applied Research Centre for Intellectual Assets and the Law in Asia (ARCIALA), the Centre for Cross-Border Commercial Law In Asia (CEBCLA), the Singapore International Dispute Resolution Academy (SIDRA), and the Pro Bono Centre (PBC).

Entry requirements
To be admitted to the Bachelor of Laws (LLB) programme, applicants should have good passes in their respective GCE A-Level subjects. Specifically, the minimum requirement for a law applicant is an A or a B for H1 General Paper or H2 Knowledge and Inquiry. SMU releases Indicative Grade Profiles periodically for potential candidates. In the 2015 University Admissions Exercise, both the 10th and 90th percentile had an Indicative Grade Profile (of 3H2/1H1 content-based subjects) of AAA/A. Potential candidates are called for a short written test and a group interview.

Curriculum and graduation requirements
The LLB programme is a four-year programme. Students are required to complete a total of 36 course units, which include five compulsory course units from the University Core, 19 compulsory course units from the Law Core, a selected seven course units from Law Electives and five other course units from law-related courses like Financial Accounting and Finance for Law. Students must also complete ten weeks of internship and 80 hours of community service to graduate.

Juris Doctor (JD) programme
Introduced in 2009, the SMU Juris Doctor programme was started as an additional route for persons who already have a degree in another discipline or a law degree not recognized for the purpose of admission to the Singapore Bar to become members of the Singapore legal profession.

Entry requirements
Applicants have to had completed at least three years of full-time undergraduate education. For non-law graduates or law graduates from civil law countries or non-gazetted universities from common law countries, applicants must have at least a Cum Laude or Second Class Upper Honours degree qualifications. Furthermore, applicants must show proficiency in the English language. A TOEFL/IELTS/SAT 1 test is required if the applicant's undergraduate degree was not taken in English.

Curriculum and graduation requirements
SMU's JD curriculum is a mix of compulsory law courses and electives. Similar to the all SMU undergraduates, six weeks of law internship and 50 hours of community service are required for graduation. Students are required to complete a total of 25 Credit Units of law courses, following the same academic calendar as the Bachelor of Laws programme. Although students are expected to complete the programme within three years, the programme may be accelerated for completion in two and a half years.

Master of Laws (LLM) programme
There are three LLM options: the LLM in Cross-Border Business and Finance Law in Asia, the Dual LLM in Commercial Law (Singapore and London), and the LLM in Judicial Studies. The first two options are one-year programmes while the dual LLM is a 15-month programme where students split their time between SMU and Queen Mary University of London.

SMU Law Academy
SMULA runs seminars on developments in the law for the legal profession; attendees receive Continuing Professional Development points. Courses taught to the LLB, JD, and LLM students may also be audited.

Pedagogy
SMU School of Law adopts a seminar-style teaching approach, similar to that in US law schools. This requires students to put in a substantial amount of pre-class preparatory reading and thinking, and to participate actively during class. The high level of engagement and interactive classroom pedagogy is aimed at enriching and deepening students' learning, thinking and mastery of a subject, thereby producing confident and articulate graduates.

In line with this focus on student participation, a holistic approach will be adopted for course assessment. Significant emphasis will be given to class participation and presentations, with the weightage of written examinations kept to a maximum of 60%.

Faculty contributions
Faculty regularly appear as amicus curiae before courts in Singapore and overseas. Examples include Gary Chan (tort law), Goh Yihan (contract law), Locknie Hsu (investment arbitration), David Llewelyn (intellectual property), and Yeo Tiong Min (conflict of laws). The faculty have also authored various leading texts regularly cited by the courts, such as The Law of Torts in Singapore by Gary Chan and The Law of Contract in Singapore by Goh Yihan et al.

International moot competitions
Since the launch of its international moots programme in 2010, the school has been to the championship final of the largest and most established international moot court competitions: Jessup (2013 and 2014), Vis (2015 and 2016), Vis East (2015 and 2016), Price (2010, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018), ICC (2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018), Frankfurt (2015 and 2017), IHL (2016), and International Maritime Law Arbitration Moot (2016). As of July 2018, SMU has emerged champions 23 times, 1st-runner-up 22 times, and 2nd-runner-up 19 times in international moot competitions, in addition to winning hundreds of Best Oralist and Best Memorial prizes and 14 national round championships (including five Jessup national titles in the last six years). It set a world record of eight international moot finals in a single season in 2014/15 (winning a world record five), a feat it bettered in 2015/16 when it reached nine international moot finals. It also became the first university in the history of international moots to successfully defend a major moot international title when it won back-to-back championships in the ICC moot in 2015 and 2016; it became the second university to do the same when it won back-to-back championships in the Price moot in 2016 and 2017.

Other international moot achievements

 * Stetson Environmental Law Moot: 2016 regional round semi-finalist
 * DM Harish Moot: 2015 semi-finalist and best oralist (2nd); 2016 octo-finalist
 * 9th St John Street Chambers Moot: First Place (2012) (SMU student on exchange)
 * JustCite Procedural Justice Mooting Shield: First Place (2014) (SMU alumnus on BCL)
 * Asia Pacific M&A: 2017 semi-finalist
 * Cyberweek eMediation: Top Party (2010; 2014)

Most number of international championship finals in a season
SMU set a world record by reaching eight international moot finals in a single season in 2015, a feat it bettered in 2016 when it reached nine finals. It also became the first university to successfully defend a major moot international title when it won back-to-back championships in the ICC moot in 2015 and 2016. It has reached more than five finals in a single season in the following seasons:
 * 9: 2015/16 (Vis East, Vis, Price, IHL, ICC, WTO/FTA, Maritime Asia Cup, Ashurst)
 * 8: 2014/15 (Hague Convention, Asia Cup, LawAsia, Vis East, Vis, Frankfurt, Price, ICC)
 * 6: 2016/17 (LawAsia, Fletcher, Frankfurt, Price, ICC, ALSA)

Most number of international championships in a season
SMU also holds the world record for most number of international moot championships won in a single season (5 in 2014/15). Seasons in which it has won more than three championships in a single season are:
 * 5: 2014/15 (Asia Cup, Hague Convention, LawAsia, Vis East, ICC)
 * 5: 2016/17 (LawAsia, Fletcher, Frankfurt, Price, ALSA)
 * 3: 2015/16 (Price, ICC, WTO/FTA)

Mooters with multiple international championships
A number of SMU students have also earned the rare distinction of having won multiple international championships:
 * Bethel Chan (JD'15): Asia Cup'2014; Vis East'2015 (also a Vis'2015 finalist and Essex-SAL'2017 champion)
 * Chang Zi Qian (LLB'11): Price'2010; Youth for Peace'2011
 * Foo Shihao (LLB'15): LawAsia'2013; ICC'2015
 * Tracy Gani (LLB'18): Price'2017; ICC'2018 (also IHL'2016 finalist)
 * Eden Li (LLB/BBM'16): Asia Cup'2014; Vis East'2015 (also a Vis'2015 finalist and Essex-SAL'2017 finalist)
 * Muz Omar (LLB'16): ALSA'2014; LawAsia'2014
 * Nicolette Oon (LLB'16): Asia Cup'2014; Vis East'2015 (also a Vis'2015 finalist)
 * Saw Teng Sheng (JD'17): ICC'2016; Price'2017
 * Grace Sim (LLB'15): LawAsia'2014; Vis East'2015 (also a Vis'2015 finalist)
 * Jerald Soon (LLB/BBM'16): Asia Cup'2014; Vis East'2015 (also a Vis'2015 finalist)
 * Tan Jun Hong (LLB'16): ALSA'2014; Asia Cup'2014; Vis East'2015 (also a Vis'2015 finalist, Essex-SAL'2017 finalist, and CIArb/New South Wales Young Lawyers Moot'2018 champion)
 * Nanthini Vijayakumar (LLB'15): LawAssia'2013; WTO/FTA'2015 (also a Moot Shanghai'2014 finalist)
 * Samuel Yap (LLB'15): LawAsia'2013; ICC'2015

Head-to-head record for international moots
The table below sets out the head-to-head record and outcomes for international moots that SMU and NUS both took part in in the same year.

Jessup national round head-to-head record
Of the various international moots that Singapore takes part in, only the Asia Cup and Jessup moots have national round requirements. The Jessup national round is administered by the Attorney-General's Chambers, with the Attorney-General presiding for the oral arguments. The first Singapore Jessup national round was held in 2011. As of 2018, SMU has 5 championships, 5 Best Memorial Prizes, and 5 Best Oralist Prizes, while NUS has 3 championships, 3 Best Memorial Prizes, and 4 Best Oralist Prizes.

International writing competitions

 * New York Times Writing Competition: 1st (2017); 2nd (2016)
 * The Living Courthouse Essay Competition: First Place (2009)
 * LexisNexis Rule of Law Essay Competition: 2nd Place (2013)
 * Christopher Bathurst Essay Prize: 3rd Place (2016)
 * YSIAC Essay Competition: 1st Place (2017, 2018)

Local competitions
There are a number of local competitions ranging from moots to law reform that are open to law students from NUS and SMU. Some of the competitions, such as the Mallal and Advocacy Cup, pre-existed SMU and were only open to SMU from 2010 onwards. Other competitions, such as Harry Elias and Duane Morris were initiated at SMU and have been open to NUS as well.

Other local moot achievements

 * Local record for most number of local moots won by a student: Nicholas Liu'15 with 6 (Advo Cup, Attorney-General's Cup, Harry Elias, Howard Hunter, MLAS, WongP)
 * Singapore Legal Forum Moot: First Place (2009)

Howard Hunter Moot
The Howard Hunter Moot, named after the former President of the university, is an internal moot. The list of winners and finalists are as follows.

Law reform
SMU students have given representations at various law reform efforts, including during the Constitutional Commission's hearing on the elected presidency and the Select Committee's hearing on deliberate online falsehoods.

Employment
Based on Graduate Employment Survey statistics provided by the Ministry of Education, the overall employment rate of SMU School of Law graduates in 2017 was 97.6%, with a mean gross monthly salary of $4941. The Supreme Court's Justices' Law Clerk scheme has seen significant representation by SMU School of Law graduates. For instance, six SMU graduates were selected in 2017, which was more than any other law school, and since 2013, the majority of clerks chosen from local graduates has been from SMU. Alumni of the school are also very well-represented in the major law firms and postgraduate studies in leading universities such as Harvard and Oxford.

Bar examinations
SMU School of Law graduates feature regularly as ranked students and/or prize winners in the annual bar examinations (or "Part B"); for instance, in 2016, the top student was an SMU alumnus.

Competitions

 * Essex Court Chambers-Singapore Academy of Law Moot: Champions (2016; 2017); Champions (joint teams with other alumni) (2013; 2014; Best Speaker (2016); Best Memorial (joint team with other alumnus) (2015)
 * Maritime Law Association of Singapore Moot: Champions (2016, 2017), 1st-runner-up (2016)
 * CIArb/New South Wales Young Lawyers Moot: Champions (2018)

International rankings
In the QS World University Rankings by subject, the school was ranked 101–150 for Law and Legal Studies from 2013 to 2016 and 151–200 in 2017 and 2018.

The SMU Law Society and its sub clubs
The SMU Law Society, known as "The Bar", is the student representative body of the SMU School of Law. The Management Committee of The Bar consists of nine elected student leaders. In their year-long term in office, the Committee puts together a slew of fun and unique-to-law events against a backdrop of professional and academic development initiatives.

Constitutional Law and Criminal Justice Club
The Club was founded in early 2012 by a group of students passionate about giving SMU students opportunities to learn more about the criminal law practice. As many students do not have much exposure to this area of law apart from in class, few have a proper idea of what criminal law in practice is like.

International Relations Club
The SMU Law International Relations Club strives to forge and strengthen ties between SMU law students and the international law student community. Club activities include legal discourse, moots and even Mock UN conferences, allowing both conservative and progressive opinions to develop at an international level.

Law Outreach Club
The SMU Law Outreach Club was established by The Bar and the executive committee of the old Pro Bono Club. The Law Outreach Club aims to contribute to the community in aspects beyond pro bono work, and helps to facilitate activities such as the Ministry of Education Moot Parliament Programme and the NUS–SMU "In Session" Dialogue Series. The Club invites students to propose initiatives of service to the community.

Moot Court Club
Established in 2007, SMU Moot Court Club was formed to facilitate the development of mooting in SMU School of Law. During the course of the semester, the Club helps to organise various domestic moot competitions that are open to all law students.

Corporate and Commercial Law Club
Established in 2015, this club aims to provide the SMU Law student body with valuable opportunities to connect with leading practitioners in various fields. Through such interactions, students will get to hone their various interests, as well as have a better sense of what to expect from real-world corporate and commercial practice.

SMU Law Athletes Club
SMU Law Athletes (SMULA) was officially made a sub-club of the Bar in 2012. Some of the highlights for SMULA include the Captain's Ball League; exploratory runs around the city; conducting multiple sports clinics; and tasting gold in the inter-faculty category of SMUX AdRace 2012, a gruelling 40 km overnight adventure race.

Lexicon
Lexicon is an online law blog and journal featuring legal commentaries by students and alumni.