Slide 1

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 2

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 3

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 4

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 5

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 6

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 7

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 8

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 9

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 10

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 11

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 12

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 13

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 14

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 15

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 16

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 17

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 18

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 19

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 20

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 21

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 22

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 23

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 24

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 25

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 26

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 27

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 28

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 29

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 30

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 31

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 32

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 33

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 34

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 35

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 36

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 37

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 38

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 39

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 40

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 41

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 42

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 43

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 44

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 45

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 46

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 47

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015


Slide 48

Singapore
Resources
Presentation by Carol Wee & Lee Su-Lin
25 May 2015

This tutorial serves as a basic introduction
to Singapore law.
The focus will be on Singapore’s primary
sources of law.

2

Contents
• The Singapore Legal System p.4
• Sources of Law p.5
– Primary sources
– Secondary sources
• Legislation p.8
– The legislative process
– Amendments to Acts
– Where to find it
– How to read it
• Case Law p.26
– Singapore courts
– Law reports
– Case citation
– Neutral citation
– How to find it
• Our Library Guides p.47

3

The Singapore Legal System
The roots of Singapore's legal system can be traced back to the
English legal system.

It has evolved over the years - whilst English common law has had a
heavy influence on the development of Singapore law in certain
traditional common law areas, other jurisdictions such as India and
Australia have strongly influenced the content of some of our
statutes.
For example,
• Corporate law – modern Companies Act has origins in Companies
Act 1961 of Victoria, Australia
• Criminal law – based on Indian Penal Code
• Land law – predecessor to Land Titles Act was modelled on
NSW Real Property Act 1900.
4

Sources of Law

Sources

Primary

Secondary
5

Primary Sources
Primary sources of law are authoritative records of
law made by the law-making bodies of Singapore.
The 2 main primary sources are:
1. Legislation
• Statutes
• Subsidiary legislation
• Quasi-legislation
2. Case Law
Decisions of the Singapore courts.

6

Secondary Sources
Secondary sources refer and relate to the law, but are not themselves
sources of law. These include:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Textbooks, casebooks, etc.
Legal encyclopaedias
Legal journals & law reviews
Research literature. E.g. Theses
Reference works. E.g. Dictionaries, directories, bibliographies,
digests, citators, indexes, etc.

Secondary sources assist in
• locating relevant primary sources of law
• the interpretation of relevant primary sources.
7

Legislation
2 main sources of legislation in Singapore today:
I. Statutes of the Republic
of Singapore
(primary legislation)

II. Subsidiary Legislation of
the Republic of Singapore
(secondary legislation)

8

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The legislative power of Singapore is vested in the Legislature.

President
The
President

Legislature

Parliament of
Singapore
9

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

The Legislature enacts laws - Acts of Parliament.
Acts begin life as Bills - drafted by the Legislation Division, Attorney-General's Chambers.
The Bills Supplement is
published as part of the
Government Gazette.
The Explanatory
Statement is found at the
back of the Bill –
useful for research as it
explains the content and
purpose of the Bill.

E.g. Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill 2013
10

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Bills are introduced in Parliament and must pass
three readings.
A Bill becomes law (i.e. an Act) when it is
• passed by Parliament
• assented to by the President.
But an Act only comes into force on a date
• determined by the Minister
• notified by Commencement Notification in the
Government Gazette.

11

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

Attorney-General’s Chambers
Drafting and Vetting
Government bill
Parliament
Introduction/
First Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

*Second Reading
•
Bill
•
Parliamentary debate

Committee Stage

Third Reading
• Bill
• Parliamentary debate

Presidential Council for Minority Rights
Bill

Committee of the
Select Committee
whole House
• Bill
• Bill
• Select Committee report
• Parliamentary debate

Government Printer
Gazetting
Act

Presidential Assent
Bill to Act

12

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

*E.g. Second reading of the Fire Safety (Amendment) Bill (No.1/2013)
Second reading of bill is of
particular importance contains discussion of the
motion moved by the Minister
and is usually the most
substantial debate that takes
place.
So,

• used in legal research to
understand the motivation
or purpose of a bill
• useful for statutory
interpretation.
13

Legislative Process

I. Statutes

For details on the legislative process, refer to the following websites:
• Attorney-General’s Chambers of Singapore, The Legislative Process,
https://www.agc.gov.sg/What_We_Do/Legislation_and_Law_Reform
_Division/The_legislative_process.aspx
• Parliament of Singapore, How are Laws Made?
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/sites/default/files/Edu%20Factsht%20
6%20-How%20are%20Laws%20Made%20%282012%29.pdf

14

Legislative Process
II. Subsidiary Legislation
Acts usually confer power on the Minister in charge to
make subsidiary legislation.
E.g. Central Provident Fund Act (Cap. 36, 2013 Rev. Ed.)
Various regulations, rules and orders have been made
under the Act –
from regulations that cover use of CPF funds for
housing and medical fees to rules on nomination of
persons upon death of the CPF account holder.

15

Amendments to Acts
Principal Act

Amendments

Consolidation
of amendments

Consolidated Version of Act
(available in Singapore Statutes Online)
Substantial
amendments
to Act

Revised Edition of Act
Act Supplement

Subsidiary Legislation
Supplement

Note: authoritative version
(available in print; a few in LawNet)

Bill
• Parliamentary debate
•

16

Amendments to Acts
Earlier Revised Editions of the Singapore Statutes

1955 Rev. Ed.

1970 Rev. Ed.

1985 Rev. Ed.
17

Amendments to Acts
Note: The Acts supplement and subsidiary legislation supplement are part of
the Government Gazette which is divided into a few other sections:

Government Gazette

Main

Acts
supplement

Subsidiary
legislation
supplement

Bills
supplement

Industrial
relations
supplement

Treaties
supplement

Supplement

18

Where to Find It
The following tables only provide information on current/modern sources of legislation.
For historical sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory

Source

Location

Statutes (Revised edition)

Print: K7399 (year)
Online: LawNet (a selection in PDF)

Statutes (Consolidated/Current version)

Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

Subsidiary Legislation (Revised edition)

Print: K7449 1990

Subsidiary Legislation (Consolidated/Current version) Online: 1) Singapore Statutes Online
2) LawNet

19

Where to Find It
Source

Location

Bills

Print: K7499 SB
Online: Parliament of Singapore

Parliamentary Debates
(Singapore Parliament Reports/Hansard)

Print: J618 SLAD

Select Committee Reports

Print: K7524 …

Online: Parliament of Singapore

Online: Parliament of Singapore
Government Gazette

Online: eGazette

20

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act
2007 Rev Ed
Title of Act
Chapter No.
Original Act
Previous
Rev. Eds.

Previous Rev. Eds.
amended by
Acts Supplements

Current Rev. Ed.
Date current
Rev. Ed. came
into effect
21

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Access: Singapore Statutes Online http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/
Search for the Act

or browse the alphabetical list
22

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Click on relevant Act

23

How to Read It
E.g. Computer Misuse Act (Current Version)
Amendments
after 2007
Click on slider
to see legislative
history
The name of
the Act was
amended by
Act 3 of 2013

24

References
For details on statutory laws in general:
•
Helena H.M. Chan, The Legal System of Singapore (Singapore: Butterworths, 1995).
Ref: KE5020 Cha
•

Robert C. Beckman, Brady S. Coleman & Joel Lee, Case Analysis and Statutory Interpretation, 2nd ed.
(Singapore: Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, 2001).
Ref: KE5280 Bec

For detailed historical accounts of Singapore statutes:
•
Elizabeth Srinivasagam, comp., Tables of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1819-1971
(Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1972).
Ref: K7574 1971
•

G.W. Bartholomew, Elizabeth Srnivasagam & Pasca Baylon Netto, Sesquicentennial Chronological Tables
of the Written Laws of the Republic of Singapore 1834-1984 (Singapore: Malaya Law Review, 1987).
Ref: K7574 1984

•

Michael F. Rutter, The Applicable Law in Singapore and Malaysia: a Guide to Reception, Precedent and
the Sources of Law in the Republic of Singapore and the Federation of Malaysia (Singapore: Malayan
Law Journal, 1989).
Ref: KE5020 Rut
25

Case Law

Case law – the law as established by the decisions of courts.
Stare decisis – principle of English law by which precedents are
authoritative and binding.

26

Singapore Courts
Supreme Court
Court of Appeal
High Court

State Courts

District Courts

Magistrates’ Courts

Coroners’ Court

Family Justice Courts

Family Division of the High Court

Family Courts

Youth Courts

Small Claims Tribunal
27

Law Reports
Law reports are the published judgments of court
cases.
Cases are only selected for reporting if they raise or
expand upon significant points of law.
Therefore, only a small proportion of cases are
reported, and these are mainly from the Supreme
Court (i.e. High Court and Court of Appeal).

28

Law Reports
I. Singapore Law Reports
The principle law report series in Singapore is the
Singapore Law Reports. It covers cases from 1965.

Ref: K7599 SLR (1965-1991); K7599 SLR (1992-)
29

Law Reports
II. Singapore Law Reports (Reissue)
The Singapore Academy of Law re-issued the
Singapore Law Reports from 1965 through
2009 with re-written headnotes for the reports
from 1965 to 2002, and re-edited judgment
texts to conform with the SAL house-style.
This set of reports is called the Singapore
Law Reports (Reissue).
Both the original SLR volumes from 1965 to
2002, and the Reissue are equally
authoritative as each judgment reported in
both remains in substance, though not in
form, the same. Ref: K7599 SLR
30

Law Reports
III. Malayan Law
The other law report series which is the majorJournal
source of
reported Singapore court decisions from 1931 to 1991
is the Malayan Law Journal.

Ref: K7599 MLJ
31

Law Reports
IV. Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports
The Singapore Syariah Appeals Reports is the official
report series of grounds of decisions delivered by the
Syariah Appeal Board between 1980 and 2010.

Ref: K7599 SSC
32

Law Reports
V. Discontinued law reports
The following table only shows a selection of historical law reports. All reports are
available via LawNet.
For more sources, refer to the LibGuide on Historical Sources of Singapore Law:
http://libguides.nus.edu.sg/SGlawhistory
Title

Abbreviation

Publication date

Ref

Kyshe’s Reports

Ky

1885-1890

K7596 Ky

Straits Law Reports

SLR Leic

1877

K7596 SLR

Straits Law Journal

SLJ

1888-1892

K7596 SLJ

Straits Settlements Law Reports

SSLR

1893-1931 (old series)

K7596 SSLR

1927-1950 (new series)

K7596 SSLR

1950-1951

K7599 SLR

1954-1957

K7599 SLR

Singapore Law Reports
Colony of Singapore Law Reports

SLR

33

Law Reports
VI. Unreported judgments
Full text transcripts of written judgments as handed down
in the State Courts, High Court and Court of Appeal.
Available online via LawNet .
Earlier judgments are available in print in the law library:
Ref: K7599 CA (Court of Appeal, Civil Appeals)
K7599 CRA (Court of Appeal, Criminal Appeals)
K7599 DC (District Court)
K7599 J (High Court)
K7599 MC (Magistrates’ Court)

34

Law Reports
VII. Decisions of Boards/Tribunals
Decisions include those of the
• Appeals Board (Land Acquisition)
• Copyright Tribunals
• Income Tax Board of Review
• Intellectual Property Office of Singapore
• Military Court of Appeal
• Strata Titles Boards.
Most of decisions are not readily available in print.

Available online via LawNet.

35

Case Citation
Case citation - reference to a legal case in the law reports.
Generally includes the
• names of the parties to the case
• year the decision of the court was delivered or published
• volume number of the law report
• abbreviation of the law report series
• first page at which the case is reported.
Example
Anwar Siraj and Another v Ting Kang Chung John [2010] 1 SLR 1026

36

Neutral Citation
The neutral citation includes
• names of the parties to the case
•

year of the court decision
jurisdiction/level of court

•

sequential number

•

paragraph number(s)

•

Court designators include
SGCA – Singapore Court of Appeal
SGHC – Singapore High Court
SGDC – Singapore District Court
SGMC – Singapore Magistrates’ Court

Example
Public Prosecutor v Nguyen Tuong Van [2004] SGHC 54, [1]

37

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172
Step 1:
Find out what law
report the abbreviation
stands for by checking
an index to legal
abbreviations
e.g. SSLR

Step 2:
Search LINC for the
specific law report to
determine its location
in the library

38

How to Find It
I. Print

Step 1
Find out what “SSLR” in the citation stands for by consulting an
index to legal abbreviations.

For law reports of Singapore, use Singapore Legal Abbreviations,
published by the C J Koh Law Library.
The index shows that
SSLR stands for the
Straits Settlements
Law Reports

39

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Step 2
Search for the law report in LINC

40

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

41

How to Find It
I. Print
E.g. Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong [1929] SSLR 172

Once you obtain the law report, turn to page 172 for the case.

42

How to Find It

II. Online

You may also obtain Singapore cases from full text databases.
Databases are particularly useful when you only have partial citations:
•

LawNet
The only database that contains a comprehensive collection of
Singapore cases

•

Lexis Singapore
Contains Singapore cases reported in the Malayan Law Journal
from 1931 to 1991

43

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
After login, select:

1. Legal Research
2.Cases
3. Click Simple Search.
Enter name of party
and year case was
heard

5. SEARCH

4. Select “all of the
words” from
drop down menu

44

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua

Select relevant case.
Note: Case heard in 2010
but only reported in 2012

45

How to Find It

II. Online

E.g. Find the case heard in 2010 where one party was Ng Swee Hua
Click here for PDF

46

Our Library Guides
On the C J Koh Law Library homepage:

Law LibGuides

Free Internet
sources for law,
esp. SG
47

The End
For feedback, send an email to: [email protected]

Updated 26 May 2015
© C J Koh Law Library 2015