Keith Mack
There are many ways to research Singapore case law. The Singapore Academy of Law publishes the Singapore Law Reports, which include judgments from the Supreme Court. The Singapore Law Reports are also available online from 1965 onwards. The main database for Singapore cases is LawNet, which provides free access to judgments from the Family Justice Court, Juvenile Court, State Courts, and Supreme Court for the last three months. The National University of Singapore's library guides also recommend using the Singapore Legal Abbreviations index to identify the legal abbreviation in a case citation. Other resources for researching Singapore case law include the Malayan Law Journal, Singapore Law Watch, and the Commonwealth Legal Information Institute (CommonLII).
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Main database for Singapore cases | LawNet |
| Main law report for Singapore from 1965 | Singapore Law Reports |
| Main law report for Singapore judgments from 1932 to 1991 | Malayan Law Journal |
| Database containing Singapore and Malaysian tax cases | War crimes case files, Second World War: WO 235 |
| Singapore court judgments for the last 3 months | Family Justice Court and Juvenile Court State Courts Supreme Court |
| Singapore court judgments from 2000 | Supreme Court |
| Singapore court judgments from 2006 | District Court of Singapore |
| Singapore court judgments from 2018 | Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) and Personal Data Protection Commission (PDPC) |
| Singapore Legislation, Case Law, Secondary materials, Parliamentary Reports and Treaties | Thomson Reuters Westlaw |
| English law reports | HeinOnline and CommonLII |
| Chinese & English-language versions of all the relevant documents for legal research in China | Chinalawinfo.com |
| English cases reported before 1865 | HeinOnline and CommonLII |
| English cases from 1220 to 1865 | The English Reports, Full Reprint |
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What You'll Learn
Singapore Law Reports (SLR)
The Singapore Law Reports (SLR) are published by the Singapore Academy of Law (SAL) and are considered the main law report for Singapore. They are available on LawNet, which provides free access to judgments from the Family Justice Court, Juvenile Court, State Courts, and Supreme Court from the last three months.
The SLR first went online in 1998, published by Butterworths Asia, and were then uploaded by the LawNet team. The print copies were published fortnightly from 2003, and the files were shared with the LawNet team for online publication. Now, the same team publishes the SLR for both print and online versions.
The SLR includes judgments from the Singapore Supreme Court and State Courts of Singapore, as well as decisions from special tribunals. It is considered a great honour for lawyers to have a case they fought reported in the SLR. The SLR is also used as a reference in LawNet's pleadings database, giving lawyers access to quality pleadings selected by judges.
The Singapore Law Reports (Reissue) refers to the original SLR volumes from 1965 to 2002. Both the original and the Reissue are considered equally authoritative, as the substance of the judgments remains the same. The Reissue features rewritten headnotes for reports from 1965 to 2009 and reedited judgment texts that conform to the SAL house style.
The task of selecting which judgments are worth reporting falls to a selection panel of nine legal professionals, including senior legal officers and academics. This ensures that consistent principles are applied when deciding which cases are important for Singapore's jurisprudence.
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Malayan Law Journal (MLJ)
The Malayan Law Journal (MLJ) is the main law report for Singapore judgments from 1932 to 1965. It is available in print and online. The print version can be found at the National University of Singapore (NUS) with the call number K7599 MLJ. The online version is available on LawNet for NUS Law staff and students, as well as other NUS staff and students. It can also be accessed on Lexis Advance Singapore.
The MLJ is a series of law reports that provide full-text reports of cases and summaries of judgments from the Federal Court, the Court of Appeal, and High Courts. Each bound volume includes tables and indexes to help users find relevant cases quickly. The reports are presented with catchwords, headnotes summarising judgments, and annotations of all cases and legislation mentioned in the judgments.
The MLJ is a valuable resource for those researching Singapore case law, particularly for cases before 1965. It provides a comprehensive overview of the legal landscape during that period and is a useful starting point for understanding the evolution of Singapore's legal system.
In addition to the MLJ, researchers may also find it useful to refer to other resources, such as the Singapore Law Reports (SLR), which is the main law report for Singapore from 1965 onwards. The SLR is also available in print and online through similar avenues as the MLJ.
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LawNet
In addition to Singaporean case law, LawNet also provides access to UK Law Reports (ICLR) and the Weekly Law Reports. For UK cases after 1865, other databases that can be used include Westlaw, Lexis Advance, and BAILII, which is a free internet site. For English cases reported before 1865, HeinOnline and CommonLII are the recommended databases.
For those interested in Chinese and Malaysian law, Chinalawinfo.com and the CLJ Law Database of Malaysia are available. Chinalawinfo.com provides access to Chinese and English-language versions of legal research documents in China, including legislation, case law, and selected journals. The CLJ Law Database of Malaysia, on the other hand, contains the full text of all Malaysian cases and federal acts, as well as links to free legal directories.
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Commonwealth Legal Information Institute (CommonLII)
The Commonwealth Legal Information Institute (CommonLII) is a useful resource for researching Singapore case law. It contains selected case decisions of the District Court, Magistrates' Court, and the Supreme Court, with varying dates of coverage.
CommonLII is particularly helpful for accessing older English law reports, as it provides access to cases from England decided before 1865, along with HeinOnline.
In addition to case law, CommonLII also includes some primary and secondary legislation, as well as treaties. This makes it a valuable resource for researching a range of legal topics related to Singapore.
It is important to note that CommonLII is just one of several resources available for researching Singapore case law. Other resources, such as LawNet, Lexis Advance, and Westlaw, may also be useful, depending on the specific information you are seeking. Utilizing a variety of resources can help ensure a comprehensive understanding of Singapore case law.
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Singapore Law Watch
SLW also offers permanent access to Supreme Court judgments from 2000 onwards and IPOS and PDPC decisions from 2018 onwards. Additionally, SLW provides access to the Singapore Academy of Law's re-issued Singapore Law Reports from 1965 to 2009, which include re-written headnotes and edited judgment texts.
When searching for a specific case, it is helpful to have the case citation, which will tell you where to find the case. For example, a case citation like [*Salmah v Chop Chin Guan Hong* [1929] SSLR 172] indicates that the case can be found in the Straits Settlements Law Reports (SSLR) from 1929, on page 172. You can then follow these steps to locate the report:
- Identify the legal abbreviation in the citation using an index. For Singapore cases, the Singapore Legal Abbreviations index is recommended.
- Run a Title Search for the law report in LINC.
- Select the relevant title from the results list.
- Determine the location of the relevant volume.
- Retrieve the volume and turn to the specified page number.
Additionally, SLW provides access to online databases such as LawNet, which offers free access to judgments from the Family Justice Court, Juvenile Court, State Courts, and Supreme Court for the last three months. Other databases accessible through SLW include Thomson Reuters Westlaw, which provides a unique collection of legal and regulatory information, and Chinalawinfo.com, which offers English-language resources for legal research in China.
In summary, Singapore Law Watch is a comprehensive resource for researching Singapore case law, offering access to a wide range of databases, reports, and judgments. By utilising the tools and resources available on SLW, individuals can effectively locate and access the information they need for their legal research.
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Frequently asked questions
Singapore case law can be found on the official website of the Singapore Judiciary, which provides judgments and case summaries from the year 2000 onwards. Singapore Law Watch is another free legal news service that provides judgments and decisions from the Supreme Court, the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore, and the Personal Data Protection Commission.
LawNet is Singapore's one-stop portal for legal information, providing free access to judgments of the Family Justice Court, Juvenile Court, State Courts, and Supreme Court for the last three months. Other databases that provide access to Singapore case law include Thomson Reuters Westlaw, Singapore Law Reports, Malayan Law Journal, and the Commonwealth Legal Information Institute (CommonLII).
To cite Singapore case law, you will need to identify the legal abbreviation in the citation using an index. For Singapore cases, the recommended index is the Singapore Legal Abbreviations index. Once you have identified the abbreviation, you can run a title search in LINC and select the relevant title from the results list to determine the location of the volume.
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