On 9 December 2024, Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) officially released the 7th Edition of the SIAC Arbitration Rules (SIAC Rules 2025), which will come into force on 1 January 2025. These updates have been anticipated since the first public consultation draft was released in August 2023, and reflect SIAC’s steps to address global concerns of time and costs in international arbitration.
Given SIAC’s position as the second most preferred arbitral institution globally and the rise of Singapore as the top global hub for international arbitration, these updates have the potential for wide-reaching impacts and may lead other institutions to adopt similar changes. In particular, the SIAC Rules 2025 expand several provisions that SIAC views as hallmarks of its administration, as well as introduce new procedures aimed at combatting lengthy and costly proceedings. Additionally, SIAC has refined other provisions such as the disclosures around the scrutiny of draft award and third-party funding arrangements to increase transparency and predictability.
The authors – both former members of the SIAC Secretariat – reflect on the path that SIAC has taken since the introduction of the 6th Edition of the SIAC Rules which have been in effect since 1 April 2016 (SIAC Rules 2016), and some of the key provisions of most interest to users of SIAC arbitration in the future.
