Arthur Yap
Arthur was called to the Singapore Bar in 2007.
Prior to reading law, he graduated from the National University of Singapore in 2003 with a degree in Chemical Engineering and was awarded First Class Honours. He thereafter enrolled in law school also at the National University of Singapore where he was awarded several academic accolades including overall Dean's List in 2006.
With a strong technical foundation and a passion for law, he began his career in intellectual property litigation and quickly found his niche in intellectual property disputes, including trademark, passing off, and copyright, but it was in the field of patents (novelty and infringement analysis) where his background and training came in particularly useful.
He thereafter expanded his practice area to construction disputes where once again, his technical background proved useful in marrying the bridge between the experts' technical knowledge and the law for easier understanding and appreciation by the courts. With his client network expanded, he also began practicing in commercial litigation and arbitration, including shareholder disputes, minority oppression, employment and commodities disputes.
Key Practice Areas
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Corporate commercial disputes
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Commodities disputes
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Construction disputes (acted for both owner/developer, main contractor and sub contractor)
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Real estate disputes (acted for both landlord and tenant, encroachment of property etc)
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Intellectual property disputes
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Insolvency disputes
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Employment disputes
Arthur is a strong believer of life long learning and reciprocates this belief by actively teaching and imparting his knowledge and skills. He has been teaching advocacy as a trainer for students taking the Singapore bar exam since 2011 and has recently been appointed onto the Law Society of Singapore's Advocacy Committee 2025.
His approach to dispute resolution is guided strongly by the mantra - the most cost-efficient strategy to resolve a dispute without compromising on quality and his client's position. Simply put, resorting to litigation or arbitration (as the case may be) should be the recourse of last resort. This approach has led to the successful resolution of many disputes without the need for expensive and time-consuming litigation; although he would not shy away from the courts if the strategy demands it.
On a similar note, he has also begun promoting an additional service, that of dispute avoidance. Unlike dispute resolution, dispute avoidance is an area of practice where he advises clients on proactive measures to minimise the risk of disputes / conflicts from arising.
QUALIFICATIONS AND APPOINTMENTS
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Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical), National University of Singapore (2003)
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LLB (Hons), National University of Singapore (2006)
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Advocate and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Singapore (2007)
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Fellow of Singapore Institute of Arbitrators
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SIAC Panel of Arbitrators (IP)