UK Signs Singapore Convention: What Do I Need To Know?

• Law Firm: Norton Rose Fulbright
• Subject Matter: International Law, Litigation, Mediation & Arbitration, International Trade & Investment, Arbitration & Dispute Resolution
• Author: Andrew Judkins
• Published date: 31 May 2023

On 3 May 2023, the UK signed the United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation, known as the Singapore Convention.

What is the Singapore Convention?

The Singapore Convention is an international treaty created by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), which provides an international framework for the enforcement of settlement agreements resulting from mediation. The broad context and purpose of the Convention is to promote the use of mediation to resolve international commercial disputes by providing a harmonised and expedited enforcement regime. The Singapore Convention is intended to be complementary to the New York Convention (which provides for the enforcement of arbitral awards) and the Hague Convention on Choice of Court Agreements (which provides for the enforcement of judgments given pursuant to an exclusive jurisdiction clause).

How many countries have signed/ratified the Singapore Convention?

The Singapore Convention was signed by its initial signatories in August 2019. To date, 56 countries have signed the Singapore Convention, and of these, 11 have also ratified.

The GDP of signatories is equivalent to roughly 50% of global GDP and include (signatories only) the United States, China, India, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Israel, the Republic of Korea, Nigeria, Australia (ratified) Turkey and Singapore. The Convention has not yet been signed by any EU member states.

When does the Singapore Convention come into force?

The Convention came into force on 12 September 2020 and has effect in a Contracting State six months after ratification. The implementation of the Singapore Convention in the UK will require legislation to be passed, including changes to procedural rules. This means, depending on exactly when the UK ratifies the Convention, it is likely to come into force in the UK at some point in 2024.

Settlement agreements are already enforceable under contract law. What difference will the Singapore Convention make?

In order to enforce a settlement agreement that is subject to English law/English courts' jurisdiction, a party may need to issue a claim for breach of contract, obtain a judgment (either following a trial on the merits or, more commonly, an application for summary judgment) and then enforce the judgment. In some cases, a party may be able to...