On 14th September 2011, the Singapore Exchange (SGX) announced amendments to the Listing Manual to strengthen corporate governance practices and to foster greater corporate disclosure. RHT Law LLP conducted 2 briefing sessions on 7th October 2011 (Friday) to update clients on the recent changes to the Listing Manual. The firm received overwhelming interest of 38 listed companies and more than 90 attendees who are Board members, Audit Committee members, CEOs, CFOs, Company Secretaries, and other managerial level delegates. Speaker Chew Kok Liang, Corporate & Securities Partner of RHT Law, shared that the changes to the listing manual rules show a shift in focus from imposing too onerous obligations on Independent Directors to one that emphasizes the importance of internal controls, and the Board and Audit Committee's responsibilities in that regard. The session also saw industry veterans Mr Irving Low, Head of Governance, Risk & Compliance Services of KPMG Advisory, and Ms Linda Hoon, Senior Vice President and Group Company Secretary, Head of Management Practice, Group Legal, Compliance and Secretariat of DBS Group Holdings Ltd. join RHT Law's Partners Tan Chong Huat, Lawrence Wong, and Ch'ng Li-Ling of the Corporate & Securities Practice, in a 1 hour panel session to discuss the impact of these changes on listed companies in Singapore. Ms Linda Hoon shared lessons from the recent UBS rogue trading case to raise pointers on how listed companies and financial institutions can strengthen internal controls to mitigate the risk of similar incidents happening in their organisation. She also shared her views on how an organisation and its board members can comply with the "SIPS" (Spirit, Intent, Purpose, Substance) of the Listing Rules, where the focus is no longer on following the black letter of the law, but by abiding by the SIPS. Mr Irving Low gave his risk management perspectives on the importance for an organisation to identify its most significant risks and setting frameworks to mitigate various types of risks that organisations may face in times of economic uncertainties or financial difficulties. He also raised from a governance point of view, how companies can deal with 'key man' risks, and clearly spell out the roles and responsibilities of a CEO, using the case study of Apple and Steve Jobs' demise to highlight the importance of succession planning. The full set of amendments can be found at: http://rulebook.sgx.com/net_file_store/new_rulebooks/s/g/SGX_Mainboard_rules_September_29_2011_amended2.pdf

RHT Law warmly welcomes Partner Mr Ung Gim Sei into our Intellectual Property & Technology Practice. Mr Ung Gim Sei is an experienced journalist with about 27 years in the Media industry under his belt. He has held appointments of: Managing Director of the now defunct Nanyang Siang Pau; Group General Manager, Chinese Newspapers Division, Singapore Press Holdings; Management of Hong Kong Sing Tao Newspapers Group which publishes the Chinese Sing Tao Daily and the English Hong Kong Standard; and Management of a daily newspaper published in Shenzhen, China Mr Ung pursued a Graduate Diploma in Singapore Law at NUS in 2002 after his retirement from the media business. He also holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Singapore, a Common Professional Examination in Law from London and a LLM from the City University of Hong Kong. He was awarded PBM by the Singapore Government in 1986 for his effort in cultural promotion.

RHT Law congratulates RHT Corporate Advisory Pte. Ltd. on being appointed as the corporate secretarial agent by Renewable Energy Asia Group Limited (“REA”), a Catalist listed company. REA was incorporated in Bermuda and was listed in Catalist in 2008. REA is an integrated renewable energy company specialising in investments in wind power generation and associated infrastructure, with access to both onshore and offshore wind resource reserves. Mr Chew Kok Liang and Ms Sally Loh have been appointed as the Company Secretaries with effect from 5 October 2011. RHT Capital Pte. Ltd. has been the appointed continuing sponsor of REA since 8 September 2011.

RHT Law LLP has been officially appointed as the newest member of The Interlex Group. As the exclusive Singapore member of Interlex, RHT Law joins a network of leading law firms around the world to provide a complete range of international legal and business services to clients. With the admission to Interlex, RHT Law's Managing Partner Tan Chong Huat comments: "The nomination and support of the Interlex Board is a testament to the dedication and caliber of our lawyers and legal professionals. I am excited at the opportunity presented to further our goal to be a local international law firm, and look forward to working closely with the Interlex member firms to further our business, our clients' business, and the interests of Interlex as a whole." The Interlex Group® is an association of leading law firms around the world that cooperate to provide a complete range of international legal and business services to clients. Since its founding in 1973, Interlex® has grown and prospered. Interlex members take great pride in the quality and promptness of the services they provide, and attribute such high standards to the strict criteria employed in the selection of member firms. Interlex currently consists of 45 firms, across 145 cities in 58 countries.