NEWS

Law Society's Visit to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

In the June 2006 issue of the Singapore Law Gazette, a report on the Law Society's successful visit to India in April 2006 was published. In the same issue, an article on Vietnam was also published, albeit on its rising status amongst the regional economies. It was, therefore, no coincidence that the International Relations Committee ('IRC') decided on Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam for its next overseas visit.

This visit, like the one to India in 2006, was planned with a strong commercial focus, and intended to assist our members to meet and be briefed by Vietnamese government departments and regulatory bodies in Ho Chi Minh City to learn more about the regulatory framework, investment policies and opportunities in Vietnam. Like any of the Law Society's visits overseas, it also provided opportunities for members to network with the legal fraternity in Vietnam.

The delegation was led by Mr Michael Hwang SC, the President of the Law Society, and comprised the Chairman of the IRC, Mr Philip Jeyaretnam SC; the CEO of the Law Society; 12 lawyers from small, mid-size and large firms; and a representative from the Singapore Chamber of Maritime Arbitration.

The visit was scheduled for two days from 20 to 21 August 2008.

Visits to the Various Departments and Organisations
On 20 August 2008, the delegation paid a visit to the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry ('VCCI'). VCCI is a national organisation, representing the interests of the business communities in Vietnam. It also seeks to promote the development of business enterprises and to offer assistance to its members seeking investment abroad. Our delegation was received and briefed by Mr Nguyen The Hung, the Deputy General Director of VCCI.

Of keen interest to most members of the delegation was the state of the Vietnam economy, which is currently battling high inflation rates. Mr Nguyen informed that despite the high inflation, foreign direct investment in the country remains high this year, with Singapore-based companies being one of the biggest groups of investors. He also briefed the delegation on the reforms implemented in Vietnam since joining the World Trade Organisation in early 2007.

The delegation next visited one of the largest Vietnamese law practices - Invest Consult Group. The firm's Vice Chairman, Mr Ngo Sy Anh, and the Deputy Managing Director of its Southern Regional Office, Ms Tran Thi Xuan Hieu, hosted the delegation. Mr Ngo briefed the delegation on the day to day running of a Vietnamese law practice and the requirements for a lawyer to qualify to practise in Vietnam.

On the second day, the delegation visited the Department of Justice in Ho Chi Minh City. The delegation was received by Mr Nguyen Duc Chinh, the Director of the Department of Justice, Ho Chi Minh City and Ms Phan Thi Binh Thuan, Manager of the Judicial Supporting Division. The delegation was briefed by Ms Phan on the legal system, its role in the registration of local and foreign lawyers and the disciplinary process for lawyers. The delegation learnt of the tremendous rate of growth of lawyers in Ho Chi Minh City - from about 680 lawyers in 2003 to 3,800 lawyers to date (including trainee lawyers).This is a tremendous growth of about 3,100 lawyers over a short span of five years. Then again, if one considers the rise of Vietnam's economy as one of the fastest growing in the world in the last few years, perhaps this is not so surprising after all.

The Director, in his address, expressed his hope that there could some form of co-operation between the two legal professions, particularly since the two countries had signed a Memorandum of Understanding on legal and judicial co-operation earlier this year between the Ministry of Justice of Vietnam and our Ministry of Law. The delegation agreed to explore this in detail.

The meeting was also joined by three Vietnamese lawyers. They briefed the delegation, from the practitioner's perspective, on the role of lawyers in the judicial and legal system.

The delegation also learned that generally, in the majority of commercial agreements between foreign and Vietnamese parties arbitration is preferred to litigation and generally the preferred arbitration centre was the Singapore International Arbitration Centre.

In the afternoon of the second day, a talk was conducted by Mr Benjamin Yap, the resident partner of Kelvin Chia Partnership's office in Ho Chi Minh City, on 'opening a law office in Vietnam and the difficulties encountered'. This was followed by a presentation by Ms Kathy Bui, from KhattarWong's office in Ho Chi Minh City, on 'The role of foreign law firms in Vietnam - how foreign law firms can participate in Vietnam's legal landscape'. Members of the delegation took the opportunity to ask questions ranging from legal practice to life in Vietnam in general. The afternoon ended with a meeting with Mr Jimmy Chua, the Singapore Consular General in Ho Chi Minh City; Ms Chiong Woan Shin, Consul (Commercial); and Mr Jason Lim, the Centre Director of International Enterprise Singapore.

Presidents of the Law Associations of Asia Conference 2008
This visit to Vietnam was planned to coincide with the Presidents of the Law Associations of Asia ('POLA') Conference 2008 hosted by the Ho Chi Minh City Bar Association from 22 to 23 August 2008. The delegation members were graciously invited to participate in the conference as observers and were also invited to the conference dinner hosted by Madam Pham Phuong Thao, the Chairwoman of the People's Council of Ho Chi Minh City, at the Reunification Palace, a historic building in Ho Chi Minh City.
The delegation members observed, during the two-day POLA Conference, a robust discussion on legal reform and continuing legal education from the various the Bar leaders, comprising 15 countries from the Asia and Pacific region and four International Bar Associations.

A Word of Thanks
The IRC is grateful for the assistance of Mr Benjamin Yap of Kelvin Chia Partnership who took time away from his busy schedule to assist the Society in organising the visit.

The IRC is also grateful to Ms Kathy Bui of KhattarWong (Ho Chi Minh City Office); Mr Jimmy Chua, the Singapore Consular General in Ho Chi Minh City; Ms Chiong Woan Shin, Consul (Commercial); and Mr Jason Lim, the Centre Director of International Enterprise Singapore, for their presentations.

The participants of this visit are Jeannette Aruldoss, Eve Lyn Phang, Dennis Tan, Gopal Perumal, Bryan Tan, Grace Khor, Rajan Menon, Raymond Lye, Elena Tay, Soh Lip San, Edwin Lee, Sheila Lim and Karthikeyan Sankaran.

Shawn Toh
The Law Society of Singapore