Abstract:
Should the Singapore High Court determine admissibility of claims before the Hong Kong High Court? In a recent development in cross-border injunctions, the Appellate Division of the High Court of Singapore granted a contractual anti-suit injunction in favour of a multi-tiered dispute resolution clause in the contract (“MTDR clause”). While agreeing that MTDR clauses are not jurisdiction clauses but only determine admissibility of claims, the court nonetheless injuncted the defendant from proceeding with its contractual claim before the Hong Kong High Court for initiating proceedings without following the mandatory pre‑litigation procedure set out in the MTDR clause. This piece comments on the conceptual basis and exercise of discretion by the Singapore court in granting the injunction.