Singapore

Shobna Chandran is a local disputes boutique focused on complex, high‑stakes contentious matters that frequently cut across insolvency, commercial disputes, employment, arbitration and private client work. Led by its founder, Shobna Chandran, the firm operates with a deliberately lean structure, yet is regularly instructed on disputes involving significant financial exposure, novel legal questions and procedurally demanding challenges. The practice is particularly known for taking on technically difficult matters where outcomes turn on jurisdictional arguments, unsettled points of Singapore law or the strategic handling of cross‑border issues, often against much larger law firms.

Despite its boutique size, the firm has built a visible disputes profile through its involvement in cases requiring specialist advocacy and careful legal strategy. The firm is frequently engaged where conventional approaches have failed or where clients face proceedings that hinge on precise statutory interpretation rather than factual disputes alone. This is especially evident in its insolvency work, which remains one of the firm’s most established areas. The practice is regularly instructed in contested bankruptcies, enforcement disputes and insolvency proceedings that overlap with broader commercial and transactional issues.

A notable recent matter saw the firm represent an edtech industrialist in successfully defending bankruptcy proceedings on jurisdictional grounds. The case centred on whether the Singapore courts had jurisdiction to make a bankruptcy order against the respondent. The dispute raised complex questions regarding residency, place of business and the proper limits of the court’s jurisdiction. The firm succeeded both at first instance and on appeal, with the courts accepting that the jurisdictional threshold had not been met. The result prevented the client from being adjudicated bankrupt and underscored the firm’s strength in advancing technical legal arguments in highly contested proceedings, with the creditor represented by a large full‑service firm.Beyond this reported matter, the firm continues to act in insolvency disputes arising from corporate collapses, enforcement actions and cross‑border recovery efforts, although the majority of this work remains confidential.

Shobna Chandran also maintains a substantial commercial disputes and international arbitration practice. The firm is regularly instructed in disputes arising from complex contractual relationships, financial arrangements and cross‑border transactions, including matters seated in Singapore and conducted under institutional rules such as SIAC. Much of this arbitration work involves disputes where procedural or jurisdictional challenges are central, including setting‑aside applications and cases affected by sanctions or enforcement complications.

In employment disputes, the firm is frequently instructed on contentious matters involving senior executives, multinational employers and claims of wrongful termination, breach of implied duties and restrictive covenant enforcement. These disputes often raise novel or undeveloped legal issues, particularly where employment rights intersect with commercial or reputational considerations.

Private client litigation forms another important element of the practice, with the firm advising high‑net‑worth individuals on contested probate matters, trust disputes, medical negligence claims and proceedings under the Mental Capacity Act. This work is often litigation‑driven and closely linked to broader insolvency or commercial disputes, reflecting the firm’s ability to handle sensitive personal matters alongside complex legal issues.

At the centre of the practice is Chandran herself, who remains the firm’s sole partner and lead advocate across all major matters. She is widely recognised for her disputes expertise across insolvency, commercial litigation and arbitration, and is frequently instructed as lead counsel in cases requiring strategic oversight and precise legal argument. Her practice spans both court and arbitral proceedings, with a particular emphasis on disputes involving jurisdictional challenges, procedural complexity and emerging areas of Singapore law.

Client feedback

“They are thorough and give sharp analysis. They provide a tenacious defence of their clients, they are on our side no matter what.” - Insolvency

Shobna Chandran

“She is very accessible, always reflective and looking for ways to improve. She is great at legal analysis and very determined.”