Singapore, 26 July 2018 (Thursday) – Singapore Management University (SMU) School of Law and Singapore Judicial College (SJC), Supreme Court, announced today that they will jointly offer a new Master of Laws in Judicial Studies from August 2019. A first of its kind in the region, the new postgraduate degree programme is designed to provide advanced training for serving judges and judicial aspirants both in and outside of Singapore. Candidates can expect to receive instruction by experienced Singapore judges and interact closely with them while undertaking judicial attachments and dissertations during the programme.

The new LLM in Judicial Studies was officially launched today with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between SMU School of Law and SJC. The launch was held on the sidelines of the ASEAN Law Association (ALA) Conference, and witnessed by the Heads of Delegation and participants attending the Conference.

The coursework of the LLM in Judicial Studies has been carefully curated to enhance the candidates’ knowledge and competencies in core areas of the law, such as the law of obligations and business law taught from a comparative perspective. It also equips them for modern day adjudication and judicial administration though core modules such as 'Judgecraft' and 'Law and Technology', alongside electives such as 'Leadership, Management and Professional Effectiveness' and 'Contextual Judging'.

Candidates will also enjoy the immersive experience of a mandatory attachment programme with the Singapore judiciary and being personally supervised by judges in their dissertations for selected empirical judicial research areas. The programme also provides ample networking opportunities with fellow or aspiring judges in Singapore and other international jurisdictions. Upon successfully completing the programme, which takes place in two terms across 10 months, candidates will graduate with an LLM in Judicial Studies degree from SMU.  To enable candidates to better balance their participation in the programme with their work commitments, they can opt to complete the programme on an extended duration basis, where they can complete the first term, take a leave of absence to return to their work, and then return to SMU within one calendar year to complete the second term.

Commenting on the new LLM in Judicial Studies, Chief Justice of Singapore Sundaresh Menon said, "This programme, the first of its kind in the region, has been designed specifically for serving judges and judicial aspirants. The diverse curriculum is jointly developed and will be taught by professors from the Singapore Management University and experienced Singapore judges. Candidates can expect the academic rigour of higher learning coupled with practical judge-craft. The teaching faculty will be supported by the Singapore Judicial College, which has established a reputation for its practical programmes, which focus on enhancing problem-solving skills. Graduates of this programme will enjoy the privilege of being amongst the first members of a new and growing worldwide alumni of judges."

Associate Professor of Law Goh Yihan, Dean of SMU School of Law, said, “The growing complexities of globalisation and technological disruptions are but two reasons of why law – whether as a discipline or profession – is in a state of flux. As such, it is imperative that those working in the law continue to keep themselves abreast of new developments and further hone the skills needed to practise this noble craft."

"This new LLM provides an exceptional opportunity for candidates to immerse themselves in the workings of the Singapore judiciary and beyond. The specially curated practicum will advance the candidates’ adjudication and administrative abilities, while simultaneously allowing them to develop pertinent extra-legal skill-sets and judge-craft. As a dynamic and forward-looking law school, SMU School of Law is excited and honoured to partner with the Singapore Judicial College in this LLM, leveraging the highly-qualified faculty expertise, and multi-disciplinary and interactive pedagogy that our University is renowned for,” he added.

The size of the inaugural cohort, which enrols in August 2019, is expected to be about 25 candidates. Application for admission is now open, and will close on 1 May 2019.

[Photo: SMU School of Law]

[Featured photo: (L-R) Justice Aedit Abdullah and SMU School of Law Assoc Dean Maartje de Visser.]

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More information on the programme is available on the website at this url: https://law.smu.edu.sg/llm/home  _______________________________________________________________________________

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