RPC Premier Law Partner appointed Senior Counsel at Singapore Bar

Partner Siraj Omar has been appointed Senior Counsel by the Chief Justice of Singapore.

Siraj Omar was just one of four recipients to be honoured with the appointment of Senior Counsel in January 2019, bringing the total number of individuals to have been appointed to 85.

The Singapore Senior Counsel scheme recognises an elite group of advocates who are considered to have top-tier advocacy skills, professional integrity and are experts in their practice areas. The appointment is equivalent to being appointed Queen's Counsel in the UK.

As one of a few international law firms operating in Singapore under a Joint Law Venture (JLV) RPC Premier Law draws together the international expertise and resources of RPC and the local knowledge of Singapore firm Premier Law LLC. Siraj heads RPC Premier Law's Dispute Resolution practice. His own practice focuses on banking and financial disputes, commercial litigation and restructuring and insolvency-related matters.  He also has extensive experience in international arbitrations, both as counsel and arbitrator.

Siraj has worked on a number of landmark, high-profile cases during his career, including:

• Acting for a group of 212 investors in derivative credit-linked notes in their claim against DBS Bank Limited, the largest bank in Singapore, in the Singapore High Court.
  
  
• Representing the issuer in the first successful application of its kind in Singapore to restructure a US$325 million Global Note.
  
  
• Acting for various clients in claims against a range of international and domestic banks, including a US$40 million claim against Goldman Sachs International and defending an estimated $138 million claim by United Overseas Bank. 

Siraj is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and a member of the International Association of Defence Counsel.

Siraj Omar says: “It is a huge privilege to be awarded the title of Senior Counsel. To be one of just a handful of people who are awarded this honour each year makes receiving it particularly special.”

“I hope this appointment will enable me to contribute to the development of the law by bringing complex or novel points of law before the Court.  I will also continue to prioritise my ongoing commitment to working with young lawyers to help mentor and develop the next generation of advocates.”