Editorial: Corporate Tax in Singapore
01 October 2007
The research for this chapter identifies ten practitioners, from seven firms, considered by clients and peers to be the leading individuals in Singapore’s corporate tax market. The following pages identify individuals with a wide range of specialisations – international tax specialists are included alongside domestic experts. We have also included lawyers who are members of multidisciplinary practices as well as partners in more traditional law partnerships.
Drew & Napier LLC prides itself upon its dynamic and specialist tax practice, with full-time tax specialists covering a variety of related matters. The firm put in a extremely strong performance in the research, with one “highly rated” practitioner in the chapter. Teoh Lian-Ee heads up the firm’s tax and trust business group and is “very good and really well known”. Prior to joining Drew & Napier, Teoh worked in the legal department of the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) Singapore where she held a number of posts, the last as assistant commissioner of inland revenue. She is now well known for her success in the courtroom, litigating against the Revenue. Stacy Choong moved from Drew & Napier to Rajah & Tann LLP in 2008. Choong provides advice on the tax aspects of company restructuring, capital reduction and sale and purchase transactions. Both Teoh and Choong provided tax advice to Goldman Sachs with regard to the S$1.1 billion syndicated term loan facility granted to Marina Bay Sands, as well as providing advice on other issues arising from this arrangement.
Allen & Gledhill LLP places a particular focus on tax advisory and planning services and on the resolution of tax issues, controversies and disputes with the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). The firm’s clients include major corporations and institutions. Nand Singh Gandhi is a “big name” and “well known” in the market. Gandhi’s practice focuses on tax litigation, with clients coming from major corporations and financial institutions. He also provides tax advice and structuring in relation to cross-border investments and has been a consultant for the Australian firm Freehills.
KhattarWong is the next firm with two nominees in this chapter. It has a strong reputation for handling both contentious and non-contentious matters. S Sharma is “the best”, according to sources and also has public sector experience with the IRD. He was recommended for his knowledge of the tax aspects of corporate restructurings and he handles both contentious and non-contentious work. Gurbachan Singh is honorary tax adviser to the Real Estate Developers’ Association of Singapore and a director of the Tax Academy of Singapore and Singapore Institute of Taxation. He was described to researchers as “one of the greatest”.
Pieter de Ridder from Loyens & Loeff NV is the most highly nominated practitioner in the research for this chapter. Based in Singapore since 1996; de Ridder has an in-depth knowledge of the local market and also has “excellent knowledge of South-East Asia and Indonesia in particular”. De Ridder specialises in tax planning for a diverse client base, which includes financial institutions, venture capital businesses, investment fund managers, trading companies, real estate developers, manpower service companies and constructors. He is a board member of the Singapore branch of the International Fiscal Association and Singapore representative to the Tax Committee of the Inter-Pacific Bar Association.
PricewaterhouseCoopers Services Pte Ltd is one of the largest tax practices in Singapore and Peter Tan came highly recommended by fellow practitioners for his work in the corporate tax arena. Edmund Leow from Baker & McKenzie – Wong & Leow also came highly recommended and was praised for his general tax planning and cross border work. Clients include large multinationals and fortune 100 companies. Alain Ahkong is the final individual to be included in this chapter. Ahkong is a founder of Pioneer Associates, a boutique firm that provides international and local tax advice. His name is held in high regard in the Singapore market. Yeoh Lian Chuan was head of the tax unit and deputy director in the strategic development division, financial centre development department of the Monetary Authority of Singapore and recently moved from Allen & Gledhill to Rajah & Tann LLP. Yeoh was described to researchers as “as knowledgeable as you can get when it comes to Singapore taxation”.