Business & Professional
37th Singapore Law Review Annual Lecture
2026 marks a special milestone in Singapore’s history: the Bicentennial Anniversary of our nation’s modern legal and judicial system, which was established in 1826 by the Second Charter of Justice. The Charter introduced a common legal system that applied to all inhabitants of Singapore, regardless of race, culture or religion. That is the essence of the Rule of Law.
However, there are diverse approaches to the Rule of Law, with different balances between the rights of the individual and the larger interests of society. The lecture will examine how Singapore has evolved inherited colonial legal institutions into our own distinctive approach to the Rule of Law, based on our circumstances and values. It will also outline how our founding fathers championed our legal system and the Rule of Law as key tenets of nation-building when Singapore gained independence. They also recognised that having a sound legal framework was not enough: the Rule of Law must be implemented in a pragmatic manner to deliver concrete results to benefit and serve society. Our model has worked well for us thus far: amidst global volatility, Singapore remains a safe and stable nation committed to the Rule of Law – where individuals can maximise their potential, families can thrive and businesses can grow.
At the same time, laws and legal frameworks are not, and should not be, cast in stone. The lecture will hence look ahead to the future – and how the next generation must continue to strengthen and evolve the Rule of Law to meet new challenges, fulfil emerging needs, and reflect the values of the time.
This year's speaker, Mr Murali Pillai SC, is the Senior Minister of State for the Ministry of Law and Ministry of Transport. He holds LL.B. (Hons) and LL.M degrees from the National University of Singapore Faculty of Law, along with double MBA degrees from University of California Los Angeles and NUS. After graduation, he became a senior police officer before joining private practice as a lawyer in 1996. He was appointed Senior Counsel in 2020. He is currently a 3rd term Member of Parliament, having been first elected through a by-election in Bukit Batok SMC in 2016.
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Sign-ups close on Friday, 2 January 2026, 2359, or when tickets have sold out.
