Kunal is an experienced disputes lawyer specialising in commercial/civil litigation and alternative dispute resolution (both arbitration & mediation) with a particular focus on shipping & admiralty law, fraud, breach of director duties, negligence, economic torts, ship arrests, ship financing disputes, trade finance, banking litigation and restructuring/insolvency.

Kunal also has industry-specific knowledge in the shipping, insurance, clean energy, and natural resources sector having previously worked in the Singapore-linked office (as part of a formal law alliance) of the world’s premier international shipping firm headquartered in London, with a heritage spanning 150 years and also completed his practice training in the Singapore-linked office of a firm which is now in a formal law alliance with a Tier 1 shipping set.

Kunal regularly appears as counsel in the Singapore Courts (including at the highest levels at the Appellate Division of the High Court and the Court of Appeal) as well as arbitrations conducted under the SIAC, SCMA, LMAA and LCIA rules. He successfully argued a SG$3 million striking out application in the General Division of the High Court of Singapore on his own in the first year of his call to the bar.

Kunal builds on his expertise working with a wide spectrum of clients across various jurisdictions, including Fortune 500 companies, state-owned entities, and public companies listed on the SGX and the NYSE.

• Acted for a Singapore subsidiary of the Sinopec Group (Unipec Singapore Pte Ltd) in one of the largest interpleader proceedings in the history of Singapore resulting from the collapse of Hin Leong Trading Pte Ltd (see HC/OS 549/2020, HC/OS 593/2020, HC/OS 616/2020, HC/OS 631/2020 and HC/OS 489/2020) covering complex issues of credit and security in the shipping context. The Sinopec Group is a Fortune 500 company and operates the largest state-owned oil refining and oil trading companies in China and the world.
• Acted successfully for the Respondent in the Court of Appeal in the case of “The Sea Justice” [2024] 1 SLR 1118. This involved issues of (1) whether the court has the inherent power to impose conditions where a forum non conveniens stay is granted, including ordering the retention of any security furnished, (2) whether the case of The Rena K [1979] QB 377 applies to the present case in deciding whether any security should be retained and (3) whether the arresting party can retain security in Singapore without undermining the other party’s choice of forum for its limitation action.
• Acted for an entity (part of an American MNC listed on the NYSE) in pre-arbitration proceedings involving a dispute on the construction of a Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) Vessel.
• Acted as counsel on a matter involving a fund manager and the directors of a private equity fund in relation to breach of directors’ duties and unlawful means conspiracy. The claims in question were in the region of S$6 million with unliquidated claims at S$40 million.
• Representing a creditor in respect of its claims relating to the winding up of Hontop Energy (Pte) Ltd, a Singapore-based oil trader.
• Advising the 3rd largest oil company in China, China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) on a construction of certain contractual clauses.
• Advising client on a potential breach of a reserved Cluster Services Agreement in respect of a high-performance deep-learning and NVIDIA Omniverse GPU-based cloud product.
• Advising a Swiss-based LNG/Renewable Fuels/Alcohol/Solvents trader on potential breaches of a time charterparty for the carriage of LNG by the Owners, including the possibility of ship arrest and unpaid invoices by the Owner.
• Advising a Norwegian shipping company in respect of defect with the contractors regarding renovation of its Singapore office.
• Working with P&I Clubs (including International Group P&I Clubs) on a retainer basis and advising on various shipping related issues.
• Advising and litigating on a claim by a private equity firm against one of the largest financial group in the European region with combined assets of S$2.3 trillion.
• Successfully defended a client (who used to be a director of a company once valued at US$300 million) in the High Court against claims of misrepresentation valued at S$5 million brought by the owner of a company with a substantial stake in a listed company on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
• Advising a substantial shareholder of the manager of a listed REIT on the SGX (REIT valued at approximately US$1.27 billion as at listing date).
   

Reported Cases:

• The “Sea Justice” [2024] 1 SLR 1118
• The “Sea Justice” [2024] 5 SLR 660
• Symphony Ventures Pte Ltd v DNB Bank ASA, Singapore Branch [2021] 5 SLR 1213
• Symphony Ventures Pte Ltd v DNB Bank ASA, Singapore Branch [2022] 1 SLR 498
• Yong Khong Yoong Mark and others v Ting Choon Meng and another [2021] SGHC 246
• Yong Khong Yoong Mark and others v Ting Choon Meng and another [2022] SGHC 4

• Member, The Law Society of Singapore
• Member, The Singapore Academy of Law
• Member of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee, The Law Society of Singapore