Ang Tze Phern specialises in commercial dispute resolution, with his practice focused on employment related disputes, investigations, and contentious advisory matters.

Tze Phern advises and acts for local and international institutions and individuals in a wide range of commercial disputes, and has particular experience with financial and insurance-related litigation, debt recovery, and professional negligence claims.

On the employment front, Tze Phern has a strong employment litigation record and regularly acts for employers and employees in significant employment related litigation in the State Courts and the High Court of Singapore. Tze Phern also actively advises on Employment Claims Tribunal disputes.

His experience includes advising on wrongful and constructive dismissal claims, remuneration disputes and clawbacks of payments, contentious exits, enforcing and resisting restrictive covenants (such as non-competition and non-solicitation clauses), workplace fairness, harassment and discrimination claims, and breaches of confidentiality obligations.

Tze Phern also has significant expertise advising employers dealing with regulatory investigations and sanctions by the Singapore Ministry of Manpower ("MOM") for breaches of Singapore’s employment legislation and regulations and the Tripartite advisories on employment matters. He also actively advises employers on its dealings and negotiations with the trade unions and MOM on a wide variety of industrial relations and disputes matters, including unionisation of employees, collective agreements and the conduct of retrenchment and restructuring exercises.

Tze Phern was previously seconded to the Global Disputes Team of an international bank where he managed the bank’s high value disputes, financial crime compliance and government/regulatory investigations in the Asia Pacific Region.

Tze Phern was an Adjunct Faculty member at the National University of Singapore, Faculty of Law, where he taught the Legal Skills Programme. He presently teaches the Ethics and Professional Responsibility Course at the Singapore Institute of Legal Education.

Experience

Notable cases that Tze Phern has handled include:

Commercial Litigation

• Acted for a global resources company in defending claims of market manipulation and breach of the Securities & Futures Act in litigation before the High Court and Court of Appeal.
• Acted for a global insurance company in defending claims by its former financial directors relating to the provision of industry specific reference checks in litigation before the High Court. Advised the same company in managing its debt recovery portfolio and acting for it in debt recovery actions against its former agency force (including commencing proceedings).
• Acted for a Ministry in managing and prosecuting its debt recovery claims against its former employees (including commencing proceedings).
• Acted for a high net-worth individual in debt recovery actions (in excess of US$20 million) before the High Court and obtained Mareva injunctions and resisted stay of proceedings in the process.
• Acted for and advised various Assureds in defending professional negligence claims (across difference practice areas), including in litigation before the High Court and Court of Appeal.
• Acted for a Singapore professional institute in resisting a claim of conspiracy, unlawful interference with trade, and alleged breach of the Competition Act in litigation before the High Court.
• Acted for a Singapore institute for higher education in a claim against an Australian private university for breach of contract and conspiracy to injure in litigation before the High Court.
• Acted as instructed counsel for the Singapore subsidiary of an Indian public listed company in a professional negligence claim in proceedings before the Court of Appeal.
• Acted as instructed counsel for Serbian companies in complex US$17 million garnishee proceedings involving a Yugoslavian state-owned company and a Panamanian special purpose company in proceedings before the Court of Appeal.
• Acted for an Australian public listed coal company and its subsidiaries in a US$800 million joint venture dispute in respect of a coal production and upgrading plant in Indonesia before the International Commercial Court.

Employment related disputes, investigations & contentious advisory matters

• Successfully acted for a leading multinational bank in striking out a highly sensitive and reputationally significant claim brought by an ex-employee for breach of duty of care and contract in relation to serious allegations of sexual harassment and misconduct involving senior bank employees.
• Successfully acted for a fund management firm in striking out a claim brought by a former CEO for wrongful termination of employment, involving an issue of employment law not yet determined by the Singapore Courts.

• Advised and acted for a global advisory, broking and solutions company in enforcing non-compete/solicitation covenants and confidentiality agreements against former directors and senior level employees moving to a competitor company. Advised and acted for the same company in conducting investigations and commencing disciplinary proceedings against its employees for unauthorised access to and disclosure of confidential/proprietary information.
• Advised and acted for a multinational bank in defending and striking out claims brought by an ex-employee for breach of duty of care and contract in relation to serious allegations of sexual harassment and misconduct involving senior bank employees.
• Advised and acted for a leading global hedge fund and private equity administrator and technology solutions company in defending claims by a former sales director for wrongful dismissal and non-payment of commissions.
• Advised and acted for a Singapore private education company against its former Head of School and Heads of Departments for breach of fiduciary duties and employment obligations in relation to the setting up of a competitor school.
• Advised and acted for a social media company in respect of claims by a former employee relating to promised share equity and vested share options whilst the company was in the process of being acquired by a global media company for US$100million.
• Acted for a managing director of a global investment bank in respect of investigation and disciplinary proceedings commenced against him for alleged regulatory and employment contract breaches.
• Advised various local and foreign companies (including MNCs) on proceedings before the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management and Employment Claims Tribunal in respect of disputes relating to salary and other payment claims, wrongful dismissal and workplace grievances.
• Advised and acted for various local and foreign companies (including MNCs) in relation to investigations commenced and sanctions imposed by statutory and regulatory authorities and agencies, such as the Ministry of Manpower, the Tripartite Alliance for Fair & Progressive Employment Practices and the Central Provident Fund Board.

Publications

• Co-author, Singapore Chapter, Employment Global Practice Guide, Chambers and Partners (2023)
• Co-author, Singapore Chapter, Mediation Practice Guide, Lexology (2022)
• Co-author, Singapore Chapter, Mediation Practice Guide, Lexology (2021)
• Co-author, Chapter on “Proceedings in the Singapore International Commercial Court", Civil Litigation in Singapore, Sweet & Maxwell (2016)