Tao Tao is a Partner with the firm’s Appellate Advocacy practice. He has an active practice in litigation and arbitration, with a particular focus on complex commercial disputes and matters with Chinese elements.

Tao Tao has handled cases in all levels of Singapore courts. His practice covers a broad range of areas, including shareholders’ disputes, employment, investment disputes, sale of goods, defamation, bankruptcy and insolvency, trust, and property disputes. Tao Tao also handles non-contentious legal work such as wills and probate, drafting of agreements and advisory work.

Born and raised in China, Tao Tao has spent nearly two decades living in Singapore and is effectively bilingual in English and Mandarin Chinese. His proficiency in the Chinese language and his familiarity with Chinese culture give him an extra edge in advising clients from the Greater China region. Tao Tao regularly handles matters involving Chinese clients or Chinese elements.

EXPERIENCE

Commercial Litigation

  • Acted for a multinational insurer in a multimillion-dollar High Court suit against a former agency leader for breach of contractual and fiduciary duties for soliciting a large group of insurance agents to join a competitor (Prudential Assurance Company Singapore (Pte) Ltd v Peter Tan Shou Yi and another [2021] SGHC 109).
  • Acted in a multimillion-dollar High Court suit brought by a Chinese national for alleged breach of trust relating to transfers of money and property (Xu Zhigang v Wang Fang [2020] SGHC 254).
  • Acted for a subsidiary of a multinational company listed on the NYSE in a High Court suit and in the subsequent appeal to the Court of Appeal concerning the supply of allegedly defective goods (Inzign Pte Ltd v Associated Spring Asia Pte Ltd [2018] SGHC 147).
  • Acted for an individual in an application to set aside a freezing injunction relating to claims arising from the liquidation of a cryptocurrency firm (Three Arrows Capital Ltd and others v Davies, Kyle Livingston and another [2024] SGHC 164).
  • Acted for a financial institution in a court claim against a customer for losses arising from failure to meet margin calls.
  • Acted for a transportation company in a court claim against a customer for outstanding debts, as well as the subsequent bankruptcy proceedings against the customer.
  • Acted for a foreign company in a High Court suit against a supplier of personal protective equipment for breach of contract and fraudulent misrepresentation.
  • Acted for a group of Chinese companies and their key executives in a defamation suit in the High Court.
  • Acted for a high-net-worth individual in a multimillion-dollar High Court suit against a company listed on SGX in respect of the recovery of a shareholder’s loan.
  • Acted for a high-net-worth individual in a High Court suit against a Cayman Islands fund in an investment dispute.
  • Acted for a media company in defending a High Court suit for online defamation arising from a news article.
  • Acted for a landlord of a shopping centre in a High Court suit against a well-known retailer in respect of breach of a commercial lease.

International Arbitration

  • Acted in a multimillion-dollar international arbitration in Singapore under the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules relating to the supply photovoltaic modules, and successfully resisted the subsequent Court application to set aside the Award (DGE v DGF [2024] SGHC 107).
  • Acted in a Singapore International Arbitration Centre arbitration in a shareholders’ dispute relating to a digital banking business.
  • Acted in a Singapore International Arbitration Centre arbitration relating to the distribution of electronic products.
  • Acted as instructing counsel in an arbitration at the Shanghai International Arbitration Center in a dispute over a fraudulent transaction.

Employment

  • Acted for a tech company in a suit against a former employee for breach of confidence and defamation and to defend a concurrent claim of wrongful dismissal.
  • Acted for a company in conducting internal investigations arising from harassment complaints.
  • Acted for various companies in the termination of senior executives.
  • Acted for an individual to defend a charge under the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act 1990, and successfully secured a discharge amounting an acquittal.
  • Advised various Chinese companies on employment disputes and drafting / amendment of employment agreement templates.

Bankruptcy and Insolvency

  • Acted for a bankrupt in an application to the High Court (and in the subsequent appeal to the Court of Appeal) for a review of the Official Assignee’s refusal to expunge a proof of debt lodged by a company which has since been struck off (Lee Chen Seong Jeremy v Official Assignee [2018] 2 SLR 820; [2018] SGCA 51).
  • Acted for a Chinese artist against an art gallery in Singapore in an application to the High Court to set aside a Statutory Demand.
  • Acted for a high-net-worth individual in a multimillion-dollar High Court suit and a related bankruptcy application arising from the sale of a landed property.

PUBLICATIONS

  • Co-authored (with Burton Ong) the Chapter on “Competition Law and Industrial Policy in China” in the book Competition Law and Intellectual Property in China, published by Oxford University Press (2019)
  • Co-authored (with Xu Shiying) the Chapter on “Monopoly Agreements, Trade Associations and Competition Culture in China” in the book Cartels in Asia: Law & Practice, published by Wolters Kluwer Hong Kong Limited (2015)

Location(s)

Practice Area(s)

Qualifications

  • LLB (Hons), National University of Singapore
  • Advocate & Solicitor, Singapore

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