Tao Tao is a Partner with the firm’s Commercial Litigation 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, investment disputes, sale of goods, defamation, bankruptcy and insolvency, trust, employment, 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.
Notable Cases & Transactions
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 a group of Chinese companies and their key executives in a defamation suit in the High Court.
-
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 foreign company in a High Court suit against a supplier of personal protective equipment for breach of contract and fraudulent misrepresentation.
-
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
- Acting in a multimillion-dollar international arbitration in Singapore under the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules relating to the supply of goods by a Chinese company.
- Acting in a Singapore International Arbitration Centre arbitration relating to the distribution of electronic products.
- Acting as instructing counsel in an arbitration at the Shanghai International Arbitration Center in a dispute over a fraudulent transaction.
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).
- Acting for a Chinese artist against an art gallery in Singapore in an application to the High Court to set aside a Statutory Demand.
- Acting 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-author (with Burton Ong), Chapter on “Competition Law and Industrial Policy in China”, Competition Law and Intellectual Property in China, published by Oxford University Press (2019)
- Co-author (with Xu Shiying), Chapter on “Monopoly Agreements, Trade Associations and Competition Culture in China”, Cartels in Asia: Law & Practice, published by Wolters Kluwer Hong Kong Limited (2015)
Memberships/Directorships
- Member, Law Society of Singapore
- Member, Singapore Academy of Law