Background

Philip Jeyaretnam was born in 1964 in Singapore. He is the son of the former leader of the opposition Workers' Party in Singapore, Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam, and Margaret Walker. His older brother, Kenneth Jeyaretnam, is currently an opposition politician in Singapore.

Education

Jeyaretnam was educated at Raeburn Park School and the United World College of South East Asia in Singapore. He then spent his sixth-form years at Charterhouse, a public school in Surrey, United Kingdom. Subsequently, he returned to Singapore to enlist for National Service. After concluding his service in 1982 as one of the top officers in the Officer Cadet School, Jeyaretnam read law at the Corpus Christi College, Cambridge University, United Kingdom.

Career

Philip Jeyaretnam was appointed as senior counsel in 2003 and has been named in all the major legal publications as an expert in arbitration, construction law, and litigation. His active international arbitration practice as counsel spans investments and projects across Asia, and he has represented clients in arbitration proceedings in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, London, Zurich, and Brunei.

He is particularly experienced in disputes of two kinds, namely disputes involving difficult technical issues and disputes involving complex financial structuring. He has also had numerous appointments as an arbitrator, particularly under SIAC and ICC Rules.

He is currently Chairman of Maxwell Chambers, the world's first integrated dispute resolution venue.

Jeyaretnam is the global vice chair and regional CEO of Dentons Rodyk & Davidson LLP. He is a commercial litigator and international arbitration counsel.

Jeyaretnam's early short stories "Campfire" (1985) and "Evening Under Frangipani" (1986) were awarded prizes in the Singapore Short Story Competition. His first book "First Loves" (1987) was on the Sunday Times Bestseller List for 60 weeks and was credited with a recommendation from the National Book Development Council of Singapore. This collection of interconnected short stories broaches the issue of growing up in a culturally hybrid environment. Jeyaretnam's first novel "Raffles Place Ragtime" (1988) is a satirical attack on the avaricious and grasping nature of life in modern Singapore. Unlike his early, mostly ironic short stories, here he paints a darker picture of human deformation in a society in which achievement is measured by material gain alone.

His second novel, "Abraham's Promise" (1995), tells the story of an aging teacher of English and Latin, whose review of his own life at the same time reflects the formation and development of Singapore's young nation. With acute perception, eloquence, and, at times, nostalgia, Jeyaretnam analyses the shortcomings and failures of the past and recalls - as he describes it - Singapore's "unfulfilled promise." His collected works have been published, entitled: "Tigers in Paradise" (2004).

Achievements

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  Philip Jeyaretnam's prose fiction has rightly attracted international as well as national attention. He has thus far published two well-reviewed novels, a linked collection of short stories, as well as individual stories and reflective essays. This substantial literary achievement is all the more remarkable given his relative youth, the controversial political circumstances of his father, and his full-time career as a lawyer at the Singaporean Bar.
  
  Among the literary awards, he has received the Airey Neave Award, Southeast Asia Write Award, and the National Book Development Council of Singapore's Highly Commended prize. He is also the recipient of the National Arts Council's 1993 Young Artist Award.

Works

More photos

• book

  • Tigers in Paradise: The Collected Works of Philip Jeyaretnam

    (A collection of essays and two novels by critically accla...)

    2004
  • Abraham's Promise

    (Abraham Isaac, a teacher of Latin, philosopher, and fathe...)

    1995
  • The Philip Jeyaretnam Collection

    (This collection rounds up three of Philip Jeyaretnam’s be...)

    2017

Views

As an author, Jeyaretnam focuses on writing about Singaporeans for local readers. He aims to seek and express the truth regardless of personal and social circumstances. He wants his readers to come away feeling the importance of engaging in Singapore, thinking about what they are doing, their jobs, and the effects of these on the country.

Membership

Jeyaretnam was president of the Law Society of Singapore from January 2004 to December 2007 and was the founding chairman of the Society of Construction Law, Singapore.

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  Law Society of Singapore , Singapore

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  Society of Construction Law , Singapore

Personality

Jeyaretnam considers his parents as his greatest influences. Having watched his father in action as a lawyer, it inspired him to take up law. His late mother, who could quote poetry from memory, inspired his love for books. His parents taught him not to be afraid of expressing his opinions and to work hard to achieve his goals.

Besides his mother, Jeyaretnam's literary influences include Thomas Paine, the 18th-century English-American author of "The Rights of Man," French writer Marguerite Duras for her ability to describe emotional dilemmas, and local playwright Kuo Pao Kun for his perseverance and willingness to try new things. He also read works by other local writers such as Gopal Baratham, Goh Poh Seng, Catherine Lim, and Lim Thean Soo. Jeyaretnam is a regular follower of local plays and films, as well as a keen listener of contemporary music.

Interests

• Writers

  Thomas Paine, Marguerite Duras, Kuo Pao Kun, Gopal Baratham, Goh Poh Seng, Catherine Lim, Lim Thean Soo

Connections

Philip married Cindy Sim, an actress in 1988. They had one son.

Father:

Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam

Mother:

Margaret Walker

Brother:

Kenneth Jeyaretnam

Wife:

Cindy (Sim) Jeyaretnam

References

• Contemporary Authors New Revision Series, vol. 212
  2011