5 in 50: Southeast Asia Quickfire Breakfast (ICCA 2026 | Madrid)
Join us at ICCA Congress 2026 for a morning that trades long panels for something sharper: 5 speakers, 10 minutes each, 50 minutes of insights.
Following the warm reception of our Dimsum Dialogue at ICCA 2024 in Hong Kong, we are back — this time with kaya toast in Madrid.
Hosted by Chambers Lab and David Grief International Consultancy, this event brings together the region's leading practitioners to showcase the depth and sophistication of dispute resolution across Southeast Asia.
No long panels, no filler - just concise perspectives from leading practitioners on developments shaping disputes across the region, including investment treaty arbitration, cross-border restructuring, enforcement of foreign arbitral awards, and emerging regional trends.
The morning begins with a breakfast inspired by the region's kopitiam culture: kaya toast, satay and warm naan with lentil hummus, served alongside fresh coffee and conversation. Guests will also receive a small local (Southeast Asian) keepsake to take home from Madrid.
The venue is a 2-minute walk from the ICCA Congress venue - wrap up with us and still make it to the opening session in good time.
Our Distinguished Speakers
Thio Shen Yi SC | TSMP Law Corporation, Singapore
Appointed Senior Counsel in 2008, Shen Yi specialises in commercial litigation, arbitration, construction, restructuring, and trust disputes. He is globally recognised as a leading litigation and arbitration practitioner, and also serves as a director of Pro Bono SG.
Topic: Setting Aside - How Bad Does It Get Before the Court Intervenes?
This presentation explores the limits of arbitral autonomy and the circumstances in which courts are prepared to intervene to set aside an award. Drawing on recent case law and practical experience, it examines how serious procedural irregularities, breaches of natural justice and jurisdictional errors are assessed by courts, and what practitioners should understand about where the judicial “red line” lies.
Dato’ Lim Chee Wee | Lim Chee Wee Partnership, Malaysia
With over 30 years’ experience, Chee Wee handles complex commercial, corporate and regulatory disputes across Asia and Europe, advising on major arbitrations, restructurings, fraud recovery and public law matters. He is a former President of the Malaysian Bar.
Topic: Follow the Money. Then Fight for It: How We Chased 1MDB's Billions Across 10 Jurisdictions & Beyond
USD 4.5 billion and more. Stolen. Laundered across ten jurisdictions and beyond. What does it actually take to get it back? This session draws on the 1MDB asset recovery, one of the largest and most complex in history, to examine the hard realities of cross-border fraud recovery at scale. We cover coordinating parallel litigation across multiple jurisdictions, negotiating with global banks, deploying non-conviction-based forfeiture, and navigating cross-border insolvency mechanisms as recovery tools. We look at what worked, what failed, and what the 1MDB experience means for practitioners handling the next generation of high-value, multi-jurisdictional recovery matters.
Dato’ Sunil Abraham | Cecil Abraham & Partners, Malaysia
Sunil is a leading counsel with extensive experience in Malaysian courts and arbitral tribunals, specialising in complex corporate, commercial, banking, media, and environmental disputes, including high-stakes defamation, investment treaty, and planning law matters.
Topic: Winning Is Only Half the Battle: Enforcing Arbitral Awards in Malaysia
This session will address the intricacies relating to the registration and enforcement of arbitral awards and provide some insights from both a legal and practical perspective arising from recent developments that parties ought to be cognisant of in seeking to enforce a foreign arbitral award in Malaysia.
Gopal Sreenevasan | Endeavour Group Law Practice, Malaysia
Gopal is a leading Malaysian advocate with 30 years at the Bar. He has handled complex commercial disputes and high-profile cases, including Sapura Energy Berhad’s major corporate restructuring, and has provided expert evidence internationally, including before the Privy Council.
Topic: The Uninvited Guest: Arbitration at the Restructuring Table
When a company enters restructuring, its creditors are expected to come to the table. But what happens when a creditor invokes an arbitration clause and commences proceedings in another jurisdiction instead? Drawing on the Sapura Energy restructuring and the Singapore Court of Appeal's landmark ruling on moratorium carve-outs, this session examines the growing collision between insolvency regimes and arbitration agreements, and what the diverging approaches taken by different jurisdictions mean for cross-border practitioners. It also considers whether institutional responses - such as SIAC's new Restructuring and Insolvency Arbitration Protocol - can bridge the gap, or whether the doctrinal foundations remain unsettled.
Colin Seow | Nusa Chambers, Singapore
Colin is an international arbitration practitioner and formerly a District Judge and Deputy Divisional Registrar in the Singapore Supreme Court. Qualified in multiple jurisdictions, he has also contributed to key legal reforms, including initiatives relating to the Singapore International Commercial Court and foreign law reform consultancy projects.
Topic: Singapore’s Open Door: A Rising Forum Where ISDS Awards Are Put to the Test
In the space of twelve months, Russia, Poland, South Korea and Spain have each brought challenges against investment treaty awards (including resisting their enforcement) before the Singapore courts - and lost. This session examines what these cases reveal about the Singapore courts' approach towards ISDS awards, the high threshold for setting aside and refusing enforcement of such awards, and what this means for Singapore as the seat court or an enforcement forum internationally. Drawing on these recent decisions, this session considers what has not worked when sovereigns push back - and what possibly could.
We are also grateful to the European Chinese Arbitrators Association (ECAA) for supporting this event.
The room will bring together senior arbitration practitioners, leading arbitrators, and representatives from major arbitral institutions.
Seats are limited and attendance is by approval — register your interest by 3 April (Friday).
We look forward to welcoming you.