Media Release: Justice Kannan Ramesh Inducted as a Fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy

          The Supreme Court of Singapore is pleased to announce that Justice Kannan Ramesh, Judge of the Appellate Division (高等法庭上诉审判庭加南拉美斯法官), has been formally inducted as one of 39 new Fellows in the 34^th Class of the American College of Bankruptcy (ACB) at its Annual Meeting held on 24 March 2023 in Washington, D.C. Justice Ramesh, whose areas of specialisation are in company law, insolvency and trusts, is the first Singapore Judge to be invited to become an International Fellow of the ACB.

2          Founded in 1989, the ACB is an honorary public service association of international insolvency professionals who are invited to join as Fellows based on a proven record of the highest standards of expertise, leadership, integrity, professionalism and service to the bankruptcy and insolvency practice and to their communities, as well as having demonstrated a commitment to elevating knowledge and understanding of the profession. Fellows are nominated and selected on an invitation-only basis, with two to three International Fellows being invited annually out of a total of 35 to 40 inductees. Each qualified candidate goes through a rigorous selection process by the ACB’s Board of Regents, and Judicial and International Fellows Nominating Committees which have extensive knowledge of the global insolvency community. All Fellows must also have a minimum of 15 years of practice with specific experience in the bankruptcy and insolvency areas for at least 10 years and, in the case of judges, have been on the bench for five years.

3          This honour is testament to Justice Ramesh’s leadership, professional excellence and outstanding contributions to judicial insolvency practice. Justice Ramesh currently chairs the Advisory Board of the Singapore Global Restructuring Initiative at the Singapore Management University and is a member of the international Judicial Insolvency Network, which was constituted to provide judicial thought leadership in cross-border insolvencies and facilitates court-to-court communications and cooperation. Justice Ramesh is Vice President of the International Insolvency Institute’s Executive Committee. Justice Ramesh is also a member of the Singapore Academy of Law’s Law Reform Committee and the Singapore International Commercial Court’s Restructuring Rules Committee, and an advisor to the Asian Business Law Institute. 

4          On Justice Ramesh’s induction as a Fellow of the ACB, Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon said, “On behalf of the Singapore Judiciary, I extend my warmest congratulations to Justice Ramesh on this excellent and very well-deserved achievement. Justice Ramesh’s selection to join the illustrious ranks of the ACB is not only testimony to his exceptional work and the invaluable contributions he has made in the field of insolvency, but it is also a tribute to the richness of Singapore’s legal talent.”

5          Singapore has earned a burgeoning reputation as a hub for debt restructuring and insolvency in Asia, with our judicial expertise and robust legal system. Singapore has, in recent years, introduced groundbreaking reforms to its insolvency and restructuring laws to keep pace with the needs of the international debt restructuring landscape. Justice Ramesh’s induction into the ACB will significantly add to Singapore’s status as a restructuring and insolvency centre.

Issued by: Singapore Courts