SIM Bock Eng

Matters of significance in which Bock Eng has been involved in include acting/advising for the following:

• An ultra-high-net-worth individual who was the founder of a multinational listed pharmaceutical company on asset protection, involving multiple asset classes in various jurisdictions. The client faced enforcement proceedings with a quantum of several hundred million U.S. dollars. The challenge was thus in navigating the laws as to asset protection against creditors, for succession and in the event of insolvency.
• The intended interim administrators of the estate of a high-profile high-net-worth foreign businessman who died under mysterious circumstances in the investigation of the deceased's estate and preservation thereof. This application was unprecedented as there was complex multijurisdictional litigation relating to the deceased's estate which holds significant assets in multiple jurisdictions.
• Successive generations of a ultra-high-net worth family in the establishment and re-structuring of their family’s business holding and family succession structures, including fund holding structures in view of multiple exit events. The complexity lay in navigating the different nationalities and tax residencies (both current and intended) of the various generations of the family, which required a consideration and synthesis of advice from multiple jurisdictions to come up with an appropriate structure that met the family’s evolving needs.
• A patriarch and matriarch who own assets, including real estate in various countries, on their succession planning and estate planning.  We assisted in the set-up of a family trust held by a Private Trust Company, working with legal and tax advisors in the various countries to advise on the most efficient manner to settle the assets into the family trust.  The particular challenge is the implementation of proper family governance in the various companies and structures of the family, and required the drafting of governance documents with the object of implementing a set of guidelines suited to the family, taking into account the size of the family, the working of the family and the current organisation of their companies and entities.
• A successful businesswoman in a senior leadership role in a listed company, in circumstances where her spouse had, through the establishment of trust structures in multiple jurisdictions globally, dissipated marital assets in breach of community property rules. We worked with solicitors in various jurisdictions to advise the client on her claim to the assets settled into trust and other properties retained and expanded by the husband in the course of the marriage. 
• A fiduciary services firm, which acts in various fiduciary capacities (including as trustees and protectors) in a complex succession structure involving entities, assets and individuals in multiple jurisdictions worldwide. The matter involved an inter-generational family dispute following agitations by certain members of the family, with contests to the succession structures by the ultimate beneficiaries, attempts to obtain confidential trust documents, and remove the client from its capacities as trustees and/or protectors within the structures.
   

Related Practices

• Private Wealth
• Specialist & Private Client Disputes

• Chambers Global Practice Guides - Private Wealth – Singapore Chapter (2024)
• Lexology In-Depth: Private Wealth and Private Client (13th Edition) - Singapore Chapter (2024)
• No Presumptions – Who Owns the Money in the Joint Bank Account? (Casewatch, 2024)
• International Comparative Legal Guide to: Private Client – Singapore Chapter (Global Legal Group, 2019 - 2024)
• Wealth Management Institute (WMI) Impact: The Family Office Journal – Family Charters: Should They Be Legally Binding? (2024)
• Viva la Singapore Trusts: Lessons from La Dolce Vita (Legiswatch, 2023)
• Changes to the Global Investor Programme (Legiswatch, 2023)
• A Wealth Tax For Singapore? (IFC Review, 2023)
• The Private Wealth and Private Client Review (11th Edition) - Singapore Chapter (The Law Reviews, 2022)
• Family Office and Risk Management (IFC Review, 2022)

Chambers High Net Worth 

• Private wealth law: Band 2 

"Bock Eng's name comes up a lot; she is very experienced and has been around for a long time. She is a big name in this market." 

The Legal 500: Asia Pacific – The Guide to Asia's Commercial Law Firms

• Private wealth and family law – local firms: Leading Individual 

"Sim Bock Eng and her team have been very professional and yet attentive to every clients' needs. From will writing to trusts, she and her team ensure client's objectives are met."

"Sim Bock Eng stands out for her practical, straightforward advice that clients can easily understand. It is very helpful she has deep experience in handling international clients with a Singapore footprint."

"Sim Bock Eng is multi-talented and experienced in many aspects of the law, which is why we like to refer work to her and her team."

Benchmark Litigation 

• Private Client: Litigation Star 
• Top 100 Women in Litigation – Asia Pacific 

Lexology Index

• Global Leader for Private client and Labour & Employment
• National Leader for Private Client and Labour, Employment & Benefits in Southeast Asia

Best Lawyers 

• "Lawyer of the Year" award for Trusts and Estates
• Endorsed individual in the area of Family Law and Litigation

Private Client Global Elite Directory 

• Private Client Global Excellence lawyer