Suresh is the Head of the Firm’s Commercial Arbitration Practice Group.

Suresh has represented clients in international arbitrations involving disputes over construction, energy, technology transfer projects and joint ventures in jurisdictions such as the United States, Japan, South Korea, Thailand and India. Suresh has experience in both ad-hoc arbitrations as well as institutional arbitrations governed by International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Rules, Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) Rules and UNCITRAL Rules where the substantive laws of the contracts have included Thai law, Swiss law and Japanese law.

Suresh also acts in civil & commercial trials as well as appeals against domestic arbitration decisions in the High Court of Singapore. An article appearing on the 19th of September 2011 issue of The Business Times reported that in a successful S$1 million lawsuit, Suresh was praised by High Court Judge Quentin Loh “for acting in the best traditions of the bar in presenting his client’s case with fairness and candour. Our bar will continue to retain the respect from the public and bench alike if it is peopled by counsel like Mr Divyanathan.”

Suresh’s cases have included: -

• A multi-million dollar dispute in Thailand on the supply of cement clinker governed by ICC Rules involving issues of variation of contracts, delay, substitution purchases, remoteness of damage and the correct measure of damages in international sale contracts.

• A US$200 million dispute in California over the construction and launch into orbit of a telecommunications satellite under UNCITRAL Rules involving issues of delay, rescission of contract and force majeure due to, inter alia, a United States Department of State Public Notice prohibiting the launch of U.S. satellites by rockets from the People’s Republic of China.

• A US$60 million dispute over the construction of a power plant in Thailand arbitrated under ICC Rules involving allegations of force majeure as a result of the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis, fraud in the tender process and time bar.

• A multi-million dollar dispute between joint-venture partners over the sale and implementation of energy management systems to State Electricity Boards in India governed by ICC Rules involving allegations of fraud, misrepresentation, misuse/conversion of intellectual property and loss of opportunity.

• A multi-million dollar dispute under ICC Rules between developers and distributors of a highly successful mass multi-player internet game in the People’s Republic of China involving jurisdictional issues of incorporation of arbitration clauses from one contract into another, cross-claims by one Respondent against another and actual and apparent authority to settle.

Suresh has been consistently recommended as a leading Dispute Resolution lawyer in Asia’s Leading Lawyers since 2006.

Suresh’s appointments and memberships (as at January 2012) include the following:

• Chairman, Membership Committee of the Inter-Pacific Bar Association.
• Member, Inquiry Panel under the Legal Profession Act.

Member, Advisory Committee for Victoria School and Victoria Junior College.