Community Disputes Resolution Tribunals Rules 2015

These Rules apply to all proceedings in the Community Disputes Resolution Tribunals.

Subject to the provisions of these Rules, the Rules of Court 2021 (G.N. No. S 914/2021) apply to all proceedings in and appeals from the Community Disputes Resolution Tribunals with the following modifications:

Unless the Registrar directs otherwise, every relevant Form or document relating to proceedings before a tribunal or the Registrar must be submitted through the electronic system.

Every relevant Form must contain such particulars, and be accompanied by such documents, as may be specified by the tribunal, by the Registrar or in the relevant Form.

Any relevant Form may be used in any particular case with such variations as the circumstances of that case require.

An electronic filing and case management system is established for the tribunals.

The purposes of the electronic system are as follows:

Subject to paragraph (3), an individual must authenticate the individual’s identity using SingPass in order to access the electronic system to carry out an online transaction involving the individual.

Subject to paragraph (3), a person, who is authorised by an entity to carry out through the electronic system an online transaction involving the entity, must authenticate the identity of the entity using CorpPass in order to access the electronic system to carry out that transaction for the entity.

The Registrar may, on application by a party that is unable to authenticate the party’s identity using SingPass or CorpPass, issue the party with a username and password to enable the party to access the electronic system to carry out an online transaction involving the party.

A party that is issued a username and a password under paragraph (3) —

An individual must not facilitate the use, by any other person, of the individual’s SingPass credentials to access the electronic system.

An entity must not facilitate the use, by any unauthorised person, of the CorpPass credentials of the entity to access the electronic system.

If a relevant Form or document is submitted through the electronic system, the relevant Form or document is treated as filed on the date and at the time the first part of the transmission of the relevant Form or document is received in the electronic system.

Despite paragraph (1), where the submission of a relevant Form or document through the electronic system is unsuccessful or delayed because of a failure or inability of the electronic system to transmit or process the relevant Form or document, the Registrar may —

Every application under paragraph (2)(a) must be accompanied by proof, to the satisfaction of the Registrar, of the matters relied on to support the application.

Where the Registrar gives, through the electronic system, a notice under these Rules to —

Except as provided in paragraph (1), after the Registrar has notified a party to any proceedings before a tribunal or the Registrar that the party has been given the right to access the electronic system to view any document served on the party in relation to those proceedings —

An action in respect of a tort under section 4 of the Act must be commenced by filing —

The claimant must, within 14 days after the date on which the claim and the supporting evidence are filed, serve a copy each of the claim and the supporting evidence on the respondent.

The claimant must file a declaration of service in the relevant Form before or at the time of the first case conference.

A respondent who intends to contest a claimant’s claim must, within 14 days after being served with the claim and the supporting evidence, file and serve on the claimant —

Except with the permission of the Registrar or a tribunal, no other document or evidence may be filed or served for the purposes of the claim.

Despite Order 13, Rule 1(3) of the Rules of Court 2021, an application for a grant of an injunction need not be made by summons, and instead may be included in the claim.

A tribunal or the Registrar (called in this rule the Court) may, at any time after the commencement of any proceedings, of the Court’s own motion or on an application by any party to the proceedings, direct any party to those proceedings to appear before the Court, for the Court to make such order or give such directions as the Court thinks fit, for the just, expeditious and economical disposal of the cause or matter.

The orders and directions which the Court may make or give under paragraph (1) include one or more of the following:

To avoid doubt —

An application for a special direction under section 6(1) of the Act must be made by filing the relevant Form and be accompanied by the following supporting materials:

The applicant must, within 14 days after the date on which the application and the supporting materials are filed, serve the application and the supporting materials on the contravening party.

The applicant must file a declaration of service in the relevant Form within 8 days after the date on which the application and the supporting materials are served on the contravening party.

A contravening party who intends to contest the application must, within 14 days after being served with the application and the supporting materials, file and serve on the applicant —

Except with the permission of the tribunal, no other document or evidence may be filed or served for the purposes of the application.

An applicant who applies under section 6(1) of the Act for a special direction (called in this rule the first application) may at the same time or on a later date apply, in the relevant Form, for an order under section 6(3) of the Act that a person (called in this rule the respondent) enter into a bond to ensure that a contravening party complies with the special direction (called in this rule the second application).

The second application must be accompanied by any supporting evidence to prove the matters stated in that application.

The second application and supporting evidence must be served on the respondent —

The applicant must file a declaration of service in the relevant Form within 8 days after the date on which the application and the supporting evidence are served on the respondent.

A respondent who intends to contest the second application must, within 14 days after being served with the second application and the supporting evidence, file and serve on the applicant —

Except with the permission of the tribunal, no other document or evidence may be filed or served for the purposes of the second application.

Where the respondent fails to attend the hearing of the second application, the tribunal may adjourn the hearing of that application and issue an order in the relevant Form to compel the respondent to attend the adjourned hearing.

An application for an exclusion order under section 9(1) of the Act must be made by filing the relevant Form and be accompanied by the following supporting materials:

The applicant must, within 14 days after the date on which the application and the supporting materials are filed, serve the application and the supporting materials on the contravening party.

The applicant must file a declaration of service in the relevant Form within 8 days after the date on which the application and the supporting materials are served on the contravening party.

A contravening party who intends to contest the application must, within 14 days after being served with the application and the supporting materials, file and serve on the applicant —

Except with the permission of the tribunal, no other document or evidence may be filed or served for the purposes of the application.

A tribunal or the Registrar may, at any stage of the proceedings and on the application of a party in the relevant Form, allow the party to amend the party’s claim, application, reply or other document in such manner as the tribunal or Registrar may direct.

Despite paragraph (1), a party may, at any stage of the proceedings, amend that party’s claim, application or reply in such manner as is agreed to by the other party.

A tribunal or the Registrar may, on the tribunal’s or Registrar’s own motion or on the application of a party in the relevant Form, correct any clerical mistake, or error arising from an accidental slip or omission, in an order of a tribunal or the Registrar.

The directions which a tribunal may give under rule 12 include directions on one or more of the following matters:

The tribunal may, where it considers it necessary for the just, expeditious or economical disposal of any cause or matter —

A tribunal or the Registrar may, on the tribunal’s or the Registrar’s own initiative or at the request (by an application in the appropriate Form) of any party to the proceedings before the tribunal, summon any person —

The fee specified in item 11 or 12 of the First Schedule is payable by the party requesting the summons on sealing a summons to a witness under paragraph (1).

The tribunal may determine —

Every summons issued under rule 13A must be served on the person to whom it is directed.

A summons must not be served on any witness outside Singapore.

The obligation on a witness summoned under rule 13A to attend any hearing extends to any time and place to which the hearing may be adjourned.

A tribunal or the Registrar may direct a party who served the summons to file a declaration of service in the appropriate Form.

A judgment, an order or a direction given or made by a tribunal or the Registrar in the absence of a party may be set aside by a party aggrieved by that judgment, order or direction.

An application under this rule to set aside a judgment, an order or a direction must be —

The applicant must, within 7 days after the date on which the application and supporting affidavit are filed, serve the application and supporting affidavit on the respondent.

A respondent who intends to contest the application must, within 14 days after being served with the application and supporting affidavit, file and serve on the applicant a reply in the relevant Form supported by an affidavit.

The tribunal or Registrar hearing the application —

Where any party does not appear at the hearing of the application, the tribunal or Registrar hearing the application may dismiss the application or make such orders as the tribunal or Registrar thinks fit.

An appeal is to lie to a tribunal judge from any judgment, order or direction of the Registrar.

Divisions 1 and 2 of Order 18 of the Rules of Court 2021 apply to every such appeal with the following modifications:

An application for permission under section 26(2) of the Act to appeal against a decision, a direction or an order of a tribunal must be made in the relevant Form.

The applicant (called in this rule and rule 17 the appellant) must file the application within 14 days after the date on which the decision, direction or order was given or made.

The appellant must, within 7 days after the date on which the application is filed, serve the application on the respondent.

A respondent who intends to contest the application must, within 14 days after being served with the application, file and serve on the applicant a reply in the relevant Form.

Where any party does not appear at the hearing of the application, the tribunal hearing the application may dismiss the application or make such orders as the tribunal thinks fit.

An appellant who obtains permission to appeal from a tribunal must file and serve a notice of appeal in the relevant Form within 14 days after the date on which such permission is given.

An appeal to the General Division of the High Court from a tribunal is by way of rehearing.

The appellant must, at the time of filing the notice of appeal, provide security for the respondent’s costs of the appeal in the sum of $2,000, or such other sum as may be fixed from time to time by the Chief Justice, by —

Subject to paragraph (5), Divisions 1 and 2 of Order 19 of the Rules of Court 2021 apply to every appeal from a tribunal to the General Division of the High Court with the following modifications:

Order 19, Rules 14(1), 15 and 16(1) to (6) of the Rules of Court 2021 do not apply to any appeal from a tribunal to the General Division of the High Court.

The fees in the First Schedule are payable for proceedings in the Community Disputes Resolution Tribunals, in addition to the fees and percentages in Parts 1 and 3 of the Fourth Schedule to the Rules of Court 2021.

The scale of fees and percentages in Parts 1 and 3 of the Fourth Schedule to the Rules of Court 2021 which applies to any cause or matter in the Community Disputes Resolution Tribunals is the scale applicable to a District Court.

The fees in the Second Schedule are payable for any cause or matter for hearing before a tribunal judge.

The claimant or applicant, as the case may be, must pay the fees and file a Request in the relevant Form at the time the Registry so requires.

The Registrar may in any case waive or defer the payment of the whole or any part of the fees payable under this rule, with or without conditions.

Any party who is dissatisfied with a decision of the Registrar made under this rule may apply to a tribunal judge for a review of that decision.

An application under paragraph (4) must be made by summons supported by an affidavit, within 14 days of that decision.

Part 2 of the Fourth Schedule to the Rules of Court 2021 does not apply to any proceedings to which this rule applies.

Any document that is to be served on any person in any proceedings before a tribunal or the Registrar must be served —

Despite paragraph (1), a tribunal or the Registrar may, in any particular case, order that a document be served on a person by any other means that the tribunal or Registrar considers proper.

The Registrar may communicate with any party —

Where any party agrees to communicate with the Registrar by a means of communication mentioned in paragraph (1), that party must monitor that means of communication for any communication from the Registrar to that party, until the conclusion of the proceedings involving that party.

An application to an appropriate court under section 20(1) of the Act must be made by originating application.

Where an order is made by the General Division of the High Court for the transfer of any proceedings from a tribunal to the General Division of the High Court —

Where an order is made by a District Court or a Magistrate’s Court for the transfer of any proceedings from a tribunal to the District Court or Magistrate’s Court (as the case may be), the Registrar of the State Courts must give notice of the transfer to every party to the proceedings.