How to read legal citations in Singapore
Singapore's courts give each judgment a neutral citation, such as [2007] SGCA 37, and the best cases are also reported in the Singapore Law Reports (SLR), often in a reissued 'SLR(R)' series for the years 1965 to 2009.
Updated October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
Style guide: Singapore Academy of Law style guide (SLR Style Guide). The Singapore Academy of Law publishes the Singapore Law Reports and its own citation style, which courts and law schools follow closely. It borrows from OSCOLA but has its own conventions.
Real citations, decoded
Click or hover over any underlined piece to see what it means.
A Court of Appeal case with two citations Case
,
- Case name Spandeck Engineering (S) Pte Ltd v Defence Science & Technology Agency
The parties. 'Pte Ltd' is a private company. - Neutral citation [2007] SGCA 37
The year, the court and the judgment's number. SGCA means Singapore Court of Appeal, and SGHC means High Court. - Law report [2007] 4 SLR(R) 100
Volume 4 of the 2007 Singapore Law Reports (Reissue), first page 100. The (R) shows it is the reissued series, which carries the cases of 1965 to 2009.
This case set Singapore's single two-stage test for a duty of care in negligence.
Full citation: Spandeck Engineering (S) Pte Ltd v Defence Science & Technology Agency [2007] SGCA 37, [2007] 4 SLR(R) 100A statute Statute
()
- Title and year Companies Act 1967
The statute's title and the year it was first passed. Singapore statutes keep their original year even after many amendments. - Revised edition 2020 Rev Ed
The statutes of Singapore are republished in numbered revised editions. This tells you which version of the text you are reading. - Section s 157
's' means section. Section 157 is about the duties of directors.
The Constitution Constitution
(),
- Title Constitution of the Republic of Singapore
The country's supreme law. - Edition 1985 Rev Ed, 1999 Reprint
The revised edition and the reprint, which tell you which printing of the text is being cited. - Article Art 12(1)
'Art' means article. Article 12(1) is the equal protection clause: all persons are equal before the law.
Things to remember
- Neutral citation codes: SGCA (Court of Appeal), SGHC (High Court), SGHCF (Family Division), SGDC (District Court), SGMC (Magistrates' Court).
- Both the neutral citation and the report citation are given when both exist, separated by a comma.
- Paragraphs are cited in square brackets after the citation, for example [2007] SGCA 37 at [115].
- Cases from other Commonwealth countries are cited in their own form, with the country shown in brackets if it would not otherwise be clear, for example (UK).
Where to find the text, free
To understand how courts and law fit together in Singapore, read the Singapore profile in the Legal Families Atlas.
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TheLawToKnow Tools’s citation guide is an educational overview of standard conventions. Courts and journals sometimes vary, so check the style guide before submitting or publishing. It is not legal advice. Report a mistake.
