SCCA’s APAC congress to focus on reinvention

The Asia-Pacific Legal Congress 2026 returns to Singapore on 8-9 April 2026, hosted by the Singapore Corporate Counsel Association (SCCA), with a message for in-house counsel across the region: Legal expertise alone is no longer enough.

Titled The End of the Legal Comfort Zone: Survival, Relevance and Reinvention in an Algorithmic Asia-Pacific, this year’s congress will be held at One Farrer Hotel in Singapore.

While last year’s congress focused on understanding forces such as generative AI, ESG and blockchain, the 2026 edition takes the conversation further.

“We are challenging in-house counsel not just to recognise change, but to respond to it with clarity, confidence and purpose,” SCCA president Daniel Choo told Asia Business Law Journal.

This year’s congress will welcome judicial leaders, including: guest of honour and Minister for Law Edwin Tong; Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Sundaresh Menon; President of the Singapore International Commercial Court and High Court Judge of the Supreme Court Philip Jeyaretnam, Attorney General Lucien Wong; and High Court Judge of the Supreme Court, Chua Lee Ming.

The programme will highlight discussions including: The Echo Chamber of Legal Thought: Is AI Training its Successor?; The Gig Economy GC: The Death of Loyalty and the Rise of the Fractional Fiduciary; and Greenwashing is the New Compliance: Why Cynicism is the Smartest Strategy.

Breakout sessions will be led by industry experts from the Singapore Academy of Law, Singapore International Arbitration Centre and Singapore International Mediation Centre.

As expectations on corporate legal teams expand, this year’s congress aims to equip delegates with the mindset and commercial fluency required to remain relevant amid geopolitical volatility and digital transformation across the APAC region.

The 2026 congress also coincides with the 200th anniversary of the Second Charter of Justice, a foundational milestone in Singapore’s legal development. In support of national commemorations themed Six Decades of Independence, Two Centuries of Legal History, SCCA will host a walk-through exhibition at One Farrer Hotel, guiding delegates through key moments that have shaped Singapore’s heritage.

With more than 1,600 delegates from 24 countries attending the 2025 edition, this year’s congress is expected to once again draw senior corporate counsel, policymakers and legal innovators from across the APAC.