Wotton Kearney has hired a shipping and commodities disputes team in Singapore, including partner Karnan Thirupathy and special counsel Charlene Sim from Kennedys, as it builds its marine practice in the region.
The new team will work across the firm’s Singapore and Bangkok offices, acting for insurers, P&I clubs, commodity traders, shipowners, and charterers, according to the firm’s announcement.
Wotton Kearney has recruited from Kennedys in Singapore before, as the firm’s Singapore office was initially built around Ben Nicholson and Tom Morrison, who both joined from Kennedys in mid-2024.
Nicholson, now managing partner for Asia, noted that clients in the sector need advisers who understand both the legal complexity and the commercial realities of doing business in the region.
Wotton Kearney’s marine practice has been a focus for the firm, with chief executive partner David Kearney stating in May 2025 that the firm was looking to build out its marine capability.
Thirupathy is a key signing, with over 25 years of experience in Asia, running international arbitrations and cross-border disputes in shipping, commodities, and insurance.
Sim has been in practice for 11 years, working alongside Thirupathy, and her disputes work covers LNG and commodity sale and purchase contracts, contracts of affreightment, charterparties, and marine insurance policies.
The team’s recent win, securing over US$140 million for a global energy trader against a state-owned energy company in an LCIA arbitration over LNG supply, demonstrates their capabilities.
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Singapore’s port handled a record 44.66 million TEUs in 2025, up 8.6% on the year before, while vessel arrivals reached 3.22 billion gross tonnage and marine fuel sales hit 56.77 million tonnes, according to the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore.
The ship registry grew by about 27% to become the world’s fourth largest, highlighting the significance of Singapore’s maritime industry.
The waters around Singapore are also prone to vessel losses, with South China, Indochina, Indonesia, and the Philippines ranked as the world’s top hotspot for total vessel losses, according to Allianz Commercial’s shipping safety review.
Wotton Kearney’s Singapore hires are part of a wider build, with the firm folding in Oceanlaw, a New Zealand maritime and fisheries practice, on 1 August, opening an office in Nelson, its fifth in New Zealand and 14th across Asia Pacific.
Founded in 2002 with two partners, Wotton Kearney now has more than 100 partners and over 550 legal professionals across Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, and Thailand.
In Bangkok, the firm’s second Asian office opened in May 2025 under partner Ian Johnston, an arbitration specialist who joined from Clyde & Co after an earlier stint at Kennedys.
For Kennedys, the departures of Thirupathy, Nicholson, and Morrison to Wotton Kearney are notable, with Morrison indicating on LinkedIn that more additions will follow in the coming weeks.
