Prashant is the first case in Singapore where the courts have made a finding that the employer breached the implied duty of mutual trust and confidence (“IDMTC”) that exists in employment contracts between the employer and employee. Although the existence of the IDMTC has been accepted in several first instance decisions[1], the Court of Appeal have been more reticent[2] stating that its acceptance as part of Singapore law remains an open question to be determined.
InPrashant the court has undertaken a robust review of this issue and concluded that the IDMTC is indeed part of Singapore law and has considered the implications of this determination. This case is likely to be the locus classicus.
Please find the full update attached.
[1] Latham v Credit Suisse First Boston [1999] SGHC 302, Wong Leong Wei Edward v Acclaim Insurance Brokers [2010] SGHC 352, Cheah Peng Hock v Luzhou Bio-Chem [20132 SLR 577
[2] Dong Wei v Shell Eastern [2021] SGHC 123, The One Suites v Pacific Motor Credit [2015] 3 SLR 695