Opening of ‘The Charter and the Courts” Exhibition | A 200-Year Retrospective on the Rule of Law in Singapore

This article was first published on 12 January 2026 in the Singapore Mandarin broadsheet, Lianhe Zaobao.

SLW obtained permission to reproduce the article to give the legal community a broader view of legal reports for various news syndicates.

In conjunction with the opening of the legal year, the Singapore Academy of Law (SAL) launched a year-long exhibition titled “The Charter and the Courts: 200 Years of the Rule of Law in Singapore”, offering the public a retrospective on how the special charter laid the foundations for the judiciary and the modern legal system in Singapore.

This year marks the 200^th anniversary of The Second Charter of Justice issued in 1826. Through valuable archival material and images, the exhibition showcases the development of the Singapore judiciary and legal system over the past two centuries, and how the rule of law continues to be upheld as the social, economic, and technology environment keeps evolving.

Titled “The Charter and the Courts: 200 Years of the Rule of Law in Singapore”, the exhibition starts with the nascent stages of the rule of law, tracing the establishment of a legal system post-independence, and gives an overview of the special courts, the tribunal, and the use of digital technology, as well as the impact of therapeutic justice on families and youth.

The exhibition is open to the public for free and is held on the second floor of the Supreme Court building. Opening time is 8.30am to 4.30pm from Monday to Friday, and 8.30am to 11.30am on Saturday.

Source: Lianhe Zaobao © SPH Media Limited. Permission required for reproduction.

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