Professor Joel Lee stepped down as SIMI Board Chairman on 14 October 2025. Ms Charlene Chang, SIMI Board Director, assumed the role of Board Chairperson from 15 October 2025. To ensure a smooth transition of leadership of the SIMI Board, Professor Lee will continue to serve as Director of the SIMI Board.
Outgoing Chairman : A farewell tribute
Professor Joel Lee was a key member of the International Commercial Mediation Working Group (ICMWG), convened by Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon and the Ministry of Law in 2013, which led to the establishment of SIMI. Professor Lee was appointed Chairman of SIMI in November 2014 and has led SIMI since its inception in the same year.
Over the past 11 years as Chairman, Professor Lee has been instrumental in setting the strategic direction of SIMI and overseeing the development of its structure, processes, policies and initiatives. These include (amongst others) professionalising mediation through the development of a credentialing scheme for different tiers of mediators, the SIMI Code of Professional Conduct and the SIMI Competency Framework. During his watch, the number of mediators accredited with SIMI increased from an initial 124 individuals (many of whom were grandfathered) to well over 600 today. The number of accredited mediation training and service providers now stands at 18.
To promote mediation and professional standards in mediation at large under the SIMI banner, Professor Lee was personally involved as a speaker or moderator at various platforms with international audiences, such as Singapore Convention Week (where SIMI co-organised seminars with various partners) and the Alliance of Organisations for Mediation Standards. He also oversaw the promotion of the Singapore Convention Seminar series in 2020 (held online during the COVID pandemic) which promoted the Singapore Convention on Mediation to a wide range of jurisdictions. Seeding mediation as a first dispute resolution option amongst aspiring lawyers, Professor Lee also endorsed SIMI organising its own international mediation competition (IMSG), which attracted international participation over 2 editions (2019 and 2020).
To support the development of professional standards even amongst less experienced mediators, he led SIMI to join the Alliance of Organisations for Mediation Standards which promotes standards and cross-recognition of SIMI Level 2 mediators across 5 jurisdictions. As Board Chair, Professor Lee also supported the development of the SIMI Mentorship program, which signalled the importance of experienced mediators playing their part to raise the next generation of mediators.
In the area of thought leadership, Professor Lee has been one of 2 general editors for the Contemporary Issues in Mediation series (published by SIMI) which has been featured in the Singapore Academy of Law Journal, and has advocated for industry development issues in the mediation community, such as the development of mediation advocates and specialist mediators.
For his efforts in strengthening the quality of Singapore's services for community, domestic and international mediation in his role as SIMI's Chairman, Professor Lee was conferred the Public Service Medal [Pingat Bakti Masyarakat] at the 2023 National Day Awards.
Welcome : Incoming SIMI Board Chairperson
SIMI would like to extend a warm welcome to Ms Charlene Chang as she takes on the role of Chairperson. Ms. Chang has been a SIMI Board Director since 2024 and currently serves as the Deputy Secretary (Development) at the Ministry of Law, where she oversees legal industry development, intellectual property, and community legal services.
Ms Chang is a career public officer with previous leadership postings at the Ministry of Health, Public Service Division, the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, and the Ministry of National Development. She is a qualified lawyer, holding a Second Upper Honours degree from the Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, and a Master in Public Management from the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy.
SIMI would like to record its sincere and heartfelt gratitude to Professor Joel Lee for his pioneering leadership of the SIMI Board, his guidance of the SIMI team during his tenure, and his invaluable contributions to advancing the professionalism of mediators and mediation organizations.
We wish Professor Lee every success in his future endeavors and look forward to Ms Chang's leadership and guidance.