Singapore's Senior Minister K Shanmugam and Minister for Trade and Industry (Energy and Industry) Tan See Leng have each been awarded S$145,000 in legal costs following their successful defamation suit against Bloomberg and its journalist.
The award breaks down into S$50,000 for pre-trial work, S$65,000 for the trial, and S$30,000 for post-trial work for each minister. Details of these costs were shared with the media in an extract of the notes of proceedings.
Sources differ on the US dollar equivalent of the award, with estimates ranging from approximately US$112,000 to US$113,000.
Defamation Ruling
Earlier this month, Bloomberg and its reporter Low De Wei were ordered to pay damages of S$230,000 to each minister for defamation. A court ruled that a December 2024 Bloomberg article on Good Class Bungalow (GCB) transactions had defamed the ministers.
Singapore's ultra-rich are increasingly cloaking their purchases of mansions in the city-state in secrecy.
The article referenced a S$3 billion money laundering scandal in Singapore, stating that criminals linked to the scandal were convicted, jailed and deported. It also suggested that buyers of high-end homes would rather keep their purchases under the radar.
The piece named Dr Tan See Leng and Mr Shanmugam and referred to their respective GCB transactions. Bloomberg and reporter Low De Wei contested the claims, arguing the article addressed broader trends in Singapore's GCB market rather than the ministers personally or any wrongdoing on their part.
The judge rejected this argument, stating that the article, when read as a whole, linked the ministers' transactions with claims about secrecy, opacity and money laundering, creating a defamatory impression. The court also dismissed Bloomberg's reliance on a public interest defence known as the Reynolds defence in UK law, noting it is not part of Singapore law.
Bloomberg declined to comment when contacted about the court's order on legal costs.