In the opening of the Legal Year 2020, Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon emphasised the continual imperative to build a justice system that better meets society’s justice needs. He laid out the context (at para 41 of his Response): "These enduring problems are a legacy of a justice process that was conceived in a different era and which was founded on a philosophical preference for argument and adjudication as primary methods of dispute resolution. That model of justice is increasingly straining to meet the needs of modern society – one which is evolving faster than ever before; inhabits both the online and offline worlds; faces increasing socio-economic stratification; and confronts a polarised world more prone to conflict and division than peace and multilateralism".

This eagerly-anticipated book provides an excellent introduction to the world of mergers and acquisitions ("M&A"), which is perhaps a more high value-added form of corporate practice, and one in which lawyers must understand the nature of deals in general. Whereas initial public offerings, and even general corporate work, are usually directly correlated with the health of the economy, public M&A work - like insolvency workouts - can sometimes be countercyclical in that it comes to the fore when the securities markets are weak and the need for companies to consolidate strong.