SINGAPORE - The Republic's Justice Kannan Ramesh has been sworn in by Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah as a judicial commissioner of the Supreme Court of Brunei on Monday (Oct 7).

The appointment is for a two-year period, and the 54-year-old will continue to hold his position as a full-time judge of the Supreme Court of Singapore.

As a judicial commissioner of the Supreme Court of Brunei, Justice Ramesh will spend up to a month in Brunei each year to read, hear and write judgments on primarily commercial cases and certain civil ones.

All part-time judges appointed to the Supreme Court of Brunei are designated as judicial commissioners.

This has no bearing on the judge's seniority nor his jurisdiction, powers, duties or authority when hearing cases.

In the Singapore Supreme Court, Justice Ramesh was appointed judicial commissioner in May 2015 and judge of the High Court in April 2017.

This is not the first time a Singapore judge has been appointed in a foreign court.

Justice Quentin Loh was appointed to the Supreme Court of Fiji, and Justice Judith Prakash has been appointed to the Dubai International Financial Centre Courts.

In welcoming Justice Ramesh's new appointment, Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon said: "This appointment will strengthen cooperation between the two courts and deepen the already close ties between Singapore and Brunei.

"It will also raise the Singapore's international standing and reputation as a legal and judicial centre."

Justice Ramesh said of his appointment: "I am humbled by the invitation to be a member of the Brunei Darussalam judiciary. It is an honour and a privilege.

"I very much look forward to working with (the Brunei Supreme Court's) Chief Justice Steven Chong and the many august members of the Brunei Bench."