NUS settles $55 million lawsuit over 2012 fire caused by gas leak

This is the 11th in The Straits Times series by Senior Law Correspondent K.C. Vijayan on legal issues, with each edition tied to an area of law. Today's write-up underlines how in negligence cases, broadly at least, seven out of 10 cases are settled before reaching trial, and the reasons involved. Also, we look at some issues that made a difference to court cases this year and a landmark case that would make it to any potential list for 2020's case of the year.

It took firefighters nearly five hours to douse the flames at the ground floor of Block E3A. PHOTOS: FAUZAN TARMIN, XU ZHI QIANG, JOYCE FANG
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SINGAPORE - Three defendant companies have settled a lawsuit with the National University of Singapore (NUS), which had claimed $55 million in damages over an extensive gas-leak fire in a laboratory at the NUS Kent Ridge campus in 2012.

The terms of the settlement reached by NUS with Air Liquide Singapore and the two other defendants are confidential and the agreed sum payable cannot be disclosed.

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