Band 4
Provided by Sudharsanan Thillainathan
Sudharsanan Thillainathan is a senior dispute resolution lawyer with almost 30 years of experience in civil and commercial litigation, international arbitration, and regulatory matters.
He heads the General, Civil and Commercial Litigation and Domestic and International Commercial Arbitration Practice Groups at Adnan Sundra & Low
He represents multinational corporations, financial institutions, government-linked entities, and private clients in complex and high-value disputes. His practice spans a wide range of sectors and legal disciplines, including banking and finance, civil fraud, corporate and partnership law, construction and infrastructure, energy and natural resources, insurance and reinsurance, public law, and taxation.
Sudhar is widely regarded for his calm and strategic approach, technical precision, and ability to navigate complex disputes with clarity and efficiency.
He acts regularly as lead counsel before the Malaysian courts and in both domestic and international arbitrations. In addition to his advocacy work, he is frequently appointed as an arbitrator – including as sole arbitrator, presiding arbitrator, and party-nominated arbitrator in three-member tribunals. Separately, he is often retained as an expert on Malaysian law in cross-border proceedings. He is also an accredited adjudicator under Malaysia’s Construction Industry Payment and Adjudication Act (CIPAA).
He is a founding member of Nine Arbitration Chambers, an independent international arbitration and mediation chambers, reflecting his commitment to the development of arbitration in Malaysia and the broader region.
In addition to his dispute resolution practice, Sudhar contributes actively to legal scholarship and professional education.
He holds a B.Comm. (Accounting & Finance) and an LL.B. (Hons) from Monash University, Australia, an LL.M. from the London School of Economics and a Global Diploma in International Commercial Arbitration (Oxford), the flagship diploma of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. His foundation in accounting and finance provides a distinct advantage in resolving financial and commercially technical disputes.
Member, Malaysian Bar
Past President of the Malaysian Institute of Arbitrators for the term 2018 – 2019.
Fellow, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators
Fellow, Malaysian Institute of Arbitrators (MIArb)
Fellow, Asian Institute of Alternative Dispute Resolution (AIADR)
Fellow, Malaysian Society of Adjudicators (MSA)
Member, Chartered Tax Institute of Malaysia (CTIM)
Member, Malaysian Insurance Institute (MII)
English & Bahasa Malaysia
Law and Practice of Construction Law in Malaysia (2021) (Sweet & Maxwell) – Co-author, Construction Court chapter
Veerinder on Taxation (6th Edition, 2022) (Wolters Kluwer) – Co-author
Bullen & Leake & Jacob’s Malaysian Precedents of Pleadings (3rd Edition, 2023) (Sweet & Maxwell) – Co-author, Judicial Review chapter
Malaysian Civil Procedure 2024 | (Malaysian White Book) (Sweet & Maxwell) – Contributing Editor
LL.B. (Hons) and B.Comm. (Accounting & Finance), Monash University, Australia
LL.M., London School of Economics
Global Diploma in International Commercial Arbitration (CIArb, Oxford)
Provided by Chambers
Sudharsanan Thillainathan of Adnan, Sundra & Low acts in a broad range of cases, with expertise in tax, competition, construction and insurance matters. He was previously president of the Malaysian Institute of Arbitrators.