REUBEN RAPHEL JOSEPH
PARTNER
Email:
Areas of Practice :
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Construction and Engineering
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Arbitration
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Dispute Resolution
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Employment Law
LLB (Hons) Liverpool
About Me
Reuben Raphael Joseph obtained his Bachelor of Laws with First Class Honours from the University of Liverpool and was admitted as an Advocate & Solicitor of the High Court in Malaya in 2019.
He practises primarily in dispute resolution, with a focus on construction, engineering, and oil and gas disputes. Reuben regularly acts for developers, main contractors, subcontractors, consultants, and other industry stakeholders in complex and high-value matters. His experience spans arbitration, statutory adjudication under the Construction Industry Payment and Adjudication Act 2012, and litigation at all levels of the Malaysian courts, involving disputes relating to delay and disruption, defective works, variations, termination, and performance bond calls.
He also advises on ongoing project and contractual matters, including contract administration, claims strategy, and risk management, and has experience drafting and advising on construction contracts based on FIDIC, PAM, and PWD standard forms, as well as bespoke agreements.
In addition, Reuben maintains a civil and commercial litigation practice and advises on employment and industrial relations matters, including wrongful dismissal claims.
Reuben began his career at two ranked law firms, spent time in-house at a leading Asia-Pacific HR solutions company, and later practised with a boutique dispute resolution firm before joining Han Kuan & Co as a Partner in 2026.
He is fluent in English, Bahasa Malaysia, and Vietnamese.
Notable Experience
Some of the notable matters that Lim Kuan has acted for or involved in are as follows:
Construction-Related Disputes
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Represented a sub-contractor in an arbitration against a main contractor arising from offshore and onshore construction works, involving claims exceeding RM120 million.
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Represented a Chinese state-owned enterprise and its Malaysian subsidiary in arbitrations against the employers relating to two hydro power plant projects in Sabah, with claims totalling approximately RM250 million.
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Represented a turnkey contractor in an arbitration arising from a solar hybrid project in Sarawak, involving claims exceeding RM40 million.
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Represented a main contractor in an arbitration against the employer in relation to a mixed development project in Johor Bahru, with claims exceeding RM50 million.
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Represented an employer in an arbitration commenced by a main contractor relating to the construction of a textile manufacturing facility, involving claims of RM11 million.
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Represented a consultant in arbitration proceedings against a main contractor for unpaid professional fees arising from a glove manufacturing project.
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Represented a main contractor in resisting High Court proceedings commenced by the Government of Malaysia in relation to the construction of a hospital in Selangor.
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Represented a turnkey contractor in adjudication proceedings under the Construction Industry Payment and Adjudication Act 2012 against the Government of Malaysia, involving claims of RM24 million.
Arbitration-Related Court Proceedings
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Represented a property developer in the Court of Appeal in proceedings to set aside an arbitral award of RM15 million.
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Represented an employer in opposing appeals in the Court of Appeal and Federal Court following the dismissal of a setting aside application in respect of an arbitral award of RM20 million.
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Represented a Singapore-based commodities trading company in High Court proceedings to set aside an arbitral award rendered under the PORAM Rules.
Civil & Commercial Disputes
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Represented a former director of Malaysia’s largest open-pit mining company in a multi-million Ringgit High Court suit involving allegations of breach of fiduciary duties and fraud.
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Representing a Malaysian broadcasting company in High Court proceedings concerning alleged breaches of a broadcasting contract relating to Malaysia’s digital terrestrial television project.
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Represented a home improvement retailer in defending a contractual claim brought by a transportation service provider.
Employment Disputes
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Represented a private higher education institution in judicial review proceedings in the High Court and the subsequent appeal in the Court of Appeal, resulting in the quashing of an Industrial Court decision.
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Represented a specialist sub-contractor in the Industrial Court in defending a wrongful dismissal claim.
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Represented a construction company in the Industrial Court in defending a wrongful retrenchment claim.