The Asia Pacific Legal 500 2012
CHINA
Mainland China’s domestic firms lag behind their foreign counterparts for international practice standards, but local firms dominate the domestic market, and are increasingly seen in cross-border matters. Jun He Law Offices, King & Wood, Zhong Lun Law Firm and Haiwen & Partners are among China’s top domestic firms.
Movement continues between international and domestic firms in mainland China. Former Beijing Lovells partner Robert Lewis went to Allbright Law Offices in 2010, but has since joined Beijing’s Zhong Lun Law Firm; and Michael Yu left Global Law Office for Norton Rose LLP in 2010, but rejoined Global Law Office in 2011.
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AUSTRALIA
With Australia having weathered the economic downturn better than many countries, 2010 and 2011 brought renewed vigour to the corporate transactional space, largely being driven by Asian investment, most notably from India and China. Australian states with strong energy or natural resources sectors have been particularly busy, and related legal work has burgeoned.
The major players nationally - Allens Arthur Robinson, Freehills, Clayton Utz, Blake Dawson, Mallesons Stephen Jaques and Minter Ellison - continue to attract top-end corporate deals, such as AXA SA and AMP’s joint bid to acquire AXA Asia Pacific Holdings, or the Singapore Exchange’s proposed takeover of the ASX.
INDONESIA
Interest in Indonesia has heated up over the past few years, with investors and law firms alike attracted by multibillion-dollar projects in the mining, natural resources and oil and gas sectors. This interest has increased in the wake of the new mining law, which came into effect in early 2010 allowing foreign investors to own stakes in local mines.
International firms are still not officially allowed to open offices in Indonesia, but relationships with local alliances are frequently very close, with international lawyers often spending many years on long-term secondment to their local alliance partner. The last two years has seen a spate of Indonesian lawyers leaving more established local firms to set up on their own, and announcing alliances with international firms. In 2011 Norton Rose Australia announced an alliance with the newly formed Susandarini & Partners; In 2010 Allen & Overy teamed up with Ginting & Reksodiputro to form Ginting & Reksodiputro in association with Allen & Overy; and Blake Dawson allied with Oentoeng Suria & Partners.
HONG KONG
As one of the world’s premier financial centres, and arguably the most active at present, Hong Kong has become a market of intense focus for the international legal profession. While many local and international firms have increased their resources in the special administrative region (SAR), it is US firms that have surprised the market with a sequence of headline lateral hires. Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, Kirkland & Ellis International LLP, Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP and Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy have all hired elite names, principally from the Magic Circle and elite UK-based firms.
In August 2011, Kirkland & Ellis International LLP made the biggest splash by hiring seven partners from Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, Allen & Overy and Latham & Watkins LLP. These include leading M&A partner Nicholas Norris and eminent capital markets partner Dominic Tsun.
JAPAN
Mirroring the dignified stoicism that the Japanese population as a whole showed in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake and tsunami that struck in March 2011, the business and legal markets in Japan, for the most part, continued to operate business as usual.
Some trends have emerged over the last 18 months. On a regional level, energy and natural resource projects continue to lead the way in Asia with focus and competition among Japanese, Chinese, Korean and Indian companies to secure long-term access to natural resources. The disaster has raised concerns over nuclear power and has forced greater LNG activity that looks set to increase further.
SINGAPORE
The Singapore legal market remains strong, supported by significant growth in pan-regional transactional and project work and international arbitration.
Allen & Overy, Clifford Chance, Herbert Smith LLP, Latham & Watkins LLP, Norton Rose (Asia) LLP and White & Case LLP hold Qualified Foreign Law Practice (QFLP) licences, allowing them to practise domestic law employing Singapore-qualified lawyers. Other firms achieve this through joint law ventures, notably Allens Arthur Robinson TSMP, Baker & McKenzie.Wong & Leow, Linklaters Allen & Gledhill, Hogan Lovells Lee & Lee and Pinsent Masons MPillay LLP. In 2011, market liberalisation produced new alliances and local subsidiaries of international firms, notably Duane Morris & Selvam LLP, a joint law venture between Duane Morris LLP and Selvam LLC, and Ince & Co’s establishment of Incisive Law LLC.
MALAYSIA
Malaysia recorded the fastest regional growth in mergers and acquisitions in 2010 by number of deals, and in capital markets the Petronas Chemicals listing became Southeast Asia’s biggest IPO of 2010. The Islamic finance sector is also thriving with growing foreign interest in sukuk issuances.
As such, Malaysia continues to compete with other vibrant markets in Southeast Asia. However, a major concern is the leeching of young legal talent from the market, while increased competition between firms locally – due to undercutting of fees and an overcrowded market of smaller players – means that market consolidation is considered to be likely.
INDIA
The Indian legal market remains anchored around Mumbai and New Delhi but continues to mature and in the nature of mandates handled by its law firms. With some of the largest corporates - such as Tata and Reliance - now based in India, and an increased appetite among multinationals to invest in India, competition for legal work is intense.
While full-service heavyweights such as AZB & Partners, Amarchand & Mangaldas & Suresh A. Shroff & Co, Luthra & Luthra and J Sagar Associates dominate the markets in New Delhi and Mumbai, other niche firms such as Karanjawala and Company, Tuli & Co and Anand and Anand perform well for dispute resolution, insurance and intellectual property respectively.
New firms continue to emerge as groups or individual lawyers leave larger firms; in 2011, perhaps the most notable of these was Mumbai-based Clasis Law, which was formed following a breakaway from ALMT Legal.