The Legal 500

Perennially ‘a top firm for big US capital markets work’, Davis Polk & Wardwell acted for Credit Suisse and Merrill Lynch as joint bookrunners of Changyou.com’s IPO, the first on the NASDAQ in 2009. The team also advised the joint global co-ordinators of the HK$3.4bn IPO of Renhe Commercial Holdings. William Barron and Show-Mao Chen are key individuals.

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s reputation for ‘a good volume of impressive Hong Kong IPOs’ is borne out by advice on two of the largest Hong Kong IPOs of 2008, China Railway Construction and Want Want Group. The practice also advised Allianz on its $1.6bn sale of shares in Industrial and Commercial Bank of China. Anthony Dapiran in Beijing is an up-and-coming partner.

‘A top firm for underwriters, particularly in Hong Kong’, Herbert Smith LLP advised China International Capital and Macquarie Capital Securities as joint bookrunners on the $613m Hong Kong IPO of China South Locomotive, and represented Credit Suisse and Morgan Stanley as joint global co-ordinators on the HK$3.2bn offering of Honghua Group. Beijing managing partner Gary Lock and Tom Chau are ‘very active’.

Latham & Watkins LLP lost Julie Gao to Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, but hired seven Hong Kong partners from Allen & Overy LLP, adding Hong Kong expertise to its ‘pre-eminent US practice on the issuer side’. One highlight was representing China Zhongwang Holdings in its $1.2bn Hong Kong IPO. David Zhang stands out.

With ‘good breadth of knowledge and execution skills’ as well as ‘strength in depth’, Linklaters was the only firm engaged with respect to all four of the bond issues (totalling RMB12bn) by Bank of Communications, Export & Import Bank of China, China Construction Bank and Bank of China. William Liu and Paul Chow in Beijing are ‘first-class’.

The ‘top notch’ practice at Morrison & Foerster successfully completed four China-related IPOs in 2008: Renhe Commercial Holdings ($435m), Solargiga ($130m, the first solar-power company to list in Hong Kong), Asia Cement ($238m) and Maoye Holdings ($343m). The team also acted for UBS, JPMorgan and CITIC in the $1.2bn Hong Kong IPO of China Zhongwang. Hong Kong managing partner Ven Tan is the leading individual.

Shearman & Sterling LLP is a ‘leading capital markets firm’, with strength on both issuer and underwriter sides. In 2008, the practice advised Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse in connection with China Shanshui Cement’s $268m Hong Kong IPO, and represented advised China Mass Media International Advertising in its $49m IPO and NYSE Arca listing. Beijing managing partner Alan Seem is ‘great’.

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP’s highlights included representing China Shanshui Cement in its $268m Hong Kong IPO. The ‘dedicated and expert’ team also advised Credit Suisse, ABN AMRO and Deutsche Bank Securities, as underwriters of Trina Solar’s concurrent offerings of $138m of 4% Convertible Senior Notes and American Depositary Shares. Leiming Chen and Chris Lin have ‘vast knowledge and experience’.

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP’s hire of Julie Gao from Latham & Watkins LLP adds prowess to an already impressive team. ‘Best for complex and exacting matters’, the practice advised CITIC Dameng Holdings as Hong Kong and US counsel in respect of its proposed IPO and spin-off from its parent group. Alec Tracy is ‘sharp, incisive and commercial - as good a high yield lawyer as they come’.

Clients say that ‘for capital markets work, Sullivan & Cromwell LLP is fantastic’. The practice is ‘frequently brought in for US advice on some of the biggest deals’. China practice leader Chun Wei is ‘well-known for her expertise’.

‘Strong lawyers with relevant expertise, significant local resources and a global support network’, in 2008 Allen & Overy LLP advised Chongqing Machinery & Electronics on its HK$1.2bn Hong Kong IPO. Richard Kim in Shanghai is ‘particularly good - very responsive and thorough’. However, the departure of seven Hong Kong capital markets partners to Latham & Watkins LLP is a significant blow to the practice.

Baker & McKenzie was engaged regarding the IPOs of China Railway Construction and China Southern Locomotive in 2008, in addition to advising China Eastern Airlines on the RMB7bn new share subscription by its parent company China Eastern Air. Jackie Lo in Beijing is a leading individual.

Clifford Chance LLP has ‘a great reputation for capital markets work’, particularly on the underwriter side. That said, in 2008 the practice advised Noble Group on US law regarding its issue of $500m 8.5% Senior Notes due 2013, one of the few successful high yield debt deals closed in Asia that year. Connie Heng and Alex Lloyd co-head the practice.

With ‘good levels of service and fast response times’, DLA Piper’s busy practice has responded well to the re-emergence of Asian capital markets. The team advised China Southern Airlines on its parent company’s HK$480m subscription of its A and H shares, and advised China Everbright Capital as sponsor and underwriter of Strong Petrochemical’s HK$250m IPO. ‘Impressive’ Liu Wei is the practice leader.

O’Melveny & Myers LLP advised UBS, Goldman Sachs and BNP Paribas as underwriters of Want Want’s $1.05bn global offering and listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The team also acted for the issuers on two of the four US IPOs out of China in 2008 - ATA’s $53m offering on NASDAQ, and China Distance Education’s $61.3m offering on NYSE Arca. Shanghai-based partner Kurt Berney is ‘very active’.

Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP acted for China National Materials in its $540m Hong Kong IPO and advised Deutsche Bank and JPMorgan as the underwriters in the $465m global offering and Hong Kong IPO of Zhong An Real Estate Holdings. Shanghai-based Jim Hildebrandt is recommended by clients.

Sidley Austin LLP has ‘a great market-share on issuer-side representations’, leading to an impressive volume of transactions. The team advised LDK Solar on its $200m follow-on offering of 4.8 million American depositary shares, and represented Nine Dragons Paper in its offering of $300m 7.875% Senior Notes due 2013. Constance Choy and Beijing-based Henry Ding are singled out.

‘Client and solution focused’, Simmons & Simmons receives praise for ‘good breadth of knowledge and skill set despite the small team’. The debt capital markets team, based in Hong Kong, receives particular praise, with Paul Browne being ‘knowledgeable, reliable and responsive beyond the call of duty’ and Sau-Wing Mak rated for ‘good depth of knowledge and quality advice’.

Clients rate Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP as ‘a great securities firm’. The team represented the underwriters in the $200m SEC-registered follow-on offering of American depositary receipts of LDK Solar. Clayton Johnson has a good record of capital markets work.

‘Hard-working, efficient, and high quality’, Debevoise & Plimpton’s capital markets team has a broad range of experience working for issuers and underwriters across a span of industries. ‘Excellent partner’ Thomas Britt has ‘good judgement and experience’.

Hogan & Hartson LLP represented Asia Cement (China) in its HK$2bn Hong Kong IPO, and advised Citigroup as sponsor and global coordinator and Macquarie Capital Securities as joint lead bookrunner and manager, in the HK$1.2bn Hong Kong IPO of Real Gold Mining. Gordon Ng and Man Chiu Lee lead the team.

Mallesons Stephen Jaques’s 2008 highlights include advising Kingsway Capital as sponsor of Come Sure Group’s Hong Kong IPO, and acting as issuer’s counsel to Real Gold Mining in its HK$1.2bn Hong Kong IPO. Conrad Chan and Dieter Yih are particularly active.

Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP advised Guotai Junan Securities as sponsor of Shandong Chenming Paper’s HK$3.2bn Hong Kong IPO, and represented Xtep International in its HK$2.2bn Hong Kong IPO. Edwin Luk is the key practitioner.

Troutman Sanders LLP acted for a leading private equity firm’s Shanghai-based portfolio company in respect of the $150m Hong Kong IPO and listing of its home supplies business. Capital markets partner Olivia Lee is ‘experienced and professional’.

Weil, Gotshal & Manges has experience on both debt and equity deals, with Beijing and Shanghai head Steven Xiang and Hong Kong managing partner David Meredith the standout individuals.