The Legal 500

Within Asset finance, Reed Smith is a first tier firm,

The team at Reed Smith Richards Butler has an outstanding depth of experience, advising borrowers and lenders on ship and aviation finance, with banking partner Andrew Brown at the helm of the practice. Brown acts for ship owners, including Noble Group and China Shipping, as well as financiers. A ‘leading light’ in the aviation sphere, Emma Casdagli has a ‘fantastic reputation’ and counts Cathay, ICBC and several ECAs as clients. Chris Tang leads on the ship finance side. The team recently handled a $800m financing for LNG carriers for China Shipping and Mitsui OSK Lines, as part of their joint venture. Peter Lee made partner in January 2011.

Within Banking and finance, Reed Smith is a third tier firm,

Reed Smith Richards Butler’s practice is still largely driven by borrowers, with the firm’s strong corporate client base, but it has had considerable success in acting for the major PRC banks. Pre-IPO financings, syndicated lending and leveraged finance accounts for much of the practice, with Andrew Brown having a solid reputation.

Within Capital markets (equity), tier 4

Reed Smith Richards Butler has a long and prestigious record in mid-market Hong Kong listings with Graham Winter, Christopher Williams, Delpha Ho and Denise Jong to the fore. Crucially, it now has in-house US securities expertise in Hong Kong through Ronald Francis.

Within Corporate (including M&A), Reed Smith is a third tier firm,

With its lengthy history of working with major Hong Kong-listed companies, Reed Smith Richards Butler is widely regarded as the ‘go-to’ firm for Hong Kong Takeovers Code issues. PCCW and Lippo Group are examples of high-profile clients. The firm recently acted for the Hsu Family in connection with the headline joint-venture between Nestlé and Hsu Fu Chi. Graham Winter, Christopher Williams and Denise Jong are highly recommended. David Norman has retired.

Within Dispute resolution, Reed Smith is a first tier firm,

Reed Smith Richards Butler’s ‘terrific’ David Morrison and William Barber are widely recognised for their financial sector disputes expertise, including cases against banks. Morrison is renowned for defending financial institutions and executives in connection with investigations by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC). On the insurance side, the firm has a leading reputation for professional negligence and medical negligence with Kevin Bowers and Chris Howse to the fore. Howse is also recommended for shipping disputes.

Within Employment, Reed Smith is a third tier firm,

Reed Smith Richards Butler acts for local and international companies and individuals on all aspects of employment law, and recently advised one of the top accountancy firms on a number of complex lateral partner hires. Jonathan Green, Kevin Bowers and Asha Sharma are the key contacts.

Within Insurance, Reed Smith is a first tier firm,

Providing a ‘very prompt service’ and ‘helpful advice’, Reed Smith Richards Butler is highly rated for medical insurance, professional negligence and professional indemnity claims, and also has experience in marine-related insurance work. Chris Howse is rated as ‘top drawer’ for clinical negligence matters. Kevin Bowers advises on professional indemnity claims.

Within Intellectual property, Reed Smith is a second tier firm,

Praised for its ‘excellent service and in-depth advice’, Reed Smith Richards Butler has a strong contentious IP practice and is recognised for enforcement work in the luxury goods and computer software sectors. The team, led by Steven Birt, recently expanded its workload through new client instructions from French and Italian clothing brands. Birt delivers ‘practical and commercial advice on every aspect of IP law’.

Within Private equity, Reed Smith is a third tier firm,

Reed Smith Richards Butler focuses primarily on mid-market private equity deals. It has a long history of working with 3i, as well as sovereign wealth fund Temasek. Graham Winter and Denise Jong are recommended.

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Within Regulatory, Reed Smith is a second tier firm,

Reed Smith Richards Butler has a very good reputation, particularly on the contentious side. It has notable insider trading knowledge and experience. David Morrison leads in contentious regulatory cases, and William Barber is known for advising companies in the telecoms and commodities sectors on regulatory issues.

Within Restructuring and insolvency, tier 4

At Reed Smith Richards Butler, Jonathan Green and Andrew Brown handle debt restructuring across the region. The team has previously acted for clients in the telecoms and manufacturing sectors.

Within Shipping, Reed Smith is a second tier firm,

The ‘extremely good’ group at Reed Smith Richards Butler houses separate teams for ship finance, led by Andrew Brown, and shipping litigation, where Chris Howse is the driving force. Praised as ‘one of the most senior shipping litigators in town’, Howse works closely with the firm’s collision salvage sub-group, where master mariner Ron Clark is recommended. The firm acts for the whole spectrum of shipping clients and reports an increase in instructions from Hong Kong P&I clubs.

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