Baker McKenzie‘s prominent team of four partners adeptly manages an extensive array of contentious and non-contentious matters for a diverse clientele, comprising standalone corporate entities, private individuals, and the firm’s institutional clients. Pierre Chan leads the practice, which is bolstered by its seamless collaboration with the firm’s regional and global offices distributed across an expansive network; this synergy is particularly evident in the team’s involvement in substantial global restructuring matters and the formulation of tax strategies for multinational enterprises. Chan excels particularly in cross-border tax issues, often encompassing dispute resolution and family planning. With his background as the former head of the APAC tax practice, Steven Sieker boasts an extensive understanding of tax intricacies affecting clients across the region, as well as in a domestic setting. A core competency of Sieker lies in his proficiency in resolving tax disputes with the Inland Revenue Department of Hong Kong. Other key figures include Amy Ling, who brings expertise in advising on PRC tax issues, and Anne Quenedey, a French-qualified lawyer concentrating on tax advisory work for Asia and Europe, embodying the team’s European outreach.
Domestic and International Corporate Tax in Hong Kong
Baker McKenzie
Practice head(s):
Pierre Chan
Other key lawyers:
Steven Sieker; Amy Ling; Anne Quenedey, Carrie Lui; Calista Li
Work highlights
DLA Piper
Underpinned by a substantial global network of offices, DLA Piper regularly advises both multinational and regional corporates and private clients on the entire spectrum of tax advisory work in Hong Kong, including tax controversy, restructuring, due diligence, and private wealth planning, as well as transfer pricing. Team head Anderson Lam is an expert in Hong Kong corporate and tax law, being a key port of call for local and international clients with significant domestic and regional footprints who seek assistance with large intra group restructurings. Lam also has extensive experience in wealth planning matters, and has experience advising numerous high-net-worth individuals and multinational corporates on tax compliance issues. Associates Edith Liu and Lilian Ip regularly assist Lam, including on the tax aspects of corporate restructuring mandates, and Windson Li is also a notable team member as head of Asia tax from Beijing.
Practice head(s):
Anderson Lam; Windson Li
Other key lawyers:
Lilian Ip; Edith Liu
Testimonials
‘International professional mindset, integrated service offering, and they understand interactions with foreign legal and tax systems.’
‘Anderson Lam is an outstanding lawyer in his field; focussed, pleasant, efficient technically outstanding, and able to translate complex issues into practical advice.’
Gibson Dunn
The tax practice of Gibson Dunn provides broad expertise across all areas of Hong Kong tax law, with a particular focus on the resolution of tax issues, controversies, and disputes with the Inland Revenue Department of Hong Kong, as well as advisory work for major corporate and institutional clients, family offices, and charities. The team also has experience assisting clients with disputes regarding the administration of estates under both PRC and Hong Kong law. The group is co-headed by Elaine Chen, who frequently acts for high-net-worth individuals and multinational companies, and Brian Gilchrist, a former Hong Kong High Court deputy judge. Counsel Alex Wong ‘ably’ supports Chen and Gilchrist and is recommended for his commercial litigation and arbitration expertise.
Practice head(s):
Elaine Chen; Brian Gilchrist
Other key lawyers:
Alex Wong
Testimonials
‘This team has depth. It has experience. It has knowledge and know-how.’
‘The unique features of the team are what makes the individual members of the team stand out. Brian Gilchrist and Elaine Chen, ably assisted by Alex Wong, have unrivalled experience in these matters. I value their instinct and guts.’
‘The team members of Brian Gilchrist, Elaine Chen, Alex Wong are all knowledgeable, hard working and intelligent practitioners always providing the best service to clients and great support to counsel.’
LPA-CGR
Working hand-in-hand with the firm’s Paris office, LPA-CGR Hong Kong’s team acts for growing businesses and well-established multinational corporates on a range of domestic and international tax-related issues, including income tax, transfer pricing, and tax structuring across multiple sectors. The practice is led by Nicholas Vanderschmitt, who is particularly experienced in tax issues resulting from M&A transactions. Counsel Marie-Gabrielle du Bourblanc also plays a key part in the team.
Practice head(s):
Nicolas Vanderschmitt
Other key lawyers:
Marie-Gabrielle du Bourblanc
Key clients
Altavia
Naga
Work highlights
- Advised Altavia on the cross-border tax aspects of the acquisition of Sina Retail.
- Advised Naga group on the cross-border tax aspects of the acquisition of 360Sweater Co.
Morrison Foerster
Morrison Foerster's ‘top-notch’ tax practice is led by New York-qualified Matthew Lau, who frequently advises clients on a wide range of cross-border transactions, including in the context of M&A, fund structuring, and de-spac mandates. Lau ‘displays outstanding and in-depth knowledge on tax laws across multiple jurisdictions’ and excels in advising Asian clients on the tax implications of sophisticated outbound US transactions, as well as for multinationals when they are structuring their investments in Asia, including in emerging markets.
Practice head(s):
Matthew Lau
Other key lawyers:
Zhifei Xie
Testimonials
‘Matthew Lau and his team have the outstanding ability to advise on taxation matters spanning across multiple jurisdictions, including in emerging markets where the tax regime can be tricky. Their level of knowledge and resourcefulness in multiple jurisdictions makes it extremely easy for us to conduct business in these jurisdictions without having to worry about finding the right subject matter expert to support.’
‘Their advice is not only legally sound, but also commercially sensible, which is an important aspect of what we do as a business and that is an area where Matthew Lau and his team excel in.’
‘Matthew Lau is one of the most reliable legal tax advisors that we have ever had the pleasure of working with. He displays outstanding and in-depth knowledge on tax laws across multiple jurisdictions, including in emerging jurisdictions, which is a skill that is not easily found in the market.’
‘Matthew Lau provides sound and timely legal advice and is very commercial in his approach towards providing solutions. With Matthew, we are always guaranteed reliability, availability and soundness in approach and we hope to continue to work with him for many years to come.’
‘Morrison Foerster’s domestic and international corporate tax practice is top-notch as a result of their technical proficiency, expediency, and business acumen.’
‘Matthew Lau has been an invaluable resource for me, and is my go-to contact for all inquiries relating to Asia tax matters. He’s an expert at distilling complex tax concepts down to their essence, enabling one to make better-informed business decisions.’
‘Their Hong Kong team is one of the few teams in Hong Kong that can provide US tax services. Because it is in the same time zone as the mainland, mainland customers feel that communication is more convenient. This is very helpful for them to win mainland customers.’
‘Matthew Lau is impeccable in professionalism, very easy to communicate with, and quick to respond. All in all, I am very satisfied with the cooperation with Matt.’
Key clients
GLP Pte. Ltd.
SoftBank Group
SoftBank Vision Fund
SoftBank Ventures Asia
China Investment Corporation
Alibaba Group Holding Limited
Visa
BlackRock Group Limited
Tate & Lyle PLC
Ping An Insurance
Sino-Ocean Capital
Ascendent Capital Partners Asia
Morgan Stanley Private Equity Asia
FWD Group
Savills Investment Management
TDK Corporation
Fujitsu Limited
Renesas Electronics Corporation
ON Semiconductor Corporation
NTT Communications
Sekisui House Ltd.
Daiwa House Industry Co., Ltd.
Mitsubishi Group
Mitsui Group
Hitachi, Ltd.
Nissan Motor Corporation
Tokio Marine Holdings, Inc.
Sumitomo Corporation
Veoneer, Inc.
Amperex Technology Limited
Ally Bridge Group
Silver Crest Acquisition Corporation
Hillhouse Capital Management
Celadon Holdings, LLC
CrimsoNox Capital Private Limited
Work highlights
- Advised SoftBank Group Corp. and SoftBank Vision Fund on their acquisition of a substantial interest in Arm China, as a necessary step enabling the planned listing of Arm Limited.
- Advised Alibaba Group Holding Limited on the renegotiation and amendment of various agreements between AGH and Ant Group Co., Ltd. related to AGH’s acquisition of a 33% stake in Ant.
- Representing Morgan Stanley’s private equity investment arm in the formation and ongoing operations of a PRC-domiciled, RMB-denominated private investment fund focusing on investments in China.
Oldham, Li & Nie
Counting a number of chartered accountants among its team, the tax practice at Oldham, Li & Nie
advises Hong-Kong based companies on a broad scope of work. Key areas of expertise for the department include tax holding and financial structures, international tax planning, as well as the implications of the relevant tax treaties. Anna Chan leads the group as an experienced tax advisor and litigator, frequently acting for clients in complex commercial disputes. The group is also supported by Victor Ng, who assists corporates and individuals with international tax planning matters, with a particular focus on Hong Kong, China, and the EU.
Practice head(s):
Anna Chan
Other key lawyers:
Victor Ng
Testimonials
‘The team has given sufficient insight about the complexity of the problem.’
‘Anna Chan was professional and was up to the task.’