Latham & Watkins LLP > Beijing, China > Firm Profile

Latham & Watkins LLP > The Legal 500 Rankings

China > Restructuring and insolvency: foreign firms Tier 2

Latham & Watkins LLP’s Greater China restructuring and insolvency practice is frequently instructed on an impressive array of both debtor-side and creditor-side mandates, including workouts, restructurings and bankruptcy cases. The team recently advised on offshore debts borrowed or issued by Chinese corporations, and was involved in matters across the capital structure on behalf of borrowers, sponsors, institutional and distressed investors (individually and as ad hoc committees). Clients additionally benefit from the team's local expertise in public high-yield bonds and private bank debts, as well as its consistent collaboration with the firm’s pan-European and US restructuring and special situations teams. In Hong Kong, Howard Lam is a trusted adviser on China-related and Asia-based restructuring and insolvency matters; and Josef Athanas has over 30 years’ experience in representing debtors, secured creditors and other parties of interest in US bankruptcy and reorganisation cases.

China > Dispute resolution: Litigation: foreign firms Tier 3

With a central Greater China team led by Hui Xu and supported by Asia-wide litigators as part of the firm’s OneAsia strategy, Latham & Watkins LLP hosts extensive professional expertise in resolving multi-jurisdictional disputes within the region. Xu is experienced in a wide variety of geopolitically sensitive trade disputes and has worked both with Catherine McBride and with Ing Loong Yang when advising on fraud investigations. Both Xu and McBride have conducted a number of internal investigations for clients; McBride and Yang are highly experienced in handling contract violations disputes. Catherine Palmer retired.

China > Projects and energy: foreign firms Tier 3

Regularly partnering up with practitioners throughout the firm’s global network, Latham & Watkins LLP’s Hong Kong-based China-facing practice is well-positioned to advise on large-scale multijurisdictional energy projects. Clients include a varied mix of state-owned and global energy companies, funds, and early-stage entities, and includes transactional work throughout the value chain, cutting across both conventional and renewables energy projects. Although his roots are in the oil and gas sector, team head David Blumental ’s practice has effectively moved in line with the market and now embraces corporate, finance and M&A work in the renewables space, as well as mandates involving emerging energy technologies, including waste-to-energy and hydrogen fuel cells.

China > Regulatory/compliance: foreign firms Tier 3

As part of its OneAsia strategy, Latham & Watkins LLP’s Greater China practice hosts extensive regional expertise across multiple jurisdictions supporting its delivery of high-stakes and complex casework for multinational companies and financial institutions. Hui Xu leads the team from Beijing and focuses on advising clients in multijurisdictional white-collar investigations and litigation. Xu recently assisted China Cisco Shipping Corporation with the delisting from the US sanction list. Hong Kong-based litigator Catherine McBride has a wealth of knowledge and expertise in enforcement proceedings, regulatory and criminal investigations in Hong Kong and cross-border.

China > TMT: foreign firms Tier 3

Latham & Watkins LLP‘s Hong Kong-based TMT group regularly advises on technology transactions, including cloud computing, commercial contracts, security, data privacy, and IP and software licensing; and it is additionally sought out for its notable experience in digital and disruptive technology, e-commerce, fintech, outsourcing, payments and telecoms technology. The practice’s recent highlights include advising the buyer consortium (led by Tencent Holdings and Hammer Capital Opportunities Fund) on the $1.1bn going-private transaction of Bitauto Holdings. Frank Sun frequently acts on prominent buyouts and transactions involving Chinese technology clients; and associate Kieran Donovan leads the Hong Kong data and technology transactions practice.

China > Corporate and M&A: foreign firms Tier 4

LA-founded firm Latham & Watkins LLP is instructed on M&A transactions throughout the entirety of South East Asia. The department is led by Hong Kong-based Simon Cooke and is proficient in public and private M&A, joint ventures, equity investments, disposals and privatisations. The group counts its understanding of the corporate governing components of transactions as a keystone and is complemented by close integration with the firm’s wider capital markets, bank finance, antitrust, competition, private equity, export controls and economic sanction departments.

China > Private equity: foreign firms Tier 4

Latham & Watkins LLP‘s Greater China private equity practice has strong relationships with some of the most active regional and global private equity sector participants, including The Carlyle Group, Warburg Pincus, TPG, Platinum Equity, CVC and KKR. Heading the Asia private equity practice, Simon Cooke advises on domestic and cross-border buyouts, pre-IPO deals, PIPEs and privatisations; Amy Beckingham is key to the private equity practice’s regional growth; and Frank Sun is a widely recognised China-facing private equity specialist. All of the above individuals are based in Hong Kong.

China > Banking and finance: foreign firms Tier 5

Latham & Watkins LLP‘s Hong Kong-based practice covers acquisition financing, syndicated lending, mezzanine facilities, structured note and private placement transactions, and leveraged lending and recapitalisation transactions. Howard Lam acts on China-related financings, and Singapore-based Timothy Hia is the local chair of the finance department in Asia. The team welcomed finance expert Andrew Bishop who recently joining from White & Case, but lost Manas Chandrashekar and Gary Hamp.

China > Data protection: foreign firms