Morrison Foerster > Hong Kong, Hong Kong > Firm Profile

‘The team is best in class in advising on complex fund formation matters. They are very professional, exceptionally knowledgeable, and constantly provide the perfect combination of sector expertise, technical knowledge, and commercial savviness to drive the best outcomes for us.’

‘Their bilingual capability and deep expertise in both the China and US markets make them stand out from other international firms in the field. I also appreciate that the team is very responsive to requests and always willing to go the extra mile for us.’

‘Serena Tan is a top-notch, astute, and commercially minded funds lawyer. Her bilingual capability, deep technical knowledge in the market, and vast practical experience in handling complex funds formation and investment matters differentiate her from her competitors.’

‘The commercial Nicholas Sheets has extensive knowledge in relation to the investment fund industry.’

‘Exceptional team – a class act.’

‘The team comprises lawyers with varying degrees of experience in technology law. This helps to support the work on complex transactions and manage costs for the client. It is difficult enough to find a truly competent technology lawyer these days, let alone a team of them within the same practice!’

‘Gordon Milner and his team are the best counsels around for TMT/tech work. The team has the curiosity to understand the strategic goals of clients, and then advise and guide clients towards resolution of the legal problems.’

‘Gordon Milner is absolutely a valuable adviser. He is sharp, has unique thinking, and can stand in the shoes of his clients. He is also a great negotiator, and can get to points with a clear, logical and convincing narrative.‘

‘Chuan Sun is a highly skilled technology and commercial lawyer. He goes to great depths to understand clients’ business, and works above and beyond the call of duty to deliver first-class legal documents, coupled with pragmatic and commercially-sound solutions.’

‘Chuan Sun is particularly knowledgeable on technical points of law, and is well versed in what are common industry standard terms, as well as being up to date with recent tech trends and issues.’

‘Chuan Sun is brilliant, and Tyler Xiu is an excellent associate who is very responsive.’

‘Associate Gigi Yuen has very good drafting and communication skills. She is very hardworking and clients know they can rely on Gigi to deliver a high-quality work product. She plays an important role in clients’ projects and contributes a lot.’

‘The team has strong technical expertise at the listing level in Hong Kong.’

‘Vivian Yiu is a hands-on and knowledgeable partner and is great at resolving problems.’

‘Ke Huang is very technical.’

‘Timely responses and turn-arounds, great ability to research and analyze precedents, valuable connections to mainland partner firms to address unique cross border issues’

‘The partner and associate carried out cash confirmation related work with high quality and share valuable legal advice in other deal related communications with regulators’

‘The MoFo team always gives us great advice to legal issues that are thoughtful, technical and commercial, especially over recent matters that require cross practice/office collaboration (credit/equity, US/China, SPAC, etc.). Seamless handoff from one time zone to another, from one specialist to another, without the need for clients to repeat their issues every time. Needless to say, they also produce contracts and transaction structures that fully address our needs in highly efficient, diligent, professional and meticulous manners. I would highly recommend the MoFo team to anyone who is looking for counsels for complex transactions.’

‘Marcia Ellis is always the leader, marshalling the right teams and resources for our projects; she has all the positive attributes I can think of for a legal counsel. Basically, when faced with any difficult issues or situations, she is our go-to person, we won’t make a decision until we are able to speak to Marcia. Ruomu Li led two of our most recent, most challenging transactions. Besides being technical and professional, I find her calm demeanor very constructive in high tension negotiation with difficult counterparties. Maureen Ho is always very thoughtful and thorough in her review, suggestions and drafting for transaction documents that are complex and unconventional. Yilong Luo has done a great job in guiding us through the US SPAC merger with a Chinese target company, very attentive and responsive with great knowledge in public M&A’

‘The team was very dedicated and professional. Working 24/7 to meet very tight deadlines and across different timezones.’

‘Thomas Chou led his team very effectively and came in to provide guidance and answers to move things forward. Highly dedicated and particularly good in handling tension among different law firms representing other parties. Julia Lee was working non-stop during the deal process and was always able to provide quick support and answers. She continued to send reminders on certain milestone dates after closing as reminders.’

‘The Morrison Foerster tax team has an excellent knowledge of tax issues across Asia.’

‘It has strength across geographies and the ability to provide thoughtful advice.’

‘MOFO is one of the very few international law firms that have Hong Kong-based US tax lawyers. That has made working with them very easy and smooth, as time difference and language barrier is less a hurdle.’

‘Matthew Lau has an excellent knowledge of tax issues across Asia. He has a great knowledge of the M&A insurance market, meaning I receive pragmatic and valuable advice.’

‘Matthew Lau is one of the brightest tax specialists in Hong Kong and all across Asia. He is able to understand key tax issues across major OECD jurisdictions and MNC clients see him as a go-to person when they are structuring their investments in Asia.’

‘Matthew is extremely diligent and has the ability to grasp complex issues and balances the right risk and rewards in providing advice.’

‘True cross-border knowledge, experience and culture.’

‘Knowledge of non-market discrepancies, defects and deficiencies inherent in many mainland PRC PE/Venture investors negotiating positions and documentation vs. high-quality global standards & benchmarks, and the ability to negotiate against them.’

‘Marcia Ellis – very experienced in private equity and M&A transactions. Can provide invaluable insights on deals and potential loopholes to avoid.’

‘Maureen Ho – very professional and accountable. We love working with Maureen because we know we’re in good hands and worry-free.’

‘Good consideration of client interests and advice is readily available despite being requested at odd times. The weekly sanctions bulletins are useful and much appreciated.’

‘The partner I worked with has always been helpful and would think from clients perspectives to provide timely and useful advice. Sincerity and pragmatism are the qualities I particularly treasure.’

‘Chen Zhu is highly efficient, respectful of internal stakeholders at client company, and thorough in investigations work.’

‘The team is diligent, yet also able to allocate resources in an efficient manner so that legal costs to clients are well managed. They provide balanced advice to guide us in achieving an optimal outcome without entering into protracted litigation.’

‘The team is very practical. They have extensive knowledge of practice in different jurisdictions and are very capable of handling large-scale disputes.’

‘The team provides excellent client service, top to bottom. It has extensive subject matter expertise and provides thoughtful and practical advice.’

‘Timothy Blakely is impressively responsive and intelligent. His mastery of complicated legal proceedings in multiple jurisdictions significantly contributed to the clients’ success in many high-profile cases. He has a sound understanding of Chinese legal practice and business environment, and always offers wise advice.’

‘Timothy Blakely is an exceptional lawyer and litigation/dispute strategist. He does an excellent job helping non-China based clients understand the importance nuances of local practice and enables clients to develop thoughtful and winning strategies.’

‘Sarah Thomas provides professional and timely advice.’

‘The team is wonderful to deal with – dedicated, responsive, technically sharp and commercial. It is not everyday that clients find a technology law practice with competent and technically brilliant lawyers for technology matters at all levels, and who can work autonomously on various technology matters at the same time.‘

‘Highly commended is the training that Chuan Sun provides to the attorneys in the firm’s technology practice. It is difficult enough to find a truly competent technology lawyer these days, let alone a team of them within the same practice!’

‘Chuan Sun is a highly skilled technology and commercial lawyer. He goes to great depths to understand clients’ business, and works above and beyond the call of duty to deliver first-class legal documents, coupled with pragmatic and commercially-sound solutions. He is particularly knowledgeable on technical points of law, and up to date with recent tech trends and issues.’

‘Chuan Sun’s wealth of knowledge and experience helps clients find common ground with counterparties, so as to close complex transactions within tight deadlines. Highly recommended for clients looking for a commercially-minded and technically brilliant lawyer, who is able to bring together his team (even at short notice) to support his clients.’

‘Chuan Sun is exceptional. He has excellent grasp of the technical issues whilst providing clear and commercial advice.’

‘Paul Mckenzie and Gordon Milner are recommended for any tech companies that are looking for experienced outside counsel for significant deals in Greater China. Both of them are highly reliable, responsive and trustworthy.‘

‘Paul Mckenzie is not just technically strong but great at managing the entire deal process, coordinating the resources, and solving imminent and sudden issues in a deal.’

‘Gordon is an exceptional tech lawyer and always puts himself in the shoes of his clients – provides great solutions.’

‘True cross-border knowledge, experience and culture.’

‘Knowledge of the non-market discrepancies, defects and deficiencies inherent in many mainland PRC PE/venture investors, who negotiate positions and documentation vs. high-quality global standards and benchmarks – and with the ability to negotiate against them.’

‘Marcia Ellis – very experienced in private equity and M&A transactions. Provides invaluable insights on deals and potential loopholes to avoid.‘

‘Maureen Ho is very professional and accountable. Clients love working with Maureen because they know they are in good hands.’

‘The team is highly professional and has extensive knowledge in the field of biotechnology, with a mastery of specialised patent/licensing agreements.‘

‘This firm has a deep understanding of our product and our needs which is second to none.’

‘We have been working with MoFo’s insurance practice in Asia for roughly 10 years. We have been advised by them mainly upon underwriting Warranty and Indemnity insurance policies. We greatly appreciate MoFo’s team consistency, flexibility and their understanding to our underwriting principles.’

‘Maria Steeples (based in Singapore) is an outstanding and reputable figure in this field. She and her team are always detailed in identifying and analysing various complicated risks in each Asian jurisdiction. Their reliability and unique professionalism also stem from their flexible team structure.’

‘The team has a number of key clients that only come to MOFO due to their expertise. Maria is a star practitioner in the field. She understands what is important to each client and knows how to drive the process to enable the client to be covered and informed on the risks’

‘Maria is a star practitioner in the field. She understands what is important to each client and knows how to drive the process to enable the client to be covered and informed on the risks’

‘MoFo is the industry leader in Asia advising on Warranty and Indemnity (W&I) insurance in Asia. We work closely with Maria Steeples who is widely known in the market as the leading expert in Asia on W&I insurance. Maria consistently works seamlessly with us to help insurers assess the risks being assumed by them whilst ensuring that the underlying deal is not unnecessarily interrupted or delayed by the underwriting process.’

‘Maria Steeples is simply the standout star on W&I insurance. She knows the policies and the issues inside and out and is thus both knowledgeable and efficient.’

‘The MoFo team is best at advising on complex fund formation matters. They are very professional, exceptionally knowledgeable, and constantly provide the perfect combination of sector expertise, technical knowledge, and commercial savviness to drive the best outcomes.’

‘Their bilingual capability and deep expertise in both the China and US markets make them stand out from other international firms in the field. The team is very responsive to requests and always willing to go the extra mile.’

‘Serena Tan is a top-notch, astute, and commercially minded funds lawyer. Her bilingual capability, deep technical knowledge in the market, and vast practical experience handling complex funds formation and investment matters differentiates her from her competitors. She has also demonstrated outstanding project and cost management skills by allocating the right level of associates to support us.’

‘The team possesses good technical knowledge and strong understanding of local market practice.’

‘They are detail oriented and willing to engage in active discussion with clients.‘

‘MoFo has a unique advantage in great team collaboration across various divisions and geographies, including compliance, litigation and cross-border corporate transactions.’

‘Marcia Ellis is extremely knowledgeable when it comes to the Greater China market. She understands how best to use various provisions to provide protection.’

‘Marcia Ellis is very good at distilling complex concepts into layman terms, which again, demonstrates her depth of knowledge and years of experience in practice through various engagements.’

‘Exceptional service and dedication.’

‘Chuan Sun provides excellent technical and commercial advice, drawing upon a wealth of knowledge and experience.’

‘Associate Tyler Xiu is an excellent up-and-coming lawyer, who is very proactive and helpful.’

‘The team is based in Shanghai and Hong Kong, and it is good with corporate internal investigations.’

‘B. Chen Zhu is a rising partner in conducting internal investigations for pharm companies. Very bright, prompt, respectful, and practical findings.’