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Charles Sussex SC
Des Voeux ChambersDes Voeux Chambers is home to a number of ‘top notch barristers’, who are widely described as ‘excellent and easy to work with.’ Insolvency is a particular strength for members of the set, with senior barristers José-Antonio Maurellet SC and Rachel Lam SC leading on a number of high value insolvency matters. At the junior end, Catrina Lam is acting in many complex commercial disputes, dealing with developments of law in a range of contract and company law matters. Connie Lee and Cherry Xu possess strength in liquidation matters. Lee successfully led in Yeung Man v. New Winning Finance Company Limited, handle a series of enforcement and recovery actions. Kerby Lau continues to broaden his practice, often acting unled in a range of complex commercial matters. Frances Lok SC took May 2024, recently leading in the matter of In re Shimao Group Holdings Limited acting for China Construction Bank (Asia) Corporation Limited.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
- 'I have always been impressed by Des Voeux Chambers and most of the members I have instructed there. The Chief Clerk Elaine Chan is always a pleasure to deal with and is highly responsive.'
- 'DVC is the leader. From the most junior barrister to experienced silks, they provide effective and commercial legal solutions and are overall extremely strong advocates.'
- 'Highly respected Chambers with strength in depth at all levels'
- 'The range of talent in DVC is unparalleled in any chambers in Hong Kong. They are diligent and user-friendly, and well understand clients' needs. Their junior barristers are well supported and have plenty of opportunities to grow.'
- 'The Des Voeux Chambers as a whole has some of most competent counsel in Hong Kong with people specialising in different fields. They charge reasonable fees and are very efficient in providing their services.'
- 'DVC is pre-eminent in contentious insolvency and commercial dispute, from Senior silks to baby juniors.'
- 'I believe that Des Voeux Chambers as a whole is strong and available in handling commercial disputes. They are capable and well-trained to deal with matters of high level of complexity.'
- 'DVC has a wide range of barristers with different seniority and experience especially in commercial disputes. They have been involved in some of the big commercial dispute matters.'
Silks
Leading Silks
KCs at the very top of their field, with a long-established record of market-defining cases, and widespread endorsement from clients and peers. All silks appointed in the last two rounds are listed further below.
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Clifford Smith SC
Des Voeux Chambers2
Barrie Barlow SC
Des Voeux Chambers2
José-Antonio Maurellet SC
Des Voeux Chambers2
Anson Wong SC
Des Voeux Chambers 'Anson is truly intelligent and cuts through legal issues with ease. He is commercially astute. He is very responsive and efficient, which is invaluable in a fast-paced legal environment. Beyond his legal expertise, Anson is a pleasure to work with and you always want him on your side.'
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William Wong SC
Des Voeux Chambers ‘Great advocacy and tactics.’
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Douglas Lam SC
Des Voeux Chambers3
Rachel Lam SC
Des Voeux Chambers3
Jenkin Suen SC
Des Voeux Chambers 'Jenkin is approachable and highly responsive. He is also open to discussions and receptive to ideas.'
2023 Silks
KCs at the very top of their field, with a long-established record of market-defining cases, and widespread endorsement from clients and peers. All silks appointed in the last two rounds are listed further below.
Christopher Chain SC
Des Voeux Chambers2024 Silks
KCs at the very top of their field, with a long-established record of market-defining cases, and widespread endorsement from clients and peers. All silks appointed in the last two rounds are listed further below.
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Frances Lok SC
Des Voeux Chambers ‘Frances is a very forceful barrister, both in writing and as an advocate. She is fantastically well prepared. She is also amazingly user-friendly.’
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Frances Lok SC
Des Voeux Chambers 'Frances is a very effective barrister, both in writing and as an advocate. She is fantastically well prepared. She is also amazingly user-friendly.'
Juniors
Leading Juniors
Leading juniors are those with significant experience of key cases, strong market recognition from both peers and clients, and are seen as future candidates for silk.
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Catrina Lam
Des Voeux Chambers 'Catrina is highly experienced advocate who is in tune with the needs of commercial parties and very user friendly.'
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Benny Lo
Des Voeux Chambers1
John Hui
Des Voeux Chambers ‘John takes a macro view of the case and take a holistic approach to the strategy of the case. A safe and steady counsel. He has a good sense of what the court looks for in any particular application. Easy to work with.’
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Connie Lee
Des Voeux Chambers ‘Connie is smart and commercial. She is the most responsive counsel I have ever seen. She has excellent advocacy skills. She can always provide practical advice within a tight timeline.’
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David Chen
Des Voeux Chambers2
Jacqueline Law
Des Voeux Chambers2
Sabrina Ho
Des Voeux Chambers2
Patrick Siu
Des Voeux Chambers2
Kerby Lau
Des Voeux Chambers ‘Very astute and quick to assimilate large quantities of information, insightful at getting to the heart of the issues; able to present his case, and difficult points of law or facts, in an engaging and comprehensible manner.’
2
Jason Yu
Des Voeux Chambers ‘Jason is a smart, strategic barrister, who is responsive and approachable. His advocacy is sharp and measured at the same time. A very strong member of Hong Kong’s Bar.’
3
Richard Zimmern
Des Voeux Chambers3
Martin Kok
Des Voeux Chambers 'Top notch junior barrister. Highly sought after. Excellent and easy to work with.'
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Cherry Xu
Des Voeux Chambers ‘Cherry is extremely responsive, efficient and hard-working in her high-quality work. In particular, as one of the relatively few HK barristers with native Mandarin capabilities both spoken and written, she is in a unique position to act for Mainland clients in cross-border arbitration and litigation cases.’
3
Michael Lok
Des Voeux Chambers 'Michael is expectedly strong in technical skills. He is a confident and effective advocate. He is great at guiding the court through complex legal and factual issues in his written and oral submissions. In addition, he has a sensitive commercial mindset enabling him to truly understand the commercial objectives of the client.'
Rising stars
Rising stars at the Bar are defined as barristers between four and eight years’ call who are seen as up-and-coming members of the Bar in their respective practice areas by clients and peers alike. They will already be instructed in high-profile, complex, and high-value contentious and non-contentious matters, working with and opposite more experienced leading counsel.
Tiffany Chan
Des Voeux Chambers 'Tiffany is diligent, hardworking, incredibly bright and very easy to work with. She is a joy for instructing solicitors.'
Jasmine Cheung
Des Voeux Chambers 'Jasmine stands out for her exceptional legal acumen and thorough understanding of a wide range of legal disciplines. Her adeptness in navigating intricate legal frameworks, especially in high-stakes environments, ensures that all procedural and substantive legal aspects are comprehensively addressed. Furthermore, her clear and concise drafting skills have consistently facilitated effective communication with the courts and all parties involved.'
Howard Wong
Des Voeux Chambers 'Howard is quick and efficient. He is meticulous and focus not only on the legal but also factual aspects of the case. He is also effective and succinct in his advocacy.'
Tommy Cheung
Des Voeux Chambers ‘Tommy is extremely efficient. His work demonstrates that he deeply understands the areas of law we are working on. At trial, he could always astutely respond to the questions raised by the Court. The submissions prepared by him are thorough and comprehensive. Equally, he understands very well the issues about costs.’
Lai Chun Ho
Des Voeux Chambers