Law Asia Announce Their Indonesia Law Firm Awards 2024

Januar Jahja & Partners is an independent boutique IP law firm in Indonesia in operation since 1986, with more than three decades of experience advising clients on IP law encompassing areas including trademark and patent prosecution, IP litigation and investigation.

Led by managing partner Prudence Jahja, a registered IP consultant and licensed attorney who focuses on trademark prosecution and litigation, the law firm has been busy across all its practices in the past year, having successfully represented clients in litigation cases before commercial courts and the Supreme Court, obtaining new trademark portfolios.

Januar Jahja & Partners has been active in assisting clients with patent prosecution, as well as handling design, transactional and copyright work.

Kritchakorn Nimwenai, a partner and the head of the trademark department at Ananda IP in Bangkok, says: “We have been developing excellent working relationships with Januar Jahja & Partners for several years. The team perfectly knows the Indonesian market and provides strategic advice with responsiveness and a friendly attitude.”

Assegaf Hamzah & Partners is a full-service law firm founded in 2001, with Ibrahim Sjarief Assegaf taking over the helm as managing partner on 25 February this year and since then running the Jakarta and Surabaya offices.

The Indonesian law firm, which has a strategic alliance with Rajah & Tann, has about 180 fee earners, 32 of whom are partners, and a team of foreign counsel enabling the firm to advise on a wide range of practice areas including banking and finance, capital markets, competition law, foreign direct investment, shipping and aviation.

In capital markets, the firm has recently represented Sorik Marapi Geothermal Power in its debut issuance of USD350 million in 7.75% senior secured notes due 2031, listed on the Singapore Exchange, marking the first project bond issuance from Southeast Asia since 2020.

The law firm has also been active in the energy and M&A space, having acted as legal counsel for Barito Wind Energy, a BREN subsidiary, in its USD102.2 million acquisition of UPC Sidrap Bayu Energi.

Established in 1989 by Sri Indrastuti Hadiputranto and the late Tuti Dewi Hadinoto, Hadiputranto Hadinoto & Partners (HHP) operates as a member firm of Baker McKenzie. Based in Jakarta, the law firm has a team of highly experienced partners across practice areas including capital markets, finance and projects, M&A and real estate, as well as dispute resolution, tax, trade and technology.

HHP has served as legal counsel in several large-scale transactions across various practice areas in recent years, including working in conjunction with Baker McKenzie to advise Indonesia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Indonesia Investment Authority, on its equity joint venture with regional data centre developer and operator GDS Holdings. Through the JV, both sides established a vehicle to co-invest in building a nationwide data centre platform.

In a cross-border transaction, HHP advised Vale Canada, together with Sumitomo Metal Mining, on divesting a 14% equity stake in Vale Indonesia to Indonesia’s state-owned mining company, Mineral Industri Indonesia.

Jakarta-based SSEK Law Firm was founded in 1992 by Dyah Soewito, Retty Suhardiman, Ira Eddymurthy and Agustina Kardono. Fitriana Mahiddin is the firm’s managing partner and a supervising partner of its energy and natural resources, and mining practices. SSEK advises local and international clients on practice areas including antitrust and competition law, arbitration and dispute resolution, capital markets and securities, energy, mining and geothermal resources, and IP.

Eddymurthy has more than three decades of experience advising local and international clients on banking and finance, capital markets, M&A, insurance, oil and gas, and tax law-related matters. She has advised, among many large-scale transactions, on a USD4 billion deal involving Pertamina’s formation of Indonesian Oil and Gas Holding, the largest state-owned holding company in Indonesia.

Hiswara Bunjamin & Tandjung (HBT), which operates in association with Herbert Smith Freehills, is managed by partner Tjahjadi Bunjamin, who heads the firm’s finance practice and advises on M&A and capital market transactions.

Founded in 2000, the Jakarta-based firm boasts a team of specialised lawyers with years of expertise in dispute resolution, including international arbitration.

Partner Debby Sulaiman is one of the firm’s senior lawyers specialising in advising international clients on disputes before Indonesian courts, as well as domestic and international arbitration centres.

Sulaiman works alongside other senior lawyers including partner Prawidha Murti, who has more than two decades of experience representing international and Indonesian clients in arbitration. Together, they cover sectors ranging from construction to energy, mining and telecoms.

Recently, HBT represented Pertamina International Marketing & Distribution in a Singapore-seated arbitration against Phoenix Petroleum Philippines and Udenna Corporation, as well as ongoing enforcement proceedings. The firm made a successful application to the SIAC for the consolidation of the two arbitrations.

Established in 1997, KarimSyah Law Firm offers both transactional and contentious practices, and has gained recognition for its expertise in international dispute resolution. The law firm’s international dispute resolution team consists of multiple veterans in the field including Karen Mills, founder of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Indonesian chapter, and Firmansyah, head of the litigation division.

In the past year, the firm has stayed active in the arbitration and alternative dispute resolution sector, assisting a Jordanian company, Arab Potash, in enforcing an arbitration award in Indonesia. It has so far helped the client obtain a seizure decree over a number of land assets in Indonesia.

Formed in 2018 by combining Dentons and Indonesian law firm Hanafiah Ponggawa & Partners, Dentons HPRP advises on various practice areas, and industry sectors including aviation and aerospace. Partners Hendra Ong and Rahadian are among its specialists.

Equipped with an aviation team, Dentons HPRP advises various aviation industry players ranging from airlines to lessors, manufacturers and maintenance companies. Besides providing legal advice on aircraft, helicopter and engine-related transactions, the law firm also represents clients in aviation-related disputes such as the settlement of contract claims, as well as restructuring and liquidation cases.

Nurjadin Sumono Mulyadi & Partners, established in 2006 and led by managing partner Iwan Nurjadin, has expertise in a range of practice areas including international trade, competition law, IP and commercial dispute resolution.

Richard Kurniadi, general counsel at Kimberly-Clark Softex in Jakarta, says: “Nurjadin Sumono Mulyadi & Partners is a complete package. They provide legal advice with business-friendly practical solutions. [They are] very approachable and understand the business needs.”

Nurjadin Sumono Mulyadi & Partners is active in the aviation industry, with co-founding partner Nurjadin being a specialist in aircraft financing, airlines and other aviation-related transactions for more than 15 years.

In a cross-border deal, the Jakarta-based law firm advised an Indonesian operator on a lease novation transaction of a Boeing 737-800SF with an existing Irish lessor and a new Irish lessor. The transaction involved a change of the aircraft’s ownership, with Nurjadin Sumono Mulyadi & Partners representing the operator and taking charge of the Indonesian law aspects of the deal to protect the interest of the operator as the lessee.

Jack Ang, senior manager of people and culture at Circles in Singapore, says: “Nurjadin Sumono Mulyadi & Partners has been very supportive and responsive … As we are a small office, we needed a lot of support and reassurance, which Nurjadin Sumono Mulyadi & Partners never failed to provide.”

TNB & Partners, which operates as an Indonesian associate firm of Norton Rose Fulbright, is led by its partner and head of office, Kresna Panggabean, a corporate and commercial lawyer with more than 18 years of legal experience. The law firm recently expanded its team with the addition of disputes partner Erie Tobing and special counsel Aditya Tumakaka.

TNB & Partners boasts an aviation clientele consisting of major regional and global names including Carlyle Aviation, Macquarie Aircraft Leasing Services, Aergo Capital and China Aircraft Leasing Group.

The firm acted as joint counsel for Aergo Capital and Altavair in the sale and purchase of the novation of existing leases of two Boeing 737-800 aircraft leased to Batik Air Indonesia. The firm also advised China Aircraft Leasing on the delivery of two aircraft to Transnusa Aviation Mandiri.

Established in 2010, Ginting & Reksodiputro is operated in association with A&O Shearman, specialising in advising on areas including corporate M&A, capital markets, disputes, finance, antitrust and tax.

Led by managing partner Daniel Ginting, the Indonesian law firm has a team of specialised lawyers including partner Tarsis Halintar advising on various aspects of finance from syndicated loans to asset, export credit and leveraged finance.

The law firm has advised SACE, Crédit Agricole CIB, and Cassa Depositi e Prestiti on their pre- and post-delivery financing of four new Fincantieri-built luxury cruise ships. It also advised Telesat on its multibillion-dollar financing and other aspects of its Lightspeed LEO (low earth orbit) constellation.

Founded in 2003, IABF Law Group is led by managing partner and capital markets lawyer Ivan Baely, and has established expertise in multiple practice areas including corporate and commercial law, IP and dispute resolution.

Led by senior lawyers including Baely and partner Askandar Almaida, a licensed capital markets attorney, the law firm has been very active in the capital markets scene. It advised KGI Sekuritas Indonesia on a public offering of structured warrants totalling USD1.3 billion.

The firm has also assisted Mott MacDonald, a UK-based engineering, development and management consultancy, in connection with carbon credit sales in which sellers were companies in Indonesia and Singapore with underlying projects based in Indonesia.

Makes & Partners, established in 1993, has been very active in Indonesia’s capital markets scene, and has a line-up of specialists including founder and managing partner Yozua Makes and senior partner Iwan Setiawan, who heads the firm’s capital markets practice group.

The Jakarta-based firm, which has decades of experience advising on IPOs, securities regulations and corporate compliance, recently assisted Bank Mandiri in issuing green bonds under the framework of shelf registration for continuous bond issuance.

It also acted as legal counsel for Bentoel Internasional Investama on the first successful go-private process under the Indonesian Financial Services Authority’s (OJK) regulation on the implementation of capital market activities.

Glynnis Theresa Acosta, corporate legal division counsel at Protelindo in Jakarta, regards Makes & Partners highly, saying that the firm “may not be as big as other Indonesian firms in terms of size, but the calibre of its lawyers and the quality of its services are at par with the largest Indonesian firms”.

Established in 1980, Makarim & Taira S advises on practice areas including capital markets, competition and antitrust, construction, corporate and commercial, as well as foreign investment.

Specific to antitrust and competition, the Jakarta-based law firm serves domestic and international clients from various sectors including insurance, shipping and manufacturing.

Partners Lia Alizia and Harris Syahni Toengkagie are among the firm’s lawyers who advise on antitrust and competition. In particular, the law firm assists clients in completing merger filings before Indonesia’s Business Competition Supervisory Commission, and covers issues relating to local asset transfers and acquisitions.

Jakarta-based ADCO Law advises on legal matters such as commercial transactions and corporate disputes in various industry sectors. Apart from advising on corporate matters such as M&A and due diligence, the law firm assists foreign clients in the process of establishing their business in Indonesia, including corporate governance.

ADCO also focuses on regulatory compliance, in recognition of the increasing legal and compliance challenges that companies in Indonesia face in maintaining a high standard of corporate ethics.

GHP Law Firm, founded in 2016, is a full-service law firm advising on legal matters ranging from litigation to corporate. Its team of lawyers includes co-managing partners Bonie Guido and Bintang Hidayanto, as well as senior partner Mohamad Kadri.

Data protection has been one of the law firm’s most active practice areas. GHP advised Indonesian aquaculture startup eFishery on conducting a data protection consultancy and audit analysis to identify privacy gaps in their day-to-day business activities.

It has also assisted foreign enterprises that have sought data protection advice, such as a British multinational retail company on the reporting and notification obligations in relation to a breach of personal data.

A boutique IP firm, K&K Advocates specialises in advising on general IP matters, as well as telecoms and IT. Led by managing partner Justisiari Kusumah, the Jakarta-based firm has, through its technology, media and telecommunications (TMT) practice, advised clients such as international social media companies and local international service providers on matters relating to personal data protection and privacy in Indonesia.

K&K Advocates has also advised foreign companies on legal compliance matters concerning the breach of personal data of Indonesian nationals. The law firm advises domestic and international enterprises on privacy policy and terms of use for their platforms in accordance with Indonesian law.

Founded in 2019, ARMA Law has since expanded its practice areas through multiple hires, such as bringing onboard new counsel and a partner specialising in banking and finance, particularly in financial technology. The law firm has also established a non-exclusive alliance with South Korean law firm Shin & Kim, strengthening its ability to respond to cross-border client needs.

One of the practice areas that ARMA Law has been investing in is ESG (environmental, social and governance). The firm has represented Singapore-based natural capital asset management company Lestari Capital in conducting legal due diligence of forestry rights areas consisting of 18 social forestry licences and two forest utilisation business licences for the Rimba Collective. The Rimba Collective is an initiative that aims to deliver USD1 billion for forest protection and restoration in Indonesia.

Joseph Shaw, founder of 360green in Singapore, says: “Their deep understanding of Indonesia’s regulatory landscape is complemented by a strong grasp of the ESG space, positioning them at the forefront of modern legal practice.”

Deloitte Legal Indonesia (formerly Hermawan Juniarto & Partners) is comprised of more than 45 legal consultants and lawyers. The firm’s areas of expertise include infrastructure and project finance, with a clientele that includes government institutions, state-owned enterprises and multinational companies.

Fintech is an area that has kept the firm busy. It has been conducting legal analysis for an Indonesian fintech company, and giving advice regarding the compliance of its financing transactions.

Established in 2022 as part of the network of Mori Hamada & Matsumoto, one of Japan’s four largest law firms, ATD Law has grown into a team of 15 lawyers. Its managing partner, Abadi Abi Tisnadisastra, has more than 20 years’ experience in areas including foreign investment and corporate, and has been advising multinational corporations on their acquisitions of stakes in Indonesian companies.

In addition to M&A, the law firm advises foreign investors on the initial phase of their investment and also their operations in Indonesia. With deep financial services and IT knowledge, Tisnadisastra, in particular, assists multinational financial institutions in investing and consolidating their operations in Indonesia.

Walalangi & Partners was established in 2017 and operates as an associate firm of Nishimura & Asahi, Japan’s largest firm by headcount. It is led by managing partner Luky Walalangi, who has two decades of legal experience advising on M&A, banking and finance, and real estate transactions.

With M&A and foreign direct investment being two of its main areas of practice, the firm boasts a clientele made up of global trading houses and multinational corporations, as well as key financial institutions.

It advised Mitsubishi Corporation and its Indonesian subsidiary, Diamond Development Indonesia, on a new urban integrated township project in Sawangan, totalling USD630 million.

The firm also advised Mitsui & Co and US-based commercial vehicle company Penske Truck Leasing on the establishment of a truck leasing business in Indonesia together with CSM Corporatama.

With more than two decades of history, Armand Yapsunto Muharamsyah & Partners advises on areas such as banking and finance, capital markets, M&A, infrastructure, insolvency and restructuring. In its infrastructure practice, the Jakarta-based law firm has a team of lawyers advising on legal issues arising from infrastructure investments and their associated risks.

In its role as transactional counsel, the firm advised on the project financing of Jasamarga Kunciran Cengkareng, involving an IDR3.96 trillion (USD256.3 million) syndicated loan extended by Sarana Multi Infrastruktur, Bank Negara Indonesia and Bank Mandiri.

William Hendrik & Siregar Djojonegoro is a law firm merged between William & Hendrik and Siregar & Djojonegoro in mid-2022. Its practice areas include corporate, banking, commercial law and litigation. Infrastructure is also one of the law firm’s core strengths, with former Siregar & Djojonegoro being a specialist in infrastructure and finance.

William & Hendrik and Siregar & Djojonegoro has represented Pertamina Bina Medika with the construction of Bali Hospital, in Bali’s special economic zone. The law firm also served BRI Danareksa Sekuritas as legal consultant on the development of a national strategic project at Merauke, in South Papua.

AFFA Intellectual Property Rights, established in 1999 and run by senior lawyers including managing partner Emirsyah Dinar, specialises in IP and general commercial law matters. The firm’s expertise covers domain name registration, licence and franchise agreement review, as well as IP investigations.

The Jakarta-based law firm has won several non-use cancellation and bad-faith invalidation cases at the Commercial Court of Central Jakarta and the Supreme Court. One of its most notable cases is the non-use cancellation action for the “Marlin” trademark, in which the firm represented Trek Bicycle Corporation against Astra Honda Motor.

Founded in 2011, Jakarta-based SKC Law is a full-service IP law firm advising clients on IP prosecution, commercialisation, litigation, and IP rights enforcement in Indonesia. Managed by three co-founders – Purnomo Suryomurcito, Nidya Kalangie and Andrew Conduit – SKC Law has a 50-strong team of lawyers, IP consultants and other professionals.

Its legal services cover practice areas including prosecution and litigation, as well as enforcement and intelligence. Kalangie has represented clients such as blue-chip companies in contentious and non-contentious matters, while Suryomurcito has two decades of experience advising on enforcement and investigative matters.

Suryomurcito & Co is an international IP law firm established in the UK in 1990, and has been operating in Indonesia since 1997 with local associate firm Suryomurcito & Co, established by Gunawan Suryomurcito, a veteran in IP enforcement and protection in Indonesia.

With a team consisting of Indonesian and registered foreign lawyers, as well as patent specialists, Suryomurcito & Co, with its network firm, advises on IP matters including trademark, disputes and brand protection in sectors such as entertainment, consumer, life sciences and sports.

Roosdiono & Partners is an Indonesian law firm that is part of the KPMG Law Network, offering corporate advisory and other legal services to both domestic and international clients in different industries. The firm has been actively representing companies in IP cases, including trademark-related disputes.

Partner Ajeng Yesie Triewanty led the firm in representing Swedish food company Oatly in its opposition to a third party’s trademark applications similar to its client’s.

In a separate trademark case, Roosdiono & Partners, also led by Triewanty, represented Japanese information technology service provider Flextech, through Tee & Howe Intellectual Property Attorneys, in a domain ID dispute.

Jakarta-based LOKA Law Office provides legal advice relating to a wide range of industry sectors and practice areas including foreign investment, employment, construction and litigation. Led by founding partner Lidyar Indhira Putri, the firm advises on employment issues including the drafting of employment agreements in different sectors, as well as labour collective agreements and industrial dispute resolution.

Putri and associate partner Genta Yaumal Quds are among the firm’s lawyers who advise on employment-related matters. In May this year, the firm won an industrial dispute case as it represented a company against a labour union.

Ganie & Partners is an Indonesian law firm specialising in commercial transactions and litigation. Among its senior lawyers is Mohamed Idwan Ganie, who has more than 40 years of legal expertise. The firm’s litigation and dispute resolution practice covers sectors such as tourism and hospitality, IP, capital markets and real estate.

In the practice area of tourism and hospitality, Ganie & Partners advises on disputes between management companies and hotel owners. It also actively represents both domestic and international investors in investment-related disputes, including shareholder disagreements.

Hutabarat Halim & Rekan is an Indonesian commercial law firm co-founded in 1996 by senior partners including Pheo Hutabarat and Nini Halim.

Staffed with experienced Indonesian lawyers and foreign legal consultants such as Australian barrister and solicitor Peter Fanning, the Jakarta-based law firm advises on cases across different practice areas, from corporate and commercial to finance and commercial dispute resolution.

The law firm, with partners including Hutabarat and Asido Panjaitan, who specialise in business commercial dispute resolution, represents clients in litigation cases in areas such as civil, corporate and commercial, antitrust and anti-competition, as well as insurance and reinsurance.

Established in 2009, Bagus Enrico & Partners is a corporate and commercial law firm based in Jakarta. It specialises in providing Indonesian law advice in a number of practice areas, including corporate and commercial law, banking, M&A, property and real estate.

The law firm, led by managing partner Bagus Nur Buwono, advises on sectors such as industrial estate, tourism, land and property acquisition, as well as resort and hotel development.

Its expertise covers real estate law, as well as contract and property laws relating to land ownership and use, corresponding contracts, and residential or commercial property matters. Co-founding partner Enrico Iskandar and partner Jeany Tabita are among the firm’s top lawyers who advise on property transactions.

Kevin Siahaan, senior vice president legal at Kredivo in Jakarta, says: “Unlike some high-tier firms, this firm values client input and treats them as partners, ensuring collaborative and effective communication.”

Established in 2007, Budidjaja International Lawyers is a full-service independent law firm headquartered in Jakarta. Its team of lawyers including senior partners Tony Budidjaja and Ricky Firman advise on a broad range of practice areas including international trade, shipping and aviation.

Budidjaja International Lawyers has been active in the shipping and maritime space, having represented Xcoal Energy & Resources, the claimant at a New York arbitration proceeding, concerning the detention of the MV WEN DE vessel by the Indonesian Navy. Xcoal also retained Budidjaja International Lawyers as legal counsel to provide an expert report on whether the MV WEN DE vessel and the ship’s master had violated Indonesian law during detention.

Mochtar Karuwin Komar, one of the oldest law firms in Indonesia, was co-founded in 1971 by Mochtar Kusumaatmadja, who was justice minister from 1974 to 1978. The Jakarta-based law firm has been active in advising on shipping and maritime-related matters, among others. These include assisting multinational financiers in shipping transactions conducted by Indonesian shipping companies.

Established in 1991, Soemadipradja & Taher is a Jakarta-based law firm with a team of lawyers including partner Rahmat Soemadipradja, who has more than three decades of experience practising law with a focus on Indonesia’s energy and natural resources sector. With regulatory compliance in the banking and finance sector becoming more challenging due partly to new technology, Soemadipradja & Taher has been investing in strengthening its capability to advise Indonesian and foreign clients in this area.

The law firm’s practice covers conventional and sharia law compliance relating to banking and financial services on both local and cross-border bases, including structured finance and securitisation.

A team of specialists, including partner Retno Muljosantoso, advise clients on typical loan agreements, cross-border secured and syndicated loans, as well as structured debt financings, among other types of financial transactions.