Interesting report yesterday from Bloomberg highlighting the growth of litigation and disputes practices in Asia, and specifically in Hong Kong…
Hong Kong Bloomberg correspondent Douglas Wong writes…….
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, the highest-grossing U.S. law firm, transferred Paul Mitchard to Hong Kong from London to head a new Asian practice targeting disputes spurred by the credit squeeze.
Two other lawyers will relocate from London, while the New York-based firm has hired a fourth from Pinsent Masons in Hong Kong for the team, adding to Skadden’s 50 lawyers in the Chinese city, Mitchard said in an interview.
“Every time you have a downturn it exposes malpractice, either fraudulent or negligent,” said Mitchard, 57, a Hong Kong qualified lawyer. The team will focus on arbitrations, litigation in Hong Kong and work with financial services companies under investigation.
International firms including Fulbright & Jaworski LLP and Linklaters LLP have also been expanding their disputes practices in the city, where the number of cases submitted to the Hong Kong international arbitration center rose 34 percent to 602 last year.
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Clifford Chance LLP’s litigation and disputes practice in Asia has grown by 40 percent to 36 people in the same period, according to its head Martin Rogers.
The London-based firm has also expanded its litigation practice in Japan and is looking at establishing an arbitration team in Singapore, Rogers said.
Houston-based Fulbright last month hired Jessica Fei for its Hong Kong office from Singapore-based Wong Partnership, where she had been head of dispute resolution in China. Fulbright also transferred partner Richard Hill from London for its litigation and arbitration practice in Hong Kong.
With thousands of recent agreements between Chinese and foreign companies, there will be an increasing number of disputes taken to arbitration, particularly during recessions, according to Fulbright’s China and Asia Pacific practice head Jeff Blount.
‘Accelerating Trend’
“We are only now at the front end of this trend, which I think will accelerate during the next decade,” he said.
Both Harvey and Blount said that companies are becoming more comfortable with litigation and arbitration to settle disputes in Asia.
U.S. and U.K law firms have also been opening new offices in China even as they cut jobs at home because of the global financial crisis. New entrants to Hong Kong include London’s Ashurst LLP and New York-based Proskauer Rose LLP, both of which have set up offering clients a Hong Kong law capability.
Read the full report at http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=ahoObMW02YpY&refer=home
