Law firms across Asia kept up a brisk pace of lateral hiring this week, with moves spanning Hong Kong, Singapore and India. Global and regional firms including DLA Piper, Latham & Watkins, Kennedys and Baker McKenzie bolstered their transfer pricing, capital markets, M&A and disputes benches with senior arrivals from rival firms, while King & Spalding and Charles Russell Speechlys picked up talent from Mallesons and Pinsent Masons respectively. India’s market saw its own wave of activity, from a new Mumbai boutique launched by former Stratage Law partners to lateral moves at Argus Partners, Saraf and Partners and Hammurabi & Solomon. Elsewhere, Indonesia’s SKC Law made a distinctly personal appointment.
Here’s a closer look at the appointments shaping the region’s legal market this week.
Arpita Mukherjee Brings 35 Years and a General Counsel’s Eye to Hammurabi & Solomon
Arpita Mukherjee has joined Hammurabi & Solomon Partners as a Senior Partner in its Corporate and Commercial practice, bringing over 35 years of experience spanning private practice and senior in-house General Counsel roles at organisations including ICICI, Genpact and Tata Teleservices.
Helmsman Builds Out Its Singapore Deal Bench With Raj Mannar
Singapore firm Helmsman has appointed Raj Mannar as a director and head of its Corporate, Mergers and Acquisitions practice. Mannar joins from CHP Law with close to 15 years of experience in cross-border M&A, corporate governance and fundraising.
Argus Partners Takes a Corporate Duo and Their Whole Team From CMS IndusLaw
Saurav Kumar is joining Argus Partners as Senior Partner in its Corporate and M&A practice and Head of the Japan and South Korea Desk, alongside Swathi Sreenath as Partner. The pair bring their full team from CMS IndusLaw to Argus’s New Delhi office.
Saraf and Partners Bolsters Its Real Estate Bench With AZB’s Nitin Saluja
Saraf and Partners has strengthened its Real Estate practice by appointing Nitin Saluja as a Partner in Delhi, joining from AZB & Partners, where he advised private equity funds, developers and financial institutions on complex real estate transactions.
Kennedys Hire Andrew Carpenter From RPC in Hong Kong
Kennedys has hired Andrew Carpenter as a partner in Hong Kong from RPC, where he spent more than seven years. He brings almost 20 years of experience in M&A, private equity and insurance regulatory matters.
Three Stratage Partners Strike Out on Their Own With Reva Legal
Bhavin Gada, Ameya Deosthale and Mehak Gupta, previously senior lawyers at Stratage Law Partners, have launched Reva Legal, a new Mumbai firm offering corporate advisory and dispute resolution services.
Latham & Watkins Doubles Down on Hong Kong With Two Freshfields Partners
Latham & Watkins has hired Grace Huang and Edward Freeman as partners in Hong Kong, both joining from Freshfields. Huang joins the capital markets team with deep experience in Asian equity capital markets, while Freeman joins M&A and private equity, having led major cross-border takeovers and privatisations.
SKC Law Makes a Partner of the Man Who Helped Write Indonesia’s Patent Law
Indonesian IP firm SKC Law has named Gunawan Suryomurcito, father of co-founder Purnomo Suryomurcito, as a partner. He founded Suryomurcito & Co, Rouse’s Indonesian associate firm, in 1997, and helped shape the country’s early patent law framework.
King & Spalding Snares Mallesons’ Singapore Private-Capital Co-Head
King & Spalding has hired private equity M&A partner Nicola Yeomans in Singapore from Mallesons, where she was a partner and co-head of private capital.
Penningtons Takes Its Private-Wealth Practice Beyond the UK for the First Time
Penningtons Manches Cooper has launched its first private wealth practice outside the UK, hiring Rachel Yao from Carey Olsen as Head of Private Wealth for Asia, to advise high-net-worth families and family offices across the region.
Charles Russell Speechlys Turns to Pinsent Masons for Its Next General Counsel
Charles Russell Speechlys has appointed Justine Howard as General Counsel. Howard joins from Pinsent Masons, where she led the firm’s strategic growth and governance program.
Baker McKenzie Adds Linklaters Firepower to Its Hong Kong Disputes Team
Baker McKenzie has hired Justin Tang as a partner in its Hong Kong Dispute Resolution practice from Linklaters. Tang brings over 18 years of experience in China-related cross-border commercial disputes, arbitration and insolvency matters.
