Dechert LLP announced that it has opened its Hong Kong office by establishing a formal association with the local firm Hwang & Co and will be known in the city as Dechert LLP in association with Hwang & Co. This is Dechert's first office in Asia.
Dechert's Hong Kong office will focus on private equity, venture capital, and hedge fund formation and investing; capital raising and sales of equity stakes through capital markets offerings; cross-border mergers and acquisitions; and Asia-bound and outbound strategic and financial investments.
Dechert elected Basil Hwang, the managing director of Hwang & Co., a partner in the new firm. His primary focus has been on advising private equity, venture capital, and hedge funds investing in China and advising issuers and underwriters in securities offerings. ?Our two firms had very complementary skill sets,? explains Hwang. ?Most of my experience is transaction-based representing investment funds and their portfolio companies, while Dechert has extensive expertise with fund formation and regulatory issues.?
The newly combined office will feature attorneys from Hwang & Co., new local attorneys and a few transfers from other Dechert offices. Keith Robinson, a partner in the firm's financial services group, is transferring to Hong Kong from Washington DC, to work in the area of financial services and investment funds. Also Craig Godshall, a partner in the Corporate & Securities Group, has received authorization from the Hong Kong Law Society as a ?registered foreign lawyer? practicing in Hong Kong. Other Dechert corporate and securities partners, notably James Lebovitz and James Croock, will focus on the US and UK law aspects of client transactions.
Other additions to the new office include Candy Tsui, a Hong Kongand UK-qualified lawyer, who has joined the office in Hong Kong along with Juliana Kho, an associate, and Carmen Cheng, a trainee solicitor. Derek B. Newman will transfer to the Hong Kong office while Jianlin Song and James Stonehill will share time between Hong Kong and other Dechert offices.
?The decision to establish an office in Hong Kong results from our assessment of our clients' current and potential business interests in Hong Kong and mainland China,? said Dechert Chairman, Barton J. Winokur. ?It is clear that many of our clients consider a China strategy imperative.? The law firm has several offices across the U.S., as well as London, Munich, Luxembourg, Brussels and Paris.
Addleshaw Goddard adds leveraged finance pro
UK-based law firm Addleshaw Goddard has announced the expansion of its banking practice with the appointment of Michael Crosby, who joins as a partner from O'Melveny & Myers. Crosby's practice has focused on PE-sponsored leveraged finance transactions acting for a variety of US investment banks and PE houses, as well as European and UK banks. Prior to joining O'M&M in 2005, Michael was an Associate in Fresh-fields Bruckhaus Deringer's Finance practice following two years with Lehmann Brothers. Richard Papworth, Addleshaw Goddard Finance & Projects Division managing partner, said: ?We are building a talented leveraged finance practice which has its focus on the mid-market, and the potential to be a credible player at the top end of the market. With Michael's arrival, we are well positioned to continue delivering high caliber transactional services to the private equity community, corporates and financial institutions. Greater capacity will also give us a stronger platform to exploit the synergies with our corporate division.?
Lefevre opens two offices in North Africa
Paris-based Lefevre Pelletier & Associes has announced the opening new offices in Algeria and Morocco. The Casablanca office is a partnership with a local firm Ali Kettani, which will be managed from Paris by Alain Gauvin, a partner in Paris. This office will tackle banking and M&A in private equity and real estate. Algiers, however, will be headed by associate Pascal Renaudin, with two Algerian lawyers Djallal Lebied and Samir Boukider in the office as well. The Algerian office will address issues in banking and finance, real estate, public law, employment law, IP and IT. There will be a Paris based team to oversee these two new offices and may transfer to the region as required. The team includes partners Jean-Luc Bedos, Christophe Jacomin, Vincent Lunel and Philippe Pelletier as well as Gauvin. Lefevre also has offices in Hong Kong and mainland China.
Vet of Blackstone, EOP deal lands at Sidley Austin
Sidley Austin LLP has announced that Stanley M. Stevens will join the firm's Chicago office as a partner in the real estate group. Stevens most recently served as Executive Vice-President, Chief Legal Counsel at Equity Office Properties Trust, where he worked with Sidley on the sale of Equity Office to the Blackstone Group for $39 billion in February 2007. At Equity Office, he led a department of 50 lawyers and paralegals. He oversaw $25 billion worth of real estate acquisitions from 1997 to 2006, and he chaired the company's compliance committee. ?The firm and several of our partners have a long and rewarding history of collaboration with Stan on transactions, many of them transformative for the REIT industry,? said Virginia Aronson, head of Sidley's global real estate practice and a member of the firm's Executive and Management Committees.
Davis Polk names executive director
Davis Polk & Wardwell has announced the appointment of Donna Rosenwasser as the firm's executive director. As Executive Director, Ms. Rosenwasser will have responsibility for all office operations, supporting more than 740 lawyers, 200 legal assistants and 760 staff members in the firm's 10 offices worldwide. She will work closely with the firm's management committee and various other partner committees on policy formulation in the areas of personnel and firm management. Since joining Davis Polk in 2002, Ms. Rosenwasser has served as associate executive director. She was responsible for a number of the firm's non-legal departments, and oversaw a wide range of projects and internal initiatives relating to such areas as finance, benefits, litigation support, office openings and expansion, expatriate issues, taxation and client service. Prior to joining Davis Polk, Ms. Rosenwasser was a partner and the director of finance at McKinsey & Company where she spent 14 years and also served as tax counsel.
Mayer Brown merges with Asia firm
Mayer Brown has agreed to combine with Asian law firm Johnson Stokes & Master, significantly expanding is Asian business. JSM was established in 1863 in Hong Kong, and currently has offices in Hong Kong, mainland China, Thailand and Vietnam. The merger will add 260 lawyers to Mayer Brown's roster. The resulting entity will be known as Mayer Brown outside of Asia, and Mayer Brown JSM within Asia. The Asian offices will be managed by a board led by senior JSM partner Elaine Lo. ?Our clients' needs are increasingly international in nature and we are now able to offer them a unique global platform,? Lo said in a statement. After the merger, the firm will employ more than 1,800 lawyers in seven Asian offices, six European offices and eight offices in the Americas. ?The combination extends our capabilities geographically and broadens our exposure to the fastest growing economies in the world,? Mayer Brown chairman James Holzhauer said.
Alvarez & Marsal launches European dispute analysis and forensics practice
Global professional services firm Alvarez & Marshal has hired Merryck Lowe as managing director to lead its new European dispute analysis and forensics practice. Lowe was previously a partner at accountancy firm PKF. Before, he held senior management positions in the forensic services business of Ernst & Young. At Alvarez & Marshal, Lowe will work with companies, investors and stakeholders facing potential disputes or investigations. ?To date, our extensive DA&F proposition has been predominantly outside of Europe in the US and Asia. Since London's emergence as a hub for international arbitration and dispute resolution, our number one priority has been to develop an equally strong offering for European markets,? said managing director Antonio Alvarez. ?The initiative is also being fuelled by strong growth in European demand for performance improvement and turnaround services led by private equity firms and corporates which need to address increasingly complex capital structures.?
DLA bolster private equity team
DLA Piper has hired Stephen Hanson as a partner in its corporate and securities practice. Hanson was previously co-chair of Dorsey & Whitney's private equity practice group. Hanson will be based out of DLA Piper's New York office, where he will work with private equity and venture capital clients as well as their portfolio companies. His hire is part of an ?aggressive expansion? of DLA Piper's private equity practice globally, the firm said. Former Cahill Godron & Reindel attorney Roger Meltzer joined DLA Piper in February to lead the expansion. The firm has since added five members to the private equity team in the firm's New York and Chicago offices. ?[Hanson] will undoubtedly bolster our already strong middle-market private equity practice, which is a key part of our strategic plan,? Meltzer said in a statement.
If you do not receive this within five minutes, please try to sign in again. If the problem persists, please email: