Korea Justice Ministry Approves Ashurst, HwaHyun Joint Venture

December 2, 2022
The Korean Ministry of Justice approved on November 29, 2022 the establishment of a joint venture between global law firm Ashurst and Korean law firm HwaHyun.  To be called Ashurst Korea JV, the JV will significantly expand Ashurst’s existing outbound Korean practice by building a local presence. And through the JV, Ashurst becomes the first global firm permitted to practice Korean law, since the legal market opened in 2011. Ashurst’s outbound Korean practice, currently led by John Kim and Huiyeon Kim, operates across a number of offices. Clients of the practice include Hyundai Motor Group, Samsung Group, SK Group, POSCO and Hanwha Group. A full-service law firm in Korea specialising in corporate, intellectual property & technology, and dispute resolution, HwaHyun is led by Co-Managing Partners Kyung-Shik Shin and Nak Song Sung.  Kyung-Shik Shin spent 27 years in public service, including as the Chief Prosecutor of the Suwon District Prosecutors’ Office, while Nak Song Sung served as a judge for more than 30 years.  “This is the first JV between a Korean firm and an international firm in South Korea, which is an exciting development both for our Asia offering and the global firm. Asia is a critically important part of Ashurst’s strategy and, throughout the last year, we have continued to make focused and strategic investments in the region. The JV reflects our ambitions in the market,” said Paul Jenkins, Global CEO of Ashurst. “Over the last 12 months we have seen strong performance in Asia, which we expect to continue. By combining Ashurst’s global strength with HwaHyun’s local expertise, the joint venture will help us service our clients...

Ashurst ADTLaw Adds Team from Allen & Gledhill to its M&A Practice in Singapore

August 5, 2022
Ashurst ADTLaw, the Formal Law Alliance (FLA) practice of Ashurst in Singapore, has added a four-strong M&A team to its practice. Chiam Tao Koon, Ko Xiaozheng, Choo Yi Ming and George Kho join from Allen & Gledhill, a leading firm also in Singapore. This, Ashurst ADTLaw reports, “is a key milestone in Ashurst’s strategy to become a leading international firm for M&A transactions in Asia.”  The team has worked together for some years already, bringing extensive cross-border M&A experience.  Chiam, with 20 years of experience as a lawyer and entrepreneur specialising in deal structuring and execution for cross-border private equity transactions, takes on the additional role of Head of M&A, Southeast Asia.  Ko, joining as a director, is experienced in acting for private equity funds on transactions throughout Southeast Asia and across various industry sectors, including financial services, the digital economy, projects and infrastructure.  Choo, also joining as a director, has M&A experience focussing on sovereign wealth funds and large cap corporates in joint ventures and acquisitions with a particular emphasis on real estate platforms, including for data centres, industrial and logistics properties, hotels, student accommodation and offices.  Kho, joining as an associate director, works with high growth startups and venture capital transactions and has industry knowledge across various sectors, including F&B, education, healthcare, insurance, construction and FMCG. Head of corporate transactions for Ashurst in Asia, Josh Cole commented, “We are thrilled to be joined by four seasoned practitioners, led by Tao Koon, an energetic, commercially and client focused senior lawyer who is known for his excellent client service. Each with a slightly different but complementary specialism, Tao Koon,...