Ropes & Gray has become the latest US firm to break into Hong Kong law with the appointment of two senior lawyers.

The firm has recruited Norton Rose corporate and securities partner Julian Chung to launch the local law practice at its Hong Kong branch. Chung has been a partner with Norton Rose since 2005 when he joined the UK firm along with a team from the now-defunct local arm of Seattle-based practice Perkins Coie.

The 900-lawyer Ropes has also recruited Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison counsel Gary Li to join its private equity practice in Hong Kong as a partner, a core practice of the firm. Last year, Li represented US buyout giant Kohlberg Kravis Roberts in a proposed $1.6bn (£987m) leveraged buyout of Taiwan's Yageo Corp, a maker of electronics parts.

Ropes Hong Kong partner Marcia Ellis said that the firm is aiming to expand its local law practice with further appointments.

Ropes joins a growing list of major US law firms that have moved into Hong Kong law over the last two years including Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, Sullivan & Cromwell and Kirkland & Ellis in response to surging growth in the region.

The move also comes amid a period of international expansion for the top 50 US law firm, with Ropes in March also announcing plans to set up an office in Seoul, which are pending government approval. Ropes, which last year launched a branch in Shanghai, has also been investing heavily in its London arm since setting up the practice in 2009.

Ropes chairman Bradford Malt commented: "The growth we have seen over the past year is a direct result of our clients' growing needs in Asia and their demands for deeper and broader legal resources. We have pursued a very thoughtful approach to growth as we organically add lawyers and expertise to meet our clients' needs in this vital and growing marketplace."
 
Additional reporting by The Asian Lawyer.