Reed Smith Continues to Rebuild Disputes Practice in Hong Kong

Reed Smith has recruited another disputes partner in Hong Kong as the firm continues to rebuild the practice following a nine-partner departure earlier this year.

Stephen Chan joins Reed Smith Richards Butler as a partner from the Hong Kong firm Oldham, Li & Nie, where he was a partner specialising in commercial litigation, international arbitration, intellectual property litigation, employment and labour disputes, and white-collar crime.

Chan leaves Oldham Li after two and a half years; he did a previous stint at the firm as an associate from 2013 to 2015. In between the two stints, Chan was a senior associate at local disputes boutique Gall. Before moving back to Hong Kong in 2013, he practised in Auckland, New Zealand at McVeagh Fleming and Queen City Law.

Previously, the firm announced that it had hired disputes partner Mark West from Kennedys, where he co-leads a Hong Kong regulatory practice. West is expected to begin at Reed Smith in June. Two additional disputes partners are expected to arrive in Hong Kong in the coming months, said Denise Jong, Asia-Pacific managing partner of Reed Smith.

The hires come after nine disputes partners, led by David Morrison, left earlier this year to join MinterEllison. Chan and West are among the rare Hong Kong lateral hires made by Reed Smith Richards Butler, the name by which the firm is known in Hong Kong after a 2008 merger with U.K. firm Richards Butler. It recruited corporate partner Gregory Wang from Morrison & Foerster in 2015.

Reed Smith Richards Butler has more than 100 fee-earners in Hong Kong, including 24 partners, mostly focusing on corporate, mergers and acquisitions, and capital markets.