Elaine Lo, Chair of Asia Board and Senior Partner (fifth from right) and other JSM partners, receiving the IFLR Asia awards for the firm

IFLR Asia awards, launched more than 10 years ago, are the most reputable awards in the market. JSM is proud to be for the first time the regional firm of the year, and to have again been named Hong Kong law firm of the year. It was the seventh time that the firm has been awarded this title since 2000.

These awards are a result of the firm's continued leading position and the key roles it has played in some of the most important transactions in the market over the past year.

Highlights

JSM has had an impressive year. The firm has been involved in a number of innovative and high-profile transactions. These include acting on:

• The largest Hong Kong-dollar corporate syndicated loan raised in recent years;
• The first successful and the largest hotel Reit (real estate investment trust) listed in Hong Kong;
• The largest natural gas limited resource shipping deal ever completed in the market;
• The longest and most hard-fought civil trial in Hong Kong; 
• The largest standalone leasing transaction in Hong Kong;
• The first ever licensed build-transfer project in Vietnam involving complex construction, financing and land issues; and
• The largest real estate acquisitions of existing assets in Vietnam involving complex land-related issues.

The success of these projects reflects the firm's growing capability across different practices and the region, particularly in emerging markets such as China and Vietnam.

A bigger footprint

Established in Hong Kong, JSM has a long tradition of leadership in the Asian markets. Many of its clients are global players including HSBC, Cathay Pacific Airways, Swire Group and Li & Fung. The firm has made developments in key Asian markets including Hong Kong, China, Vietnam and Thailand.

Being a full service law firm, JSM provides pragmatic and commercial legal advice to Chinese and Asian companies looking to grow regionally and internationally, while assisting clients in Europe and the Americas to invest in Asia. The firm is particularly well known for its asset finance, employment, insolvency, mergers and acquisitions, real estate, shipping and litigation and dispute resolution practices.

In 2008, the firm made a strategic move when it combined with US-based Mayer Brown. The combined firm is now one of the 10 largest law firms in the world by revenue, with 1,800 lawyers in 21 offices spanning Asia, Europe and the Americas. The combined firm, known as Mayer Brown JSM in Asia, offers clients unrivalled local knowledge and extensive international law capabilities in the most important business centres in the world.

The combination has been driven by the trend of globalisation and the rising demand for a broader scope of global services. According to Elaine Lo, Asia Chair and senior partner, the combination marks a beginning of a new era while opening a raft of new opportunities for both firms.

"As our global client base grows, we see a need to service our clients seamlessly by offering them a unique global platform. The combination is an ideal strategic fit as it brings together two law firms that are highly compatible – both in philosophy and culture," said Lo.
Going forward
The combination is a truly transformational event that makes Mayer Brown JSM unique among global law firms. JSM and Mayer Brown are noted for high levels of commitment to client service and an ability to assist clients with their most complex and demanding legal and business challenges worldwide.

As a result of the combination, JSM's clientele has expanded to include many of the world's largest companies, including a significant proportion of the Fortune 100, Ftse 100 and Dax companies, and more than half of the world's largest investment banks.

Given the increasing demand for professional services in Asia, there are plans for Mayer Brown JSM to further expand in terms of its size and scope of services. "In the coming years, we plan to substantially expand our offices in Asia, particularly in China and Vietnam as companies will accelerate their overseas expansion in the coming years," said Lo.

The firm also aims to strengthen its capabilities in areas such as cross-border mergers and acquisitions, and corporate finance, and to build up new or fledgling areas in the region, including a competition practice in Hong Kong and China, and securitisation and funds practices.

The new firm

On January 28 2008, Johnson Stokes & Master was renamed as JSM and operates in association with Mayer Brown LLP and Mayer Brown International LLP.

JSM has 300 lawyers in seven offices covering four jurisdictions in Asia (China, Hong Kong, Vietnam and Thailand). Hong Kong is the headquarters in Asia with about 170 lawyers. In China, the firm has one of the largest groups of PRC legal specialists. It is also one of the few foreign law firms that have three offices in China – Beijing, Guangzhou and Shanghai.

Mayer Brown is a global legal services organisation comprising legal practices that are separate entities. The Mayer Brown Practices are: Mayer Brown LLP, a limited liability partnership established in the US; Mayer Brown International LLP, a limited liability partnership incorporated in England and Wales; and JSM, a Hong Kong partnership, and its associated entities in Asia. The Mayer Brown Practices are known as Mayer Brown JSM in Asia.