The deal enables the global firm to practise Singapore law for the first time.
Reed Smith has inked a formal law alliance (FLA) with Singapore firm Resource Law, enabling the global firm to offer clients support on legal requirements involving Singapore law through the FLA.
Reed Smith first opened a Singapore office in 2012 to assist energy and resources industry clients.
“In that time we have grown from five partners to a team of 20 lawyers practicing English, US, Australian and Hong Kong law and who can advise across the wide range of industries and practices in which we provide specialised advice,” said Singapore office managing partner Barry Stimpson.
These 20 lawyers will be joined by Resource Law’s nine-lawyer team led by S Mohan, the firm’s managing director. The Resource Law team includes lawyers Kohe Hasan, Bernard Yee, Carolyn Chia, Ang Keng Ling and Adrian Aw whose experience will give Reed Smith the ability to advise clients in key practice areas.
This expands the firm’s scope to English, US, Australian, Hong Kong and Singapore law in a number of key areas that includes energy and natural resources, maritime, life sciences, dispute resolution, financial services, insurance, restructuring and regulatory work.
“Our operations and strategy will seek to mirror Reed Smith’s global strategy, which is to focus on industry sectors in which the practice is already recognised as a market leader,” said S Mohan.
“As Singapore consolidates its position as one of the world’s leading international dispute resolution, commodity trading, maritime and financial centres, I am confident our enhanced offering via the FLA will become even more important as we aim to support and grow these practice areas,” he said.
“We are also aiming to boost our practice in other growth areas for Singapore where Reed Smith is already a market leading firm globally such as life sciences, pharmaceuticals and regulatory work.”
