The
Herbert Smith Freehills Kuala Lumpur office is now open for business after the firm received approval from the Bar Council of Malaysia to open its newest office in Asia.
Coinciding with the approval is the appointment of Islamic finance lawyer Azlin Ahmad as a senior associate in the new office. She joins partners Peter Godwin, Vic Tang, and Glynn Cooper, who were
named last month as the office’s leaders.
HSF
received a Qualified Foreign Law Firm licence from the council in January.
Azlin, who is a registered foreign lawyer in Malaysia, will work closely with senior members of HSF’s Islamic finance practice, which will regularly work in Kuala Lumpur. She was called to the Bar in the UK in 1996 before beginning her legal career in Malaysia and moving to the United Arab Emirates in 2005.
Godwin said that Ahmad specialises in both Islamic and conventional finance, with skills that range from sukuk and murabaha to project finance and restructuring.
“Her understanding of regional and international banks, corporates, regulators and governments active in the Islamic finance market makes her a valuable addition to the new office and the firm's global practice in this area,” Godwin said.
The Kuala Lumpur office is the firm’s ninth office in Asia, and 27th worldwide. In Southeast Asia, it operates from offices in Bangkong, Jakarta through affiliate Hiswara Bunjamin & Tandjung, Kuala Lumpur, and Singapore. The firm has about 1,500 lawyers in the Asia Pacific.
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