About
The firm: Appleby is a leading offshore law firm. The team of legal specialists advise global public and private companies, financial institutions and private individuals. Appleby is regularly recognised for its integrity and excellent client service, these are the values the firm prides itself on and are at the very core of its business. Appleby’s global presence allows it to provide timely and comprehensive legal advice at the times that matter most to clients. Appleby is located in the key offshore jurisdictions of Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Guernsey, Isle of Man, Jersey, Mauritius, and the Seychelles, as well as the international financial centres of Hong Kong and Shanghai. Appleby works with clients to achieve practical solutions whether in a single location or across multiple jurisdictions. Appleby is a full service law firm providing expert advice across corporate, dispute resolution, property, regulatory and private client and trusts practice areas. - Principal areas of work Mergers and acquisitions: Appleby’s mergers and acquisitions team regularly works with FTSE 100 and Fortune 500 companies around the globe to help them deploy strategic growth and restructuring initiatives, whether involving single jurisdictions or complex multi-jurisdictional, multi-disciplinary transactions. Appleby’s highly-experienced corporate team in Hong Kong is focused on providing on-the-ground advice on Cayman, Bermuda and BVI law matters in the Asia time zone. Their M&A practice regularly works with Chinese corporations, venture capital firms, tech start-up businesses, closed-end investment firms and credit funds operating across the Asia Pacific region. Banking and finance: Appleby’s banking and asset finance team are experienced in all aspects of law relating to banking, ship and aircraft registration and finance, asset backed finance and project and infrastructure finance. They provide advice to major banks and financial institutions, ship and aircraft owners, lessors, and lessees and have deep and trusted relationships with numerous international law firms, shipping groups and financial institutions around the world. Funds: Appleby’s Hong Kong investment funds practice predominantly practices Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands and Bermuda law and covers the entire Asia Pacific region, and with its Cantonese, English and Mandarin skills, has a leading edge in advising Hong Kong, Mainland Chinese and Taiwanese fund managers. They advise on fund formation and ongoing operation for all types of offshore investment fund structures, co-investment arrangements, separate account mandates, asset-holding joint ventures and “club deals”, across the spectrum of alternative asset classes - private equity, hedge funds, credit (including mezzanine and distressed), venture capital, real estate and infrastructure. Appleby’s fund disputes team is also an industry leader - one of the few offshore firms to field a specialist team dealing with fund disputes. Appleby’s fund finance team are experts in advising banks and finance providers in the development of sophisticated financing solutions. The team are globally recognized as leaders in the fund finance sector and have advised on a variety of different financing structures involving funds that have ranged from a hundred million to billions of dollars in subscribed investor commitments. Insolvency and restructuring: Appleby’s insolvency and restructuring team advise directors, institutional lenders, creditors (secured or unsecured), borrowers, or insolvency practitioners in large insolvencies that have offshore or cross-border elements. The team has extensive insolvency and restructuring experience across a wide range of industries, including retail, hospitality and leisure, healthcare, financial services, real estate and manufacturing. The Hong Kong corporate restructuring practice predominantly practices Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands and Bermuda law and covers the entire Asia Pacific region, with a focus in the current market on restructuring of China real estate debt issuers. Trust disputes: As family arrangements become more complex, trustees and beneficiaries are frequently being drawn into disputes which lead to court proceedings. Appleby’s talented, experienced and solution driven trust disputes team is committed to delivering the highest possible level of client service and regularly work together across their global locations to provide expert multi-jurisdictional advice. PC&T: Appleby’s private client and trust team provide trust and foundation services to private individuals, families, and fiduciary companies. They advise on all aspects of trust law, including the establishment, administration, restructuring and termination of private, charitable, and commercial trusts and foundations. They act in a personal capacity as Protector, Enforcer and Director (of private trust companies) for a number of discretionary trusts and are frequently instructed by blue-chip trust institutions. Dispute resolution: Appleby’s dispute resolution team is well-known for their Cayman, BVI, Bermuda and Jersey law advice across a wide range of shareholder disputes, insolvency and restructurings, funds disputes and M&A and privatisation disputes. The team works closely with their disputes lawyers in Cayman, Bermuda and the BVI, with every matter serviced by a multijurisdictional team. Employment: Appleby’s specialist employment team provides advice on employment and immigration law to a range of global clients, including banks, financial services businesses, companies and directors, as well as their onshore legal advisers. With close ties to local governments, they are often consulted on, and help to share, new laws brought into force across the jurisdictions in which they operate. Fraud and asset tracing: Appleby’s fraud and asset tracing team are experts in helping clients to trace and recover assets across international jurisdictions, regardless of where proceedings originate. Their clients include major financial institutions, multinational corporations, government agencies, state-owned corporations and high net worth individuals, who have been defrauded or have received the proceeds of fraud. They also advise directors and officers, and other service providers caught in the fallout of fraudulent activities. Property: Appleby are a leading provider of property services in Bermuda, the Cayman Islands, Isle of Man and Jersey. Their property team provides expert legal advice on all aspects of commercial and residential property, including sales and purchases, leasing, development and property finance transactions. They are frequently recognised for their experience and excellent client service and are consistently ranked in the top tiers for property work. They regularly work directly with developers, investors, business occupiers, banking institutions and private individuals. Regulatory: Appleby’s regulatory and compliance team is one of the world’s largest offshore, comprised of experts who not only have first-hand knowledge of local regulation, but who have in many cases, helped to shape it. Their team are skilled at putting technical regulatory information and decision-making in a commercial context, and clients know that they can assemble the team to deliver an international service, quickly and seamlessly. Technology and innovation: Appleby’s multi-disciplinary technology and innovation group comprises experts from each of their ten offices to help businesses meet the new challenges and support clients across a broad range of emerging technologies including blockchain, virtual currencies, ICOs, data protection and financial technologies. ### Languages - Cantonese - English - Japanese - Mandarin - and other Chinese dialects ### Memberships - Lex Mundi ### Staffing Figures - 12 Partners - 15 Other fee earners
Practice areas
Lawyers in this office
Alvin Sin
Alvin is a Partner in the Dispute Resolution department of Appleby’s Shanghai office, and a Legal Manager of Appleby’s Hong Kong office. · Dispute Resolution
Calamus Huang
Calamus Huang is a Partner at Appleby’s Shenzhen office and a member of the Corporate Department at Appleby’s Hong Kong office. · Corporate / M&A
Chris Cheng
Chris Cheng is a partner in the Corporate department of Appleby’s Hong Kong office and he leads Hong Kong Capital Markets team. Chris has more than 20 years of offshore and onshore experience, having previously worked at an international law firm in Hong Kong specialising in capital markets transactions. He has substantial experience in the area of capital markets, specialising in private and public offerings of debt and equity, private equity, mergers and acquisitions, privatisation as well as bank financing and other corporate and commercial law related transactions. Clients include Bermuda, Cayman Islands and British Virgin Islands entities, many of which are listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, as well as banks and financial institutions. · Capital Markets
David Bulley
David is the Managing Partner of the Hong Kong and Shanghai offices and Local Corporate Group Head. He is also head of Asia Private Equity, M&A, and Corporate Restructuring. · Corporate / M&A
Eliot Simpson
Eliot Simpson is a partner and Group Head of the Dispute Resolution department in Hong Kong. He has extensive experience in commercial litigation and insolvency, including corporate disputes, fund disputes, and corporate bankruptcy, insolvency and restructuring. Eliot is Solicitor Advocate in the British Virgin Islands and a registered foreign lawyer in Hong Kong. He has also been admitted as an Attorney in the Cayman Islands, an Advocate in Jersey and a Solicitor Advocate in England & Wales. · Litigation
Fiona Chan
Fiona Chan is a partner in the corporate department of Appleby’s Hong Kong office, leading the Banking and Finance practice in the Hong Kong office as well as Appleby’s Technology & Innovation Group in Asia. Fiona has over 20 years of offshore and onshore experience in the Asian market and advises on the laws of Bermuda, British Virgin Islands and Cayman Islands. Her broad offshore law practice spans banking and finance transactions including acquisition, leveraged and project financing, privatisation financing, shipping and aircraft financing, structured products, fund financing, bond issuance and restructuring of corporates and financial institutions. Fiona is routinely instructed by major international and Asian financial institutions, listed and private companies, securities providers and leading law firms. · Banking & Finance
John McCarroll
John McCarroll SC is a Partner in the Dispute Resolution department of Appleby’s Hong Kong office. · Dispute Resolution
Judy Lee
Judy Lee is a partner in the Corporate department of Appleby’s Hong Kong office. Judy practises a wide range of Bermuda, Cayman and BVI corporate law, specialising in corporate finance and investment funds. She is responsible for our corporate administration and fiduciary services business Appleby Global Services. Judy has over 25 years of offshore and onshore experience in listings on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and the Singapore Stock Exchange as well as mergers and acquisitions, private equity investments and other corporate finance transactions. Judy leads Hong Kong Capital Markets team which is recognised as one of the offshore market leaders for their specialist IPO and listing work advice in Hong Kong as well as overseas. Under her leadership, the team was able to complete consistently more than 50 listings on the Hong Kong stock exchange in 2018, representing close to 40% of the market share. In addition, she has extensive experience in the structuring and setting up of Cayman investment funds in Asia. She also advises on Bermuda and Cayman court-sanctioned shareholders privatisation schemes of arrangement. · Corporate / M&A
Kitty Chan
Kitty Chan is a Partner and Legal Manager (pending admission as “Registered Foreign Lawyer”) of Appleby’s Shanghai office and Hong Kong office respectively, and a member of the Corporate Department. · Corporate / M&A
Lorinda Peasland
Lorinda is an international restructuring specialist with over 30 years’ onshore and offshore experience in cross-border restructuring, insolvency and workouts of distressed companies and financial institutions, advising banks, funds, accountancy firms, leading onshore law firms and regulators. She has extensive experience in dealing with various types of financial instruments and structures, including asset based lending. She also has significant experience in all aspects of offshore schemes of arrangement. · Restructuring & Insolvency
Michael Makridakis
Michael Makridakis is a Partner in the Dispute Resolution department in Appleby’s Hong Kong and Shanghai offices. · Dispute Resolution
Richard Grasby
Richard Grasby is a partner in Appleby’s Hong Kong office, leading the Private Client, Trusts and Family Office practice. Richard advises trustees, ultra-high net worth individuals, private trust companies and family offices on the establishment, restructuring and administration of trusts, including special trusts i.e. BVI VISTA, Cayman STAR and Employee Benefit Trusts. He regularly assists in estate administration, succession planning and family governance. Private clients and family offices instruct Richard to advise on the use of corporate vehicles for asset holding and succession planning purposes. Richard is an expert in regulatory law including AML, AEOI, economic substance sanctions and licensing and risk management for trust companies. He also advises on collective investment funds, particularly unit trusts and private label funds. · Private Client
Vincent Chan
Vincent Chan is a partner in the Corporate department of Appleby´s Hong Kong office. He has more than 15 years of offshore law experience specialising in IPO/equity & debt capital markets, pre-IPO restructuring & financing, public & private mergers & acquisitions, privatisations (by way of schemes of arrangement, mergers and tender offers & compulsory acquisitions), private equity investments & venture capital, joint ventures and corporate reorganisations. Clients include Bermuda, British Virgin Islands (BVI) and Cayman Islands companies listed on stock exchanges in Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, New York, NASDAQ and London, as well as private companies, banks, financial institutions, private equity houses and asset management firms. · Corporate / M&A