Singapore and China lawyers link up to jointly seize Belt and Road opportunities

19 NOV 2018

19 Nov 2018 Posted in Press releases

Today, 23 lawyers from six leading law firms in China Shaanxi Province began their one-month attachment in Singapore, as part of a Ministry of Law (MinLaw)’s initiative to help Chinese lawyers better understand what Singapore has to offer as a business hub for Chinese companies and to help Singapore lawyers connect with opportunities in China and the Belt and Road Initiative. The 23 lawyers include the Managing Partner of the largest law firm and 11 partners from other law firms in Shaanxi.
Shaanxi is a key province in western China. In 2017, its foreign trade amounted to USD 40 billion, more than double the amount in 2013. Its capital city, Xi’an, was the start of the Silk Road and has recently been identified as one of two key nodes in the Belt and Road Initiative.
While in Singapore, the Shaanxi lawyers will spend the first week visiting various agencies, including MinLaw, the Economic Development Board (EDB), the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the Singapore Stock Exchange and Infrastructure Asia, to get a better understanding of Singapore’s legal system, and how they can help Chinese companies set up their overseas operations, raise capital and restructure, run infrastructure projects, manage intellectual property and resolve disputes in and from Singapore.
They will spend the next three weeks attached to various Singapore law practices to learn more about their legal services and operations. Each of the 23 Shaanxi lawyer will be assigned a Singapore lawyer of the same seniority and practice area from ten participating Singapore law practices. They include Allen & Gledhill, Dentons Rodyk, Drew & Napier, Gloria James-Civetta & Co, LVM Chambers, Rajah & Tann, Shook Lin & Bok, Tan Kok Quan Partnership, TSMP Law and WongPartnership. They were introduced to each other during today’s opening ceremony.
The one-month attachment was mooted during a meeting between MinLaw’s Deputy Secretary Mr Han Kok Juan and the President of the Shaanxi Lawyers’ Association Mr Han Yongan during a MinLaw visit to Shaanxi to promote Singapore legal services in September 2018. Mr Han Kok Juan said, “The 23 Shaanxi lawyers decide to spend one full month in Singapore. This is a strong statement of their desire to gain international exposure to better serve Chinese companies and a vote of confidence in what Singapore has to offer in terms of legal expertise and business opportunities.”
Senior Minister of State for Law and Health Mr Edwin Tong SC said: “Legal services is one key area where Singapore and China can work together to support the Belt and Road Initiative. The one-month attachment of Chinese lawyers to Singapore opens a new dimension to our legal services cooperation, beyond the G to G to the B to B. It provides an opportunity for lawyers from both countries to explore how they can work together to jointly seize opportunities presented by the Belt and Road Initiative.”