Asia

China Law Firms Open US Offices

The globalization of law practice is a two-way street, and, just as U.S. law firms are seeking to establish a presence in China, Chinese law firms are looking to set up offices here. Among the Chinese law office leaders planting the law firm flag on American soil are Jun He,…

Dec 19, 2007 7:04 PM CST

Quinn Emanuel Opens Japan Office

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart Oliver & Hedges has acquired a three-lawyer Los Angeles boutique and is sending one of the partners from the new acquisition to Tokyo to launch a new office. The lawyer, Henry Koda, focused his practice on patent and trademark prosecution and international intellectual property litigation for Japanese…

Dec 12, 2007 12:32 PM CST

Foley & Lardner Opens Office in China

Foley & Lardner will expand into China with a Shanghai office led by a partner recruited from Weil, Gotshal & Manges. Partner Catherine Sun jumped to Foley earlier this year from Weil’s Shanghai office, Legal Times reports. Foley’s new office will focus on intellectual property matters, according to a press…

Dec 6, 2007 4:06 PM CST

Former Top Pakistan Judge Blames Country’s Western Allies

Although bar groups throughout the world, including the ABA, have made unprecedented efforts to lobby for the restoration of the rule of law in Pakistan, a deposed Pakistan supreme court judge contends government leaders in Western countries could and should do more. Held under house arrest at his home in…

Dec 5, 2007 11:22 PM CST

ABA President Asks Attorneys to Sign Pakistan Petition

The president of the American Bar Association is calling on fellow attorneys to sign an online petition seeking the restoration of the rule of law in Pakistan. “I urge you not to look aside, as if standing up for the rule of law is somebody else’s job. Add your name,…

Dec 4, 2007 10:22 PM CST

Skadden Partner Dies After Airport Drug Search

A high-profile real estate lawyer from Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom collapsed and died at an airport in Australia last week after a drug sniffing dog took an interest in him. Mark Bronson, 44, was a partner in the firm’s Tokyo office, Law.com reports. Sources told the Courier-Mail that…

Dec 4, 2007 12:54 PM CST

Japan Court Orders Comp for Worker Who Died From Overwork

A Japanese court has ordered the government to pay benefits to the widow of a Toyota employee because he died from overwork. The court found that Kenichi Uchino had worked about 106 hours of overtime in the month before he died, the Economic Times reports. Uchino’s wife, Hiroku, had argued…

Nov 30, 2007 6:57 PM CST

Outsourcing Firms Bring in the Engineers to Advise, Write Patents

Much like American law firms have beefed up their IP practices by hiring lawyers with engineering and scientific backgrounds, so too are legal process outsourcing companies in India. The Hindu Business Line reports that outsourcing firms are hiring experienced engineers to analyze new technologies and to write patents. One company…

Nov 26, 2007 9:17 PM CST

Chinese Company Wins Rare Overseas Trademark Ruling

In an unusual example of Chinese company resorting to litigation to enforce its intellectual property abroad, a Beijing curd maker has won a trademark infringement suit against a German company. The win came Nov. 14 when a Munich court ordered the German supermarket Okai to stop using Wangzhihe’s trademark, reports…

Nov 26, 2007 7:19 PM CST

U.K. Lawyers Long for Offices in India

Attorneys at major law firms in the United Kingdom are notably unhappy about their inability to open offices in India, and will continue to press for permission to establish a presence there, a London newspaper says. Eager to work on cross-border deals, London lawyers at big firms long for offices…

Nov 21, 2007 8:39 PM CST

Missing Movie Sex Scenes Prompt Suit

Steamy sex scenes cut from the Chinese version of a World War II-era spy thriller set in Shanghai have prompted both warnings (for the many who have searched the Web or traveled to neighboring Hong Kong to view the full, uncensored film) not to imitate those scenes at home—and at…

Nov 20, 2007 6:45 PM CST

Another Lawyer Steps Forward to Accuse Samsung of Bribery

A former legal adviser to South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun said in a statement released yesterday that he was once offered a bribe by Samsung. He is the second lawyer to accuse the company of bribery. Lee Yong-chul said a Samsung executive gave him 5 million won—worth $5,445—as a holiday…

Nov 20, 2007 5:12 PM CST

Khmer Rouge Official Seeks Bail

Spectators laughed today when the lawyer for the first Khmer Rouge defendant to face charges for Cambodia’s killing fields said his client’s eight-year detention violated human rights. The defendant, Kaing Guek Eav, also known as Duch, was seeking bail, the New York Times reports. He is accused of crimes against…

Nov 20, 2007 3:08 PM CST

Lovells Hires Eight Bengoshi Lawyers for Tokyo Office

U.K. law firm Lovells is expanding its Tokyo office with eight intellectual property lawyers from a Japanese firm. The bengoshi lawyers are from the Kubota Law & Patent Office, Legal Week reports. It calls the hires “a remarkable turnaround for the office, which was saved from closure last summer” after…

Nov 20, 2007 2:09 PM CST

India Says Yes to Foreign Legal Work, But No to Foreign Lawyers

A charm offensive by the British bar has failed to win immediate permission from the Indian government for foreign lawyers to practice in what many consider the world capital of legal outsourcing work. “The Bar Council of India (BCI) has released a joint resolution with the country’s state Bar councils…

Nov 19, 2007 6:50 PM CST