Allen & Gledhill LLP is pleased to announce the admission of four new Partners with effect from 1 January 2012.

We believe their appointments will bolster our capabilities to meet the demands of our clients in the ever-changing economical and legal landscape.

To read more about each Partner, please click below.

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Allen & Gledhill Partner Vivian Ang has been named Best Lawyer in Shipping last week at the inaugural Euromoney Legal Media Group’s Asia Women in Business Law Awards.

The individuals and firms nominated are based on preliminary research and submissions and a panel of judges made the final selection of winners.

For the full list of winners, please click here.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP, an award-winning full-service law firm, is ranked Tier 1 in eight out of 13 practice areas in the 2011/12 Edition of The Legal 500 Asia Pacific for the Singapore jurisdiction:

Allen & Gledhill is also ranked in the following practice areas:

With regard to the number of unique Leading Individuals, our Firm has improved on last year’s showing, from 17 to 18.

According to The Legal 500 Asia Pacific, the yearly recommendations are based largely on client inputs and the opinions of rival commercial lawyers.

For more information, please click here.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP has been awarded Singapore Trademark Firm of the Year Award by Asia IP at the 2011 Asia IP Awards ceremony held on 11 November 2011 at the InterContinental, Manila.

Isaac Tung, Partner in our Firm’s Intellectual Property practice, was present at the ceremony to receive the award.

According to Asia IP, the results were based entirely on extensive survey and nomination from more than 4,000 in-house counsel in Asia and around the world.

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Allen & Gledhill Partner Andrew Chan has received a Minister for Law Outstanding Volunteer Award at the Ministry of Law’s Appreciation Dinner 2011 held at The Regent Singapore on Wednesday, 19 October 2011.

The Award is given to volunteers who have made invaluable contribution in the areas under Ministry of Law’s jurisdiction.

Recipients of this Award include external parties - individuals or organisations - who have actively contributed their time, resources and services without payment. Andrew has been presented the Award based on his involvement in providing expertise and helping to shape insolvency practice.

For more information, please click here.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP, an award-winning full-service law firm, has maintained its top tier rankings for Singapore in all practice areas covered in the 2012 Edition of IFLR1000:

In addition, Allen & Gledhill has seven lawyers listed as Leading Lawyers, the highest number among Singapore law firms.

According to IFLR1000, the results were based entirely on extensive independent research, and the guide provides rankings and analysis of the best financial law firms operating in more than 100 markets worldwide.

For more information, please click here.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP, an award-winning full-service law firm, has received Asian-MENA Counsel’s In-house Community Most Responsive Domestic Firm of the Year 2011. The Firm has won this award for the second year running.

The Firm was also awarded the following Firm of the Year awards for Singapore:

The Firm received Honourable Mentions for Litigation & Dispute Resolution as well as Telecommunications, Media & Technology.

Allen & Gledhill’s Managing Partner Lucien Wong, said, “These awards are representative of the strong positive feedback from our clients. The awards reaffirm that our Firm is on the right track in our delivery of premium legal services to clients and we will continue with our best efforts to meet the needs of our clients.”

The selection of Asian-MENA Counsel’s Firms of the Year 2011 winners was based entirely on the nominations and testimonials of in-house counsels across Asia Pacific and the Middle East.

For more information about Asian-MENA Counsel, please click here.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP, an award-winning full-service law firm, has received Who’s Who Legal Country Award 2011 for Singapore. The Firm has won this award every year since its inception in 2006.

The 2011 Country Awards identifying the leading law firms in 58 jurisdictions was announced by Who’s Who Legal, a London-based publisher which has conducted more than a decade of independent research.

Lucien Wong, Allen & Gledhill Managing Partner, said: “This is a significant recognition from Who’s Who Legal of our Firm’s consistent performance over the past six years. We are encouraged by, and deeply appreciate of, this vote of confidence from our clients and peers. It certainly spurs our lawyers to continue to serve our clients to the best of their abilities.”

As in previous editions, Who’s Who Legal compiled the nominations of thousands of clients and private practitioners from over 200 countries to decide on the best legal experts across 31 practice areas.

The winning firms of Who’s Who Legal Country Awards 2011 received the most number of nominations for their lawyers overall, allowing their firms to stand out as national leaders.

For more information, please click here.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP is pleased to announce the admission of our new Partner, Chen Lee Won, with effect from 1 July 2011.

Lee Won joined our Firm’s Corporate & Commercial team in January 2011 from a large Malaysian law firm, where she started her practice in 1995 and was made a partner in 2003. She is admitted to practise in Singapore and Malaysia. Her practice encompasses financial services, securities laws, cross border and domestic mergers and acquisitions, regional and domestic joint ventures, and general corporate and commercial law.

Some of Lee Won’s notable recent experience includes acting as local counsel to CME Group Inc. in its strategic collaboration with Bursa Malaysia Berhad; lead counsel to Malayan Banking Berhad’s acquisition of up to 20% of Pakistan’s fourth largest bank, MCB Bank Limited; and representing Public Bank Berhad in its long-term regional strategic alliance agreement with ING Asia/Pacific Limited.

We believe her ability and expertise to advise in Singapore and Malaysia, together with her experience in cross border transactions, will allow Lee Won to assist our clients with business interests in Singapore and Malaysia.

To read more about Lee Won, please click below.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP, an award-winning full-service law firm, has won the coveted Singapore Deal Firm of the Year at the Asian Legal Business (ALB) SE Asia Law Awards for the sixth consecutive year. The awards are presented by ALB and Thomson Reuters.

Allen & Gledhill has also been awarded:

1. Equity Market Deal of the Year for our involvement in Global Logistic Properties IPO
2. Islamic Finance Deal of the Year for our involvement in Danga Capital’s S$1.5 billion sukuk issue
3. IPP Financial Advisers Award Singapore M&A Deal of the Year for our involvement in the Khazanah/Fortis competing takeover offer for Parkway
4. Singapore Deal of the Year for our involvement in the Khazanah/Fortis competing takeover offer for Parkway
5. Singapore Corporate Counsel Association Award Intellectual Property Law Firm of the Year
6. International Arbitration Law Firm of the Year
7. Real Estate Law Firm of the Year
8. Tax & Trusts Law Firm of the Year

Lucien Wong, Managing Partner, said: “These awards are dedicated to our valued clients for their unwavering support over the years. We believe the awards are a testimony of our clients’ confidence in Allen & Gledhill, and it encourages us to continuously strive for them.”

ALB held its annual ALB SE Asia Law Awards in Singapore on Friday, 27 May 2011. According to ALB, the awards recognise the excellence and outstanding achievements of Southeast Asia’s leading law firms and in-house legal teams as well as the top deals and dealmakers of 2010.

ALB is the only independent magazine dedicated to the latest legal news, events and developments in Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, China, Asia and the international business community.

For more information, please click here.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP, an award-winning full-service law firm, has been named Singapore National Law Firm of the Year at the Chambers Asia-Pacific Awards. The awards were presented by Chambers & Partners, a London-based publisher of the world’s leading guides to the legal profession.

The awards honour the work of national and international law firms across the region on the basis of research for the current edition of Chambers Asia-Pacific. Allen & Gledhill is the only Singapore law firm in the current edition to achieve Band 1 across 10 practice areas. It is also the only Singapore law firm to be ranked Band 1 in Banking & Finance, Capital Markets and Investment Funds.

Lucien Wong, Managing Partner, attributed the honour to the support of the firm’s clients: “We are immensely privileged to receive this recognition, which reflects the confidence of our clients in Allen & Gledhill. Our heartfelt appreciation goes to them for their support. This award is also an excellent recognition of the efforts of our lawyers, who strive constantly to meet and surpass the wide-ranging needs of our clients.”

Chambers & Partners held its second annual Chambers Asia-Pacific Awards in Hong Kong on Thursday, 21 April 2011. The awards recognise a law firm’s pre-eminence in key countries in the region. They also reflect notable achievements over the past 12 months including outstanding work, impressive strategic growth and excellence in client service.

Over the past two decades, Chambers & Partners has built a reputation for in-depth and objective research. Its research team conducts thousands of interviews with lawyers and clients worldwide to identify and rank the world's top firms and lawyers based on a set of rigorous criteria most valued by clients, including technical expertise, business acumen and prompt delivery.

For more information, please click here.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP has just concluded its fundraising drive in aid of the victims of the Japan disaster.

Supported by a dollar-for-dollar contribution by the Firm, the fundraising raised a total of S$75,000 over a five-day period which will be donated to the Japanese Red Cross.

Allen & Gledhill’s Managing Partner, Lucien Wong, said, “We are saddened by the multiple tragedies faced by the Japanese people and moved by the resilience they have shown. We have many clients and friends in Japan and we wanted to provide a vehicle for our staff to lend financial assistance and show our support and encouragement to our Japanese clients and friends as they continue with rescue and recovery efforts.”

The 11 March Tohoku Pacific 9.0-magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami is Japan’s worst post-war disaster.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP has won the Asian-MENA Counsel Deals of the Year 2010 for the following deals:

We also received honourable mention for the following deals:

Asian-MENA Counsel, formerly Asian-Counsel, is a monthly magazine providing thought-provoking analysis and discussion of vital legal, regulatory and business issues, along with news and profiles of leading in-house practitioners in the region. The Deals of the Year award recognizes the biggest and best deals in 2010.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP, an award-winning full-service law firm, has added to its top tier rankings in the 2011 Edition of Chambers Asia for the following practice areas within the Singapore jurisdiction:

Allen & Gledhill was the only Singapore law firm to achieve Band 1 across 10 practice areas, with Intellectual Property joining the list. It was also the only Singapore law firm to be ranked Band 1 in Banking & Finance, Capital Markets and Investment Funds.

Chambers Asia is an annual ranking publication identifying the leading lawyers and law firms across Asia. Over the past twenty years, it has built a reputation for being a reliable and respected source for in-house counsel. Its findings result from an objective and rigorous research process involving thousands of lawyers and their clients around the world.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP has secured top honours at the International Financial Law Review (IFLR) Asia Awards 2011 by winning the Law Firm of the Year for Singapore award. The Firm was also awarded Private Equity Deal of the Year for its involvement in CVC Capital Partners’ acquisition of shares in PT Matahari Department Store.

Allen & Gledhill’s Managing Partner, Lucien Wong, said, “We are pleased to receive this recognition once again. Winning the IFLR Law Firm of the Year for Singapore award demonstrates the quality of corporate and financing work which our Firm undertakes on a regular basis, supporting our valued clients.”

The IFLR Asia Awards 2011, held in Hong Kong on 3 March 2011, is the only awards for legal innovation in international finance. Allen & Gledhill LLP has won the IFLR Law Firm of the Year for Singapore award ten times since 2000.

For further information on the winning deal, please contact Allen & Gledhill LLP Partners:

Prawiro Widjaja
Lim Wei Ting

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Allen & Gledhill LLP has won the following awards:

The two deals above also received honourable mention for (Global) Deal of the Year for the Islamic Finance news awards.

Notably, our Firm is the only Singapore law firm to win an Islamic Finance news award and to win the Singapore Deal of the Year award for two consecutive years.

Islamic Finance news is the industry’s leading, capital markets focused e-newsletter providing editorial coverage of the global Islamic financing market. The Islamic Finance news Deals of the Year 2010 recognises those who have participated in the industry’s most groundbreaking transactions each year.

For further information on this transaction, please contact Allen & Gledhill LLP Partners:

Eugene Ooi
Yeo Wico
Suhaimi Zainul

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Allen & Gledhill LLP is pleased to announce the admission of two new Partners, Chiam Tao Koon and Kenneth Lim, with effect from 1 February 2011.

Their appointments will further enhance our Firm’s capabilities in delivering premium legal services to our valued clients.

To read more about each Partner, please click on their names below.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP is pleased to announce the admission of 11 new Partners and 1 Principal Economist with effect from 1 January 2011.

These appointments will further strengthen our Firm’s capabilities in delivering premium legal services to our valued clients.

The new Partners and Principal are:

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Allen & Gledhill LLP is recommended for all practice areas covered and ranked top tier in the 2011 Edition of IFLR1000 for the following practice areas within the Singapore jurisdiction:

With regards to the number of Leading Lawyers, the Firm has improved on last year's showing, from 6 to 7.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP is recommended for all practice areas covered and ranked top tier in the 2010/11 Edition of The Legal 500 Asia Pacific for the following practice areas within the Singapore jurisdiction:

This is an improvement from last year’s rankings, with the Firm coming in top tier for the newly included area of Employment law.

The Firm has also improved on its ranking for International Arbitration. Notably, the Firm is the only one ranked tier 1 for the Banking, Finance and Capital Markets practice area.

With regards to the number of unique Leading Individuals, the Firm has improved on last year's showing, from 13 to 15.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP, an award-winning full-service law firm, has been named Tax Disputes Team of the Year for Singapore by International Tax Review (ITR).

Sunit Chhabra, Partner of the Firm’s Tax Practice Group, said, “We are privileged to receive this accolade, which reflects the seamless sharing of expertise within our Practice Group, in providing tax advisory and dispute resolution services. Our heartfelt appreciation also goes to our clients and peers for this recognition.”

International Tax Review, a London-based publisher and online resource, has been publishing its discussions on tax developments for more than two decades. International Tax Review presented its fifth annual Asia Tax Awards ceremony at the Fullerton Hotel in Singapore on 23 November 2010. The awards went to firms that demonstrated examples of the most innovative client work in the Asia-Pacific region between August 2009 and July 2010.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP has advised DBS Bank Ltd. (the "Issuer") on Singapore’s largest retail preference share offering.

The Issuer has issued S$800 million 4.70 per cent. Non-Cumulative Non-Convertible Non-Voting Class O Preference Shares callable in 2020. The Sole Lead Manager and Bookrunner was DBS Bank Ltd. and the Co-Managers were J.P. Morgan (S.E.A.) Limited and Morgan Stanley Asia (Singapore) Pte.

The Issuer exercised its upsize option in full and increased the total size of the offer from S$500 million to S$800 million to accommodate the strong retail demand from the Singapore public. The Issuer also had the discretion to offer up to S$50 million to employees (the "Reserve Offer") and up to S$250 million to institutional and other investors (the "Placement"). The Public Offer, the Placement and the Reserve Offer accounted for S$550 million, S$205 million and S$45 million respectively of the total Offer size of S$800 million.

For further information on this significant transaction, please contact Allen & Gledhill LLP Partners:

Prawiro Widjaja
Glenn Foo
Sharon Wee

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Allen & Gledhill LLP is advising on Singapore’s first certified Shari’ah compliant real estate investment trust (REIT).

Sabana Shari’ah Compliant Industrial Real Estate Investment Trust ("Sabana Shari’ah Compliant REIT") will raise gross proceeds of between S$632.8 million (based on the Minimum Offering Price) and S$691.6 million (based on the Maximum Offering Price) in an initial public offering ("IPO").

The Monetary Authority of Singapore ("MAS") has granted Sabana Real Estate Investment Management Pte Ltd (as manager of Sabana Shari’ah Compliant REIT, the "Manager") a capital markets services licence for its REIT management business. The Preliminary Prospectus relating to the IPO has been lodged with the MAS on 9 November 2010. Sabana Shari’ah Compliant REIT will be the largest listed Shari’ah compliant REIT by assets globally.

Advising the Manager as transaction counsel are Allen & Gledhill LLP Partners Jerry Koh, Foong Yuen Ping, Penny Goh, Chew Mei Choo, Tan Boon Wah and Serena Choo, Senior Associate Louis Lim and Associates Shalene Jin and Goh Ping Ying.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP is advising on the first real estate investment trust (REIT) listed in Singapore to have taken up Shari’ah compliant debt financing.

Sabana Shari’ah Compliant Industrial Real Estate Investment Trust ("Sabana Shari’ah Compliant REIT") has taken up a S$256 million commodity Murabaha facility (the "Commodity Murabaha Facility"). The Commodity Murabaha Facility has been certified by the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) Amanah Central Shari’ah Committee to be Shari’ah compliant.

Advising Sabana Real Estate Investment Management Pte Ltd (as manager of Sabana Shari’ah Compliant REIT) as transaction counsel are Allen & Gledhill LLP Partners Jerry Koh, Foong Yuen Ping, Lyn Wee and Chew Mei Choo, Senior Associate Daniel Law and Associate Shalene Jin.

Advising HSBC, Malayan Banking Berhad and United Overseas Bank Limited (as coordinating arrangers and participants) are Allen & Gledhill LLP Partners Eugene Ooi and Suhaimi Zainul and Associates Aloysius Ng and Melanie Tan.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP is advising Singapore Exchange Limited ("SGX") on the combination of SGX and ASX Limited ("ASX"). The merger of both stock exchanges is the first ever in Asia Pacific.

SGX and ASX have entered into a Merger Implementation Agreement ("MIA") to combine (the "Proposed Combination"). Under the MIA, SGX will acquire all the issued ordinary shares in the capital of ASX by way of a Scheme of Arrangement under Section 411 of the Australian Corporations Act 2001. Under the terms of the Scheme, ASX shareholders will be paid, in relation to each ASX share, a combination of A$22.00 in cash and 3.473 SGX shares. The value of the aggregate consideration payable for the Proposed Combination is approximately A$8.4 billion, based on the closing price of SGX shares as at 22 October 2010.

Advising SGX are Allen & Gledhill LLP Partners Lucien Wong, Prawiro Widjaja, Song Su-Min, Kok Chee Wai, Lim Wei Ting, Sunit Chhabra, Daren Shiau, Sharon Wee and Glenn Foo, Senior Associates Cheryl Siew, Nelson Chua, David Teo and Tan Se Lene and Associates Ginny Toh and Lynn Tan.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP has advised Global Logistic Properties Limited ("GLP") on its initial public offering (the "IPO"), the largest in Singapore since 1993.

GLP has completed its IPO and listing on the Main Board of the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited. The IPO, together with a concurrent sale to cornerstone investors, (together, the "Global Offering") has raised gross proceeds of approximately S$3.9 billion. Based on the offering price of S$1.96, GLP’s market capitalisation is approximately S$8.8 billion upon its listing. This Global Offering is the largest since the offering and listing of Singapore Telecommunications Limited in 1993.

For further information on this transaction, please contact Allen & Gledhill LLP Partners:

Tan Tze Gay
Leonard Ching
Richard Young
Rhys Goh

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Allen & Gledhill LLP has advised Mapletree Industrial Trust ("MIT") on Singapore’s largest REIT initial public offering ("IPO") to date.

Mapletree Industrial Trust Management Ltd., as manager of MIT (the "Manager") and the sponsor, Mapletree Investments Pte Ltd ("MIPL"), have successfully completed the IPO of units in MIT to raise gross proceeds of S$1.19 billion (which includes the proceeds from the cornerstone and MIPL subscriptions and the over-allotment option which has been fully exercised).

The Manager is a wholly-owned subsidiary of MIPL, which is in turn an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited. The Monetary Authority of Singapore has granted the Manager a capital markets services licence for its REIT management business.

For further information on this significant transaction, please contact Allen & Gledhill LLP Partners:

Jerry Koh
Margaret Soh
Ho Kin San
Kok Chee Wai
Ernest Teo
Hoo Sheau Farn
Chua Bor Jern
Long Pee Hua

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Allen & Gledhill LLP has advised Singapore Airlines Limited (“Singapore Airlines”) on Singapore’s first retail bond offering by a listed company, marking a significant milestone in the development of the retail bond market in Singapore.

Singapore Airlines has made an offering (the “Offer”) of S$300 million in aggregate principal amount of 2.15 per cent. bonds due 2015. The Offer was made to the public in Singapore by way of ATMs (the “Public Offer”) and to institutional and other investors (the “Placement”).

DBS Bank Ltd., Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited and United Overseas Bank Limited are the Co-ordinating Bookrunners of the Offer and Bookrunners and Underwriters of the Public Offer (“Public Offer Underwriters”). DBS Bank Ltd., Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited, Standard Chartered Bank and United Overseas Bank Limited are the Joint Lead Managers, Bookrunners and Underwriters of the Placement (together with the Public Offer Underwriters, the “Underwriters”).

This is the first retail bond offering by a listed company in Singapore signifying a landmark offer of an on-exchange tradable bond for retail investors. The Singapore Airline bonds will be listed and quoted on the Main Board of the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited and may also be traded over-the-counter on the Debt Securities Clearing and Settlement System (DCSS).

For further information on this landmark transaction, please contact Allen & Gledhill LLP Partners:

Margaret Chin
Cara Chan
Rhys Goh

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Linklaters Allen & Gledhill, a joint law venture firm of Allen & Gledhill LLP and Linklaters LLP, celebrated its tenth anniversary yesterday.

Established in 2000, Linklaters Allen & Gledhill is one of the longest running joint law ventures in Singapore. The partnership brings together the Singapore expertise of Allen & Gledhill and the global expertise of Linklaters to provide clients with premium domestic and international legal advice.

Linklaters Allen & Gledhill has established a proven track record for advising on South East Asia’s headline transactions and a reputation for seamless advice on complex multi-jurisdictional deals for well-known corporates in the region. The Linklaters Allen & Gledhill joint law venture is widely recognised as one of the most successful in Singapore with many factors underpinning this success, such as the vibrant sharing of best practices and resources, as well as leveraging on the respective reputations of Linklaters and Allen & Gledhill.

Commenting on the strength of the alliance, Linklaters Allen & Gledhill Managing Partner Kevin Wong said: “The success of Linklaters Allen & Gledhill over the past ten years is due to the unwavering support of our clients and business partners, to whom we would like to express our heartfelt appreciation. As Linklaters Allen & Gledhill continues to grow from strength to strength, we remain committed to building enduring relationships with our clients by delivering the highest quality legal services across the broadest platform.”

To mark the occasion of its tenth anniversary, Linklaters Allen & Gledhill donated S$50,000 to the National Volunteer & Philanthropy Centre (NVPC). Linklaters Allen & Gledhill is pleased to support NVPC in its mandate to transform the giving landscape in Singapore. Along with supporting numerous other worthy local causes, Linklaters Allen & Gledhill sees this donation as the beginning of an enduring partnership with NVPC, contributing to building a socially responsible and engaged community.

“We are grateful for the generosity and far-sightedness of Linklaters Allen & Gledhill in supporting NVPC’s cause. We welcome other corporations to follow its example to partner us to make giving a way of life in Singapore. While NVPC receives funding from government, we need external funding from partners to help us expand our programmes. There is a lot of room to grow giving in Singapore, and we aim to do this by tapping on the many latent givers here as well as by supporting and guiding non-profits in creating more opportunities to engage volunteers and donors,” said Laurence Lien, NVPC’s Chief Executive Officer.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP is this year’s Asian-Counsel Singapore Firm of the Year 2010 in seven practice areas. The Firm was also named Most Responsive Domestic Firm of the Year in Singapore. These awards were presented by Asian-Counsel, a leading regional legal publication, in its fourth annual 'Representing Corporate Asia’ survey.

The Firm was voted Asian-Counsel Singapore Firm of the Year 2010 for the following practice areas:

The Firm was also this year’s winner for the Most Responsive Domestic Firm of the Year in Singapore.

On receiving the awards, Allen & Gledhill Managing Partner Lucien Wong said, “This achievement is an affirmation of our Firm’s dedication towards meeting and surpassing the needs of our clients. We are honoured to receive this recognition, and would like to thank our clients and peers who have participated in this survey.”

The Asian-Counsel ‘Representing Corporate Asia’ survey recognises outstanding performance of firms in the legal sector. With the participation of over 15,000 in-house lawyers in Asia and the Middle East, it represents the largest survey of in-house counsel across the region.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP, an award-winning full-service law firm has been named Singapore Law Firm of the Year 2010 by Who’s Who Legal for the fifth consecutive year. Significantly, two more Partners were added to The International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers 2010 publication.

Editor-in-chief Callum Campbell said, “In a highly competitive field, retaining the Who’s Who Legal Singapore Law Firm of the Year Award is an outstanding achievement. This is the fifth time Allen & Gledhill LLP has won the award. The consistently positive feedback we received reflects its exceptional individual and collective talent, and we have no hesitation in declaring it the leading firm in Singapore once more.”

To identify the top Singapore firm, nominations were sought from industry veterans such as clients and private practice professionals. The award recognises the winner based on a set of rigorous selection criteria, which includes the number of lawyers selected, the number of offices represented, general feedback received in the ongoing research process, past performance in the research and the overall aggregate number of weighted votes cast in their favour.

Allen & Gledhill Managing Partner Lucien Wong said, “It is a great honour for the Firm to receive the Who’s Who Legal Singapore Law Firm of the Year award for the fifth year running. This recognition from clients and practitioners in the legal sector is immensely gratifying. I have no doubt this will spur our lawyers to continue giving their best and serving our clients with full commitment.”

In addition to identifying the overall leading Singapore firm, an independent six-month research process was conducted to recognise leading practitioners in each practice area. Partners from Allen & Gledhill received sufficient nominations from their clients and peers to be listed 22 times across 12 practice areas in The International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers 2010, a compendium edition of all the individual Who’s Who Legal publications.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP has advised Securus Data Property Fund Pte Ltd (“Securus Fund”), the world’s first Shariah-compliant data centre fund.

The Securus Fund has achieved its initial closing of US$100 million with institutional investors from the Middle East and Asia including the Brunei institution Perbadanan Tabung Amanah Islam Brunei (“TAIB”) as a cornerstone investor, and intends to increase its aggregate committed capital to at least US$200 million eventually. Securus Fund is established, managed and sponsored by Keppel Telecommunications & Transportation Ltd and AEP Capital Ltd, a member of the Saudi Arabia-based Al Rajhi Holding Group, to invest in data centre assets across Securus Fund’s target markets in Asia Pacific, Europe and the Middle East. The term of Securus Fund will be five years from the initial closing and may be extended by two additional one-year periods with the approval of the board of directors of Securus Fund.

For further information on this landmark transaction, please contact Allen & Gledhill LLP Partners Jerry Koh at 6890 7770 or jerry.koh@allenandgledhill.com or Foong Yuen Ping at 6890 7622 or Foong.yuenping@allenandgledhill.com.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP has reaffirmed its position as a leading Singapore law firm by securing top honours at the Asian Legal Business (ALB) SE Asia Law Awards. By being named Singapore Deal Firm of the Year, the Firm sweeps this industry accolade for the fifth consecutive year.

The Firm was also awarded for:

1. Singapore Deal of the Year for its involvement in the Capitamalls IPO
2. Asset & Corporate Finance Deal of the Year for its involvement in the South Beach Consortium Term Loan Facility
3. Singapore M&A Deal of the Year for its involvement in the PetroChina-Singapore Petroleum Acquisition
4. Tax & Trusts Law Firm of the Year
5. Singapore Shipping Law Firm of the Year
6. Real Estate Law Firm of the Year
7. Construction Law Firm of the Year

Allen & Gledhill's Managing Partner, Lucien Wong said, "We are pleased to receive this recognition once again, and this has been made possible through our dedication to clients and developing our lawyers to the best of their abilities. I would like to thank our clients for their unwavering support and our lawyers for their hard work and commitment."

The ALB SE Asia Law Awards, held in Singapore on 4 June 2010, is an established and eminent platform which recognises outstanding legal achievements in Singapore and Southeast Asia.

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Managing Partner Lucien Wong has been conferred a lifetime achievement award at the first Chambers Asia Awards held at the Mandarin Oriental, Singapore on Saturday, 1 May 2010. He is one of two top lawyers in Asia to be awarded the prize from Chambers. The selection was based on Chambers’ research over the last few years.

Lucien would like to express his appreciation and gratitude to Partners, without whom this award would not be possible. He would like to dedicate this award to all Partners and lawyers in the Firm and encourage all to proactively relate to our clients and provide the best legal service in Singapore.

This is the second time that Chambers has given Lucien an award. Lucien was conferred a Special Award for his outstanding contribution to the legal profession at the Chambers Global Awards in London in 2007. The Special Award was one of only two awards conferred at the awards ceremony on individuals for their contributions to the legal fraternity.

Lucien would like to thank Chambers for the honour bestowed on him by the awards.

Our joint law venture was also recognised at the awards. Congratulations to our joint law venture Linklaters Allen & Gledhill, which was named Singapore International Firm by Chambers.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP is pleased to announce that it has formed an association with Rahmat Lim & Partners in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, which started operations on 1 January 2010.

Helmed by Managing Partner Lim Teong Sit, Rahmat Lim & Partners is a law firm in Malaysia providing a wide range of legal services to both local and international clients, covering the practice areas of Dispute Resolution, Financial Services, Intellectual Property & Technology, Mergers & Acquisitions and Real Estate.

Rahmat Lim & Partners’ objective is to deliver truly unique, innovative and cutting edge legal advice to clients in a professional and timely manner to help them address their business needs in today’s rapidly changing business environment. Working closely together, Allen & Gledhill LLP and Rahmat Lim & Partners will offer an integrated solution comprising the best of Malaysian and Singapore law expertise.

For further information on Rahmat Lim & Partners and its services, please contact Managing Partner Lim Teong Sit at +603 2299 3888 or teongsit.lim@rahmatlim.com.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP has won the first Singapore Deal of the Year in the Islamic Finance news (IFN) Deals of the Year 2009 Awards for the Monetary Authority of Singapore Sukuk Ijarah Program. This is the first time that an award has been given by IFN for a Singapore deal. Winning the award serves as an acknowledgement of the strides that the Firm has achieved as the leading Islamic Finance firm in Singapore. The same deal also received honourable mention in the Asian-Counsel Deals of the Year 2009.

The IFN Deals of the Year was established in 2006 and recognises those who participated in the industry’s most groundbreaking transactions each year. Financial institutions, intermediaries and service providers are invited to submit their chosen transactions from the previous 12 months, which fall under one of the carefully selected sectors. A panel of experts from non-competing organisations then sieve through all submissions during the elimination process until just one transaction in each category remains and is thus awarded the winner of that category.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP has been named South East Asia Legal Advisor of the Year 2009 in the Financial Times and Mergermarket Asia Pacific M&A Awards. This is the second consecutive year the Firm has won this award since its inception in 2008. The M&A Awards recognise mergers and acquisitions expertise excellence in the Asia-Pacific region.

The winners were chosen based on M&A transaction data from mergermarket.com and independent expert opinion from a panel of leading Asian M&A practitioners.

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We are pleased to announce that our Head of Intellectual Property & Technology, Dr Stanley Lai, has been appointed as Senior Counsel on 9 January 2010 at the opening of the legal year. The appointment of Senior Counsel is given to those with outstanding ability as advocates, extensive knowledge of law and high professional standing.

Stanley is a specialist in all forms of Intellectual Property litigation and enforcement. He also maintains a commercial litigation practice, and regularly advises and represents clients on information technology disputes. Stanley advises a large number of local and foreign clients on branding strategy, and general IP portfolio management and domain name protection. Stanley’s practice has also extended to advising bio-medical and pharmaceutical companies on issues of regulatory/ethical compliance, clinical trials, product recall and product liability. Stanley graduated from the University of Leicester with an LLB (Hons) degree in 1992. He was called to the Bar at Lincoln’s Inn in 1993. He obtained an LLM from the University of Cambridge in 1994 and was called to the Singapore Bar in 1995. Stanley then commenced his Ph.D research at the University of Cambridge in the field of technology law and computer software copyright and completed his doctorate within three years. He is the first Singapore-born lawyer to have been conferred a Ph.D in Law from the University of Cambridge.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP has been named as a leading M&A Firm in Singapore by Asian Legal Business in their Asia’s Leading M&A Firms report. This award has been given to local leaders in Hong Kong, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, and Japan for being the best local counsel on mega-M&A. Our success has been due in no small measure to both the trust and unstinting support given to us by our clients.

Managing Partner Lucien Wong has also been named as one of Asia’s top 25 M&A lawyers. He is the only lawyer in Singapore to be listed.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP has been awarded Singapore Firm of the Year 2009 for five out of 17 practice areas by Asian-Counsel in its third annual ‘Representing Corporate Asia’ survey, being named top in the most number of practice areas in Singapore.

The Firm was named Asian-Counsel Singapore Firm of the Year 2009 for the following five practice areas:

The selection of Asian-Counsel’s Firms of the Year 2009 was based on votes and testimonials by hundreds of senior in-house counsel across Asia and the United Arab Emirates. Participants were asked which law firms were their preferred external partners for each area of practice in the various jurisdictions.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP has won the Best Law Firm (Transactions) in Asia Award in the highly regarded Private Equity International (PEI) Awards 2008. The Firm is the first Singapore law firm to have won this award, beating other international law firms in this category. Click here to view the press release.

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We are pleased to announce that our Litigation & Dispute Resolution Partner, Ang Cheng Hock, has been appointed as Senior Counsel on 3 January 2009 at the opening of the legal year. The appointment of Senior Counsel is given to those with outstanding ability as advocates, extensive knowledge of law and high professional standing. Cheng Hock’s areas of practice include corporate litigation, such as shareholders' disputes and breaches of directors’ duties, securities-related litigation and banking litigation. He also advises on claims in defamation and professional negligence. Cheng Hock graduated with a First Class Honours from the National University of Singapore and has a Masters in Law from Yale Law School. He has been recommended in various international legal publications for his expertise in commercial litigation and dispute resolution.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP has been named Singapore Tax Controversy Firm of the Year by International Tax Review at the Asia Tax Awards ceremony held on 26 November 2008 at the Fullerton Hotel, Singapore. Sunit Chhabra, Partner of the Firm’s Tax Practice Group, was present at the ceremony to receive the award. The Firm has won this award for three consecutive years since the inception of the Asia Tax Awards. The awards represent the opinions of tax executives’ on the leading tax advisers in Asia based on their work between September 2007 and September 2008.

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Allen & Gledhill LLP is pleased to announce the appointment of Tang Siau Yan as Partner of the Firm’s Tax Practice Group with effect from 1 September 2008. Siau Yan specialises in tax dispute resolution and cross-border tax issues. His expertise includes advising foreign and multinational clients on Singapore taxation and tax-efficient corporate structures for regional investments, tax compliance and regulatory matters. He has also assisted clients in negotiating and resolving tax disputes with the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore. Siau Yan graduated from The London School of Economics and Political Science with an LLB (Hons) degree (First Class) in 1999 and obtained an LLM from Cambridge University in 2000. After graduation, he joined the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore and was the Deputy Director of the Legislation branch when he left in 2007. He is also a non-practising member of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Singapore.

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We are pleased to announce that K Shanmugam SC, a senior partner and the Head of the Litigation & Dispute Resolution practice at Allen & Gledhill LLP (“Allen & Gledhill”), will be appointed to the posts of Minister for Law and Second Minister for Home Affairs in the Singapore Cabinet on 1 May 2008. We warmly congratulate Shanmugam on his ministerial appointments.

Shanmugam has been a partner of Allen & Gledhill since April 1991 and is recognised as one of Singapore’s top litigators. Shanmugam has built up a core team of experienced and highly competent litigators under his leadership of Allen & Gledhill’s Litigation & Dispute Resolution practice. For his outstanding contributions to Allen & Gledhill, we take this opportunity to extend our sincere thanks to Shanmugam and wish him all the best in his ministerial roles.

We would like to announce that Andrew Yeo will be the newly appointed Head of the Litigation & Dispute Resolution practice at Allen & Gledhill. Andrew Yeo has been a partner of Allen & Gledhill since 1998 and Deputy Head of the Litigation & Dispute Resolution practice since 2004. He has acted in several high-profile matters: more recently for the Land Transport Authority in the Nicoll Highway tunnel collapse and the BGC/Tullett Prebon litigation involving the alleged “poaching” of several teams of derivatives brokers. Andrew has been heavily involved in the area of international arbitrations, acting in several large scale commercial arbitrations. He has been recommended for this area of international arbitration in the latest edition of The Asia Pacific Legal 500 (2007/2008). His other areas of specialisation include insolvency and transport/infrastructure disputes.