King & Wood Mallesons to Commence 1 March 2012

The official announcement:

KING & WOOD MALLESONS – A NEW LEGAL POWERHOUSE FOR ASIA

Combining the No. 1 firms in China and Australia
Driven by the needs of clients across the world’s most dynamic growth region
An important new choice among the elite international law firms

BEIJING, HONG KONG, SYDNEY - 16 December 2011 – Mallesons Stephen Jaques and King & Wood have announced the combination of their firms to create King & Wood Mallesons, a new legal powerhouse centred in Asia.

Effective from 1 March 2012, this will be the first verein alliance law firm of its type in the world, combining a Chinese and Western law firm. With over 380 partners and 1800 lawyers it will be the largest law firm in Asia, the largest firm in the world headquartered outside of the US and UK, and a market leader in three of the world’s most dynamic economies: Mainland China, Australia and Hong Kong.

Situated in these markets, King & Wood Mallesons is perfectly positioned to capitalise on the growing importance of the Asian economies. The combination is driven by the desire to support clients who are seeking a streamlined service to help them to realise the significant opportunities in Asia-Pacific markets. It reflects the need to re-orientate around Asia as the new economic centre of gravity, accounting for over half of the world’s GDP by 2050 (1) and with China’s economy forecasted to overtake that of the US in real terms in 2016 (2).

King & Wood Chairman, Wang Junfeng, will be the Chairman of the combined firm. Stuart Fuller, who succeeds Robert Milliner as Chief Executive Partner of Mallesons on 1 January 2012, will become Global Managing Partner of the combined firm, based in Hong Kong.

Wang Junfeng said: “The combination of King & Wood and Mallesons creates a regional powerhouse for legal services with a shared vision to create a global law firm in Asia. Our combined network will allow us to better support clients as they seek to take advantage of the opportunities in Asian markets. In particular, this combination offers an unrivalled platform to help international businesses within Mainland China and Chinese companies and investors as they ‘go out’ to global markets.”

Robert Milliner, Chief Executive Partner of Mallesons, said: “The strategic rationale for this combination is compelling. Clients will benefit from the combination of Mallesons’ cross-border transaction skills as well as its management capabilities, together with King & Wood’s unrivalled expertise and deep relationships in China.”

Wang Ling, Managing Partner of King & Wood added: “Mallesons is one of the best managed law firms in the world, and we are excited to be joining with them and to further developing the professionalisation and internationalisation of our services to clients.”

Stuart Fuller said: “From day one, we will drive an integrated offer. With a common approach to clients, the markets in which we work and the services that we will offer, the combined firm will provide innovative business solutions and insight into the region’s key markets. We share common values, and our approach to who we recruit, and how we retain and nurture our talent is closely aligned. All in all, the combination of the two firms creates an outstanding opportunity for our clients, our people and our firms.”

(1) Asian Development Bank, August 2011
(2) IMF forecast, April 2011

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King & Wood Mallesons:
• The largest international law firm headquartered outside the US or UK
• Powered by 380 partners and 1,800 lawyers
• The only combination of law firms able to offer Australian, PRC, Hong Kong and English law under a common brand
• Across the three key markets in the Pacific – Australia, Mainland China and Hong Kong
• Committed to shared values, client care and people development
• 21 offices in key business markets around the globe including London, New York and Tokyo

Mainland China
• Clear market leader with 200 partners and more than 900 lawyers
• Practicing corporate M&A, finance, capital markets, international trade and investment, dispute resolution and intellectual property
• 11 offices: Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Chongqing, Tianjin, Qingdao, Ji’nan, Suzhou and Hangzhou

Hong Kong
• Fully integrated merger of the Hong Kong offices of Mallesons and King & Wood
• The 4th largest in Hong Kong
• 31 partners and over 130 lawyers
• Only firm in the Hong Kong market with in-depth PRC law capability

Australia
• Clear market leader with 155 partners and more than 600 lawyers
• Practicing corporate M&A, finance, capital markets, dispute resolution, real estate, construction and tax
• Five offices: Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane and Canberra