(As excerpted from our monthly Associate Newsletter - Asia Pacific)

Associate Newsletter – Asia Pacific is a monthly resource that reports current legal market news, trends, partner moves and active opportunities in the Asia Pacific legal markets.

Legal Market Summary

HONG KONG

Recruitment activity remained steady in Q1 with current demand in the litigation, funds, corporate and non-contentious restructuring sectors. Most firms seek candidates with at least one year of post-qualification experience and strong English and Chinese language skills. Interview processes, however, are moving slowly. Although we have continued to see some layoffs happen at firms, some corporate lawyers have reported that they have seen an uptick in the workflow. It is, however, hard to determine if the deal flow has indeed picked up as most of the corporate teams are smaller in size than last year.

Mainland CHINA

Recruitment is focused on the FCPA, litigation and FDI sectors in Beijing and Shanghai. Most of these opportunities require at least four years of post-qualification experience, and experience at an international law firm is preferred. Law firms are keen for Chinese nationals who have spent a few years in the US and currently looking to return to mainland China.

SINGAPORE

In Q1, the interim market saw an exciting variety of in-demand skillsets with internal investigations and healthcare regulatory topping the charts. Plus, where we would usually see a demand for general commercial skillsets around the 5 PQE mark, Q1 has proven to be a joy for senior counsel.

As we draw the curtains on Q1, the demand for permanent associate talent in Singapore has been robust rather than buoyant! There has been activity in the corporate & funds arena, where we have seen replacement hiring. And there continues to be a need in project development and international arbitration. All our clients remain open to considering the best candidates from around the globe, reflecting the increasingly pan-Asian center that Singapore is. 

SOUTH KOREA

Since the start of 2024, there has been a small increase in opportunities in the international firms in Seoul. However, most opportunities for foreign-qualified associates remain at the top Korean firms. M&A remains somewhat flat, but firms are hoping to see a rebound this year. Most of the open roles tend to be in corporate and disputes teams, but capital markets, project finance and (more recently) funds are also potential areas of interest if you are looking to move to Seoul.

JAPAN

After a prolonged downturn in foreign associate hiring over the last year and a half or so, due to decreased outbound M&A and general uncertainty, the market is finally bouncing back. There has been a palpable uptick in outbound M&A since late 2023, and accordingly, several international firms have opened new corporate roles since the start of the year. As always, firms are ideally seeking candidates with Japanese language skills and ties to Japan, but fluency is not a strict requirement for all positions. If you are a corporate associate, particularly at the more junior level, looking to move within or into the Tokyo market, now would be a good time to explore the market. On the bengoshi associate front, demand remains strong as always.

AUSTRALIA

Q1 has seen an uptick in openings across the Australian legal market, especially across transactional practice areas such as corporate/M&A and banking & finance. The increase in demand for lawyers is welcome news as it certainly is a sign that the local market is busier than this time last year. Continued demand for lawyers with ESG, cybersecurity and renewable energy projects has been noted.

As far as demand for UK-qualified candidates, demand is limited, but top-tier trained lawyers with a connection to Australia and minimum three years’ experience may be considered by some firms.

Partner Moves

Partner moves are obtained from both public sources and Major, Lindsey & Africa market intelligence. The list is not intended to represent Major, Lindsey & Africa as the consultancy involved in the moves, although some moves may have been brokered by Major, Lindsey & Africa.