Paul Ho, former head of Greater China at Ince, has brought his team and joined Stephenson Harwood as a partner.
The eight-member team focus on shipping between Shanghai and Hong Kong. Ho’s practice covers both contentious and non-contentious matters in shipping, with a particular focus on shipbuilding, offshore engineering, international trade, ship sale and purchase transactions, as well as general commercial litigation.
He previously spent 21 years at Ince’s Shanghai office, where he specialised in the Chinese market. The arrival of Ho’s team comes when the firm’s Hong Kong and Shanghai offices are actively seeking more growth in key focus areas, Stephenson Harwood said.
Evangeline Quek, managing partner of Stephenson Harwood in greater China, added that the mainland has the world’s largest number of shipowners, shipyards and shipping finance leasing organisations.
The UK law firm Ince, which specialises in maritime law, filed for bankruptcy in April. Despite operating autonomously, the Hong Kong office has seen two other departures this month. Partner Stephen Chan has joined Charles Russell Speechlys and consultant Richard Oakley has joined the Hong Kong office of CMS.
