Emir Nurmansyah, a senior partner at Indonesia's ABNR Counsellors at Law and member of the firm’s management board, was recently named by ALB as one of the Asia Dealmakers of the Year for 2022. We find out more about his notable deal work in the past year, and also some of the recent trends and developments in Indonesia’s transactional space that clients should be mindful of.
Can you talk about your notable deal work in the past year?
We were kept occupied in the first part of the year by Garuda Indonesia’s massively complex USD 9.8-billion debt restructuring, which was approved by the Indonesian court in June. We are really very proud of our role in this as we represented creditors accounting for almost 50% of Garuda’s total debt, including bondholders, plane maker Airbus and many of the world’s leading aircraft and engine lessors.
We also received new mandates for a number of major infrastructure projects worth some USD 20 billion over the course of the year, and were busy on a number of defence-related deals, including acting for the lenders on a USD 933-million financing to the Indonesian government for the purchase of six Rafale fighter jets from France’s Dassault Aviation, only the first part of a USD 8.1-billion deal to bring in 42 aircraft over the next few years. We also acted for Italy-based naval shipbuilders Fincantieri on their frigate construction and refurbishment agreement with the Indonesian Ministry of Defense, which includes the construction of 6 FREMM class frigates and refurbishment of 2 Maestrale class frigates.
What are some recent trends/developments in Indonesia’s transactional space that clients should be mindful of?
The biggest trend is obviously the shift to online negotiating. Indonesian people were initially hesitant about doing things online – face-to-face has always been a big thing in Indonesia, as in other parts of Asia. Indeed, some clients were still insisting on face-to-face even at the height of the pandemic. However, the antipathy to online negotiation has now pretty much disappeared and most people are enthusiastic about the flex-ability and increased productivity afforded by going virtual.
What attributes do today’s clients look for in their deal lawyers?
I always find that the attributes that clients seem to particularly value are good negotiating skills and the ability to identify the appropriate negotiating strategy and style. In all cases, it is essential that you can identify the right style from the outset, particularly in Asia, where cooperation is generally seen as preferable to confrontation. So, this is an area where local Indonesian and regional law firms have an inbuilt cultural advantage.
To be a good deal lawyer, you also need to be a good listener, you need good influencing skills, and you need to know the nuts and bolts of the matter and the law inside out. Too many lawyers take on too much work, and so are sometimes unable to give individual matters the attention they deserve.
