Ever since London-headquartered Mishcon de Reya announced the world’s largest law firm IPO in September last year, the discussion about the merits of IPOs in the legal industry has once again resurfaced, even in Asia where most jurisdictions currently prohibit non-lawyers from owning law firms.

The Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) is offering a pilot programme to accelerate grants of patent applications in all technology fields, which would make it the application-to-grant process in the world.

Following a weak 2016, the Asia-Pacific IPO market is set to bounce back this year. ALB asks lawyers in key markets to predict trends they expect to see in that space.