28 ASIAN LEGAL BUSINESS – JULY 2024 WWW.LEGALBUSINESSONLINE.COM an MNC with multiple global offices that describes him as “A reliable legal adviser who combines deep legal expertise with a practical understanding of commercial challenges. Jonathan Lai 35, senior associate, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher Jonathan Lai, a senior associate at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, brings a decade of legal experience to the firm, particularly in international arbitration and commercial litigation. At 35, Lai has already established himself as a knowledgeable and capable lawyer in his field. Called to the bar in 2015, Lai joined Gibson Dunn two years ago and helped to establish the firm’s international arbitration practice for Asia, highlighting his initiative and understanding of complex legal issues. Lai’s experience covers a variety of industries, including natural resources and commodities, infrastructure and projects, and banking and financial services. He has also dealt with fraud and technology disputes, representing clients such as state governments, international banks, and tech companies in cross-border disputes involving complex legal matters. For instance, he acted for a Swiss trust in billion-dollar disputes with ultra-high-net-worth individuals involving the safeguarding of trust assets, as well as in a dispute involving two Southeast Asian state-linked entities arising from a S$400 million housing project, governed by Brunei law under SIAC rules. Prior to his current role, Lai spent eight years at Rajah & Tann where he honed his skills in litigation and arbitration. He then served as country counsel for Central Asia and content counsel for Southeast Asia’s emerging markets at Facebook (now Meta Platforms), managing legal matters across multiple countries in Central and Southeast Asia. Lai has represented a NYSE-listed semiconductor manufacturer in the unwinding of a $4 billion deal to acquire a Taiwanese company due to material adverse change, and has also represented a commodity trading company in the Singapore Court of Appeal and lower courts in a case involving the largest-ever seizure of endangered rosewood cargo worldwide, valued at over S$70 million. He also represented a Singapore-Cambodian joint venture in an international arbitration concerning a $300 million project on one of Cambodia’s tallest building complexes, applying Cambodian law, Singapore law, and SIAC rules. Mathea Lim 28, associate director, PKWA Law Practice Mathea Lim is an associate director at PKWA Law Practice, specializing in family law and estate law. Her career is marked by formidable achievements in complex matrimonial cases involving high-net-worth clients and international elements. Lim has successfully represented clients in matters ranging from asset division in divorces with cross-border complications to contested child custody cases. Her expertise extends to drafting and advising on marital agreements for substantial assets, demonstrating her ability to handle sensitive family law matters with discretion and skill. Some of Lim’s notable successes include representing a father in obtaining sole care and control of a child in a highly contested case and acting for a wife in ancillary matters proceedings with international elements, securing favorable outcomes for her clients. She has also shown prowess in maintenance enforcement cases and complex divorce proceedings with multi-jurisdictional issues. Lim’s work in high-stakes cases is particularly noteworthy. She represented a client in a settlement at SMC Private Mediation involving a matrimonial pool worth approximately $30 million, successfully navigating issues of asset dissiSINGAPORE RISING STARS 2024 LAW FIRM Grace Lu 39, CMS Holborn Asia May Ng 38, Drew & Napier Lucas Nicolet-Serra 36, K&L Gates Straits Law Shaun Oon 34, RPC Premier Law Widya Rianita 39, Morgan Lewis Stamford Charlene Sim 33, Kennedys Legal Solutions Allister Tan 39, Drew & Napier Jeremy Tan 37, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Sinyee Ong 34, Sharpe & Jagger Jeremy Pereira 36, Withers KhattarWong Michael Rackham 37, Latham & Watkins Hanspreet Singh Sachdev 31, Davinder Singh Chambers Martin See 35, Dentons Rodyk & Davidson
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