LAWYERS WORLDWIDE AWARDS MAGAZINE
ANNUAL AWARDS
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Lawyers Worldwide Awards Magazine Annual Awards 2018 Lawyers Worldwide Awards is recognised all over the world for our comprehensive awards programs we run, taking votes from countries all over the world to recognise the most prestigious professionals in their specialised areas of practice. The 2018 Awards recognises a select number of leading professional firms around the world working both nationally and internationally in their field of expertise. Lawyers Worldwide Awards selects the best professional & financial institutions from around the world and showcases there work ethic and skills within their area of expertise. The Awards Magazine is aimed at not just the large corporations but the smaller companies of the advisory business sector. Lawyers Worldwide Awards is currently being read by Lawyers, Advisers, Consultants and corporate executives. We aim to showcase every company individually and to its full potential.
Lawyers Worldwide Awards Magazine Annual Awards 2018 Index Cannons Law Practice Aviation Law Firm of the Year – UK Deep & Far Intellectual Property Law Firm of the Year – Taiwan Dr. Lukas Fantur Company Law Firm of the Year – UK Esquível Advogados Government Contracts Law Firm of the Year – Portugal FLEMING MCGILLIVRAY & Co Compliance Consulting Firm of the Year – UK Gary Soo's Chambers Construction Disputes Law Firm of the Year – Hong Kong Handler Thayer LLP International Business Planning Law Firm of the Year – USA Highgate Hill Solicitors Probate Law Firm of the Year – UK Law Office of Ramni Taneja Constitutional Law Firm of the Year – India Linklaters LLP Corporate Law Firm of the Year – Belgium Minter Ellison Rudd Watts Christopher Young IP Law Firm of the Year – New Zealand
Oblin & Melichar Commercial Arbitration Advisory Firm of the Year – Austria PatentAxis Inc. Full Service Patent Advisory Firm of the Year – Canada Regulatory Law Chambers Boutique Law Firm of the Year – Canada Residency Citizenship Program Ltd Immigration Law Firm of the Year – Hungary Sadis & Goldeberg Overall Law Firm of the Year – USA Squire Patton Boggs Moscow LLC International Disoute Resolution Law Firm of the Year – Russia Sturgeon Ventures LLP Start Up Compliance Consulting Firm of the Year - UK
Cannons Law Practice Aviation Law Firm of the Year – UK My name is Frank Cannon, a qualified lawyer in Scotland. My principal area of expertise is in dispute resolution and court litigation. I have also a special interest in Aviation Law, having been a qualified pilot most of my adult life. I have been a qualified lawyer as well as a qualified pilot for more than 50 years. At the age of 78 years I still supervise all cases, and the clients still have direct access to me. No answering services, no “leave messages” just individual direct access on mobile phone at all times. Individual lawyers are deployed to their specialisms and strengths. Our firm traces its origins right back to 1969 when I started the firm. The firm has always been a problem solver, particularly in difficult situations. The clients I started with are all the same age as I am and now their children instruct my daughter who runs the firm with me. We have 6 lawyers and cover all areas of general practice. Our main selling point is economy of cost. Our lawyers have no targets for “billable hours” and the only motivational force in our office is to ensure that justice wins at the most economical cost to the client. We act typically for family businesses and individuals. We love helping people who need justice. As we do not have an eye for maximum profit, we are, and were, able to weather economic downturns. A lot of the cases we do in court are taken on a “no-win-nofee” basis which is a “win-win” for the clients. By being ultra-flexible, we weather all storms, and we avoid high overheads. Otherwise all businesses have to pass their overheads on to their clients. Living now in an over-regulated society, much effort is expended on the regulation itself and the transparency of the regulation. The paper-trail of over-regulation is the monster in the room. This applies, unfortunately, now to all parts of society, and it is probably here to stay. Unfortunately too, parliamentarians think that if they regulate, the problem goes away.
Our long-term mantra is “OUR WORK IS LAW”. We have used this motto for 50 years. This year we also boast “50 YEARS OF LEGAL EXCELLENCE”
Contact Details: CANNONS LAW PRACTICE Aviation Lawyers 11 Somerset Place GLASGOW G3 7JT Tel 0044 141 204 5115 Fax 0044 141 22 62 221 Web www.cannonslaw.com
Intellectual Property Law Firm of the Year – Taiwan Deep & Far attorneys-at-law was founded in 1992 and is dealing with all phases of laws with a focus on the practice in separate or in combination of all aspects of intellectual property rights (IPRs) including patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, unfair competition, and/or licensing, counselling, litigation and/or transaction thereof. Yu-Li Tsai: Partner & Patent Attorney Practice area/industry focus: Intellectual Property, Unfair Competition, Litigation Career highlights: Mr Tsai is a patent attorney who holds a degree from the Department of Electrical Engineering and Master’s degree from the Graduate Institute of Communication Engineering, both awarded from the National Taiwan University. His practice covers patents, trademarks, copyright, trade secrets, unfair competition, licensing and litigation. Mr Tsai also studied and gained a Master’s degree from the Law School, University of New Hampshire, also known as Franklin Pierce Centre for Intellectual Property. Upon graduation, he worked for InterDigital, Inc. in Delaware for a short period and later studied and passed the US Patent Registration Examination. The patent attorneys and patent engineers in Deep & Far normally hold outstanding and advanced degrees and are generally graduated from the top five universities in this country. Our prominent staffs are dedicated to provide the best quality service in IPRs in this country. As a proof, about one half of top 100 incorporations in this country have experiences of seeking patented their techniques, but more than one fifth of the top 100 incorporations has ever used services of this firm. Furthermore, Hi-Tech companies in the science-based industrial park located at Hsin Chu had ever played the most important role in booming the economy of this country. About one half of them has experiences in seeking patented their techniques, and out of more than 60% of the patent-experienced companies in that park have ever entrusted their IPR works to this firm. Certainly, we must also represent international giants, e.g. InterDigital, MPS, Schott Glas, Toyo Ink, Motorola, Armani… It is our philosophy to provide competent legal services that other firm cannot comparably provide. The necessitated ensuing problem is how we can so provide? Deep & Far so achieve by selecting, edifying and nurturing peoples who have the following personalities: learned in expertise, morally earnest and sincerely behaved in mind and strictly disciplined between give and take. It is wellbelieved that such properties are key factors for peoples to properly and competently behave themselves. Deep & Far (D&F) is willing to take challenges to prove that it is the best IP firm, and to verify its supreme competence by e.g.: 1) Sending to D&F a pending or granted patent for its comments about how it can improve the claims;
2) Sending to D&F a pending patent specification without the claims for it to draft the claims for comparison with the original claims; or 3) Sending to D&F and the firm the client is currently using at the same time an initial disclosure so that the client can compare and find out where better claims are. Deep & Far assures the clients that no competitors can escape from the patent rights D&F safeguards for the clients at reasonable service fees. Because the tough economic downturn we are encountering in Taiwan, we are also encountering severe price competition. This situation also leads to that there are too many poor quality patents being granted because most enterprises do not have proper knowledge of the importance of patents. For example, they might only want to spend lower cost to file a patent application without considering the quality, or could not be alerted timely that narrow claims can protect their products of the current version only although there are reduced fees in responding to office actions. Therefore, the patent agents or firms of the enterprises sometimes cannot help but sacrificing the quality to keep profits under the limited budgets of the clients. Under such social environment, it is very hard to anticipate that the clients have strong patents, or the patent firms or attorneys can nurture the ability of drafting wonderful scope of the claims. Accordingly, it will not be surprised to find that there are some patent firms which cannot provide competent services but offer extreme low price to attract clients only caring about the price of filing a patent. This does also explain that there are poor quality patents being granted We persist in providing quality service rather than participating into the price war because we believe the Client will finally find the quality is the most important thing for intellectual property. If you sacrifice the quality and surrender to the price, you actually get negative return because .a poor quality IP is valueless. We did suffer a little last year in view of the reduced local generated works, but we see the situation began to change this year. This firm is used to focusing on IPR, and takes deliberate steps to practice in all fields of law. In recent year, we make progress in either general civil law, business law or criminal law fields. Contact Details 13th Fl., 27 Sec. 3, Chung San N. Rd., Taipei 104, Taiwan, R.O.C. ': 886-2-25856688 7: 886-2-25989900/25978989 Email: email@deepnfar.com.tw www.deepnfar.com.tw
Compliance Consulting Firm of the Year – UK Background Established in 2004, FMConsult is a specialist compliance, collective investment schemes, and operational and investment risk management consultancy that services a whole host of global financial services firms. We have made it our mission to provide solutions to our clients so that they can continually meet regulatory requirements. Headquartered in London, FMConsult has offices in Ireland and USA, with an associate in Italy. Our highly experienced team have first-hand experience in asset management, wealth management, financial regulations and investment risk which provides us with the all-round expertise you would require from a consultancy. To learn more about our senior team, please refer to www.fmconsult.co.uk
FMConsult is an independent regulatory, product development and operational risk consultancy committed to assisting clients in aligning financial services processes with regulatory requirements. We provide risk and compliance solutions that enable senior management of financial services firms to demonstrate that they and their firm are currently, and will continue to be, aligned with regulatory requirements. We major on the wholesale firms and funds industry but also have the capacity and experience to assist retail and market infrastructure companies. Examples of the types of work performed for our clients to date include • Corporate Authorisation • Compliance Outsourcing and Interim Resources • Due diligence & expert witness assignments • Fund establishment & authorisation • Consumer Credit • Compliance Monitoring and in-depth investigations Dallas J McGillivray Group Managing Director Experienced international regulatory and business manager. Previous Global Head of Compliance and Operational Risk at a major asset management company for all business outside of the Americas with circa 30 years experience in UK and global regulatory issues, covering both retail and institutional. Over 8 years with Coopers & Lybrand (now PWC) in four different countries covering audit, accounting services, insolvency and regulation. Specialist in providing corporate governance and operational risk services to asset management and investment companies. Contact: dmcgillivray@fmconsult.co.uk
Andrew J Hicks Group Director More than 10 years experience as a manager for a major international asset management company, covering compliance monitoring/advisory, internal audit and operational risk roles. This role primarily covered the UK market place but also extended to US, Irish, Luxembourg, German, French and Italian regulated businesses covering both retail and institutional clients. Also, a further 8 years as a financial and regulatory auditor for a medium size audit and accountancy firm based in London. Specialist in providing accountancy, audit, compliance monitoring, regulatory, advice and operational risk services to asset management and investment companies. Contact: ahicks@fmconsult.co.uk Ross Revell Director Ross is an experienced regulatory professional who has held CF10 and CF11 roles at both a leading Insurer and separately at an IFA Network, and has also worked at two of the Big Four Consultancy firms. He has previously worked at the FSA and started his career in financial services in the Banking sector 28 years ago. His experience covers Banking, Mortgages, Life & Pensions, General Insurance, Wealth Management, Private Banking and Stock Broking. Contact: rrevell@fmconsult.co.uk Colette Panebianco Director FMConsult USA Colette is an experienced financial services executive. With circa 20 years of experience in the financial services industry. Colette has a detailed knowledge of the US asset management industry from working with high-level investment advisers, hedge funds, broker-dealers and family offices both domestic and offshore. Colette specialises in designing the compliance infrastructure for startup and established registered and unregistered US and non-US funds, investment advisors and private equity firms. Colette has proven to bring personalised and assured quality services tailored to meet a firm’s compliance needs. Colette is a Certified Investment Advisory Compliance Specialist. Contact: cpanebianco@fmconsult.us John Clare General Manager – FMConsult Ireland John is an experienced financial services executive and has a detailed knowledge of the Irish Financial Services Industry with over 22 years of proven business experience. John has been registered with the Central bank since 1996 and is a member of the Association of Compliance Officers Ireland. Contact: jclare@fmconsult.co.uk
Highgate Hill Solicitors Probate Law Firm of the Year - UK
My name is Dr Katherine Alexander Theodotou, I am a Senior Cypriot Advocate (Barrister) and an English Solicitor. I have been practicing for a long time now as my father was also a distinguished criminal Barrister. I am an experienced Mediator/Arbitrator, Human Rights, Civil Liberties, Legal opportunities, regulatory, Civil Litigation, Bilateral Litigation, criminal Law and commercial law. I have been experienced in all these fields and as far as Litigation is concerned, I have been distinguished in Group Litigation and most of my successes are reported in LawTel and WestLaw. My expertise in probate matters is extensive. I attach a copy of a leaflet issued by the local hospital advising its patients to consult our firm My firm has been established by myself and since its establishment it deals with the areas of law that I practice myself above. We are genuine, we look upon the needs of human beings and we ignore any consideration for profit. We are not taking financial advantage of our clients. We are involved with all the communities in our area (multi communities in Islington) and we provide free legal advice and assistance every Saturday for people who wish to visit us. People understand that we respect them, and they bring their cases to us. The management of the firm are very expert in the areas above and they are very competent, hardworking and they are continuously involved in the community, in charities and other popular community affairs. We cannot give details about our clients as we are prevented by the GDPR rules, but we have dealt with some very well-known people in the world of business and politics. As regards the projects, we undertook huge group litigation actions which we managed to resolve by arbitrations/mediation, benefiting over 700 clients. We are also undertaking a new program in immigration and human rights. Definitely, Brexit has resulted in destabilising a large number of legal firms and it will prevent work, undertaken by English lawyers on the continent. The government is not willing to listen to other people and it appears that the Brexit would become a chaos and many firms including legal firms, will go under. My experience helped me to overcome the complexities and the challenges, as over the years I have managed to work competently despite all the difficulties. I also discuss matters with my colleagues as exchanging ideas is very useful amongst professional people.
We have never abandoned a challenge and we ask people who may be in difficulties to visit us and discuss matters with us. No costs involved in the consultation. I am also campaigning for a less authoritarian Regulatory Body, elected from among the solicitors and a fair and transparent system in dealing with complaints. Black and ethnic minorities and small firms have become the victims of the Solicitors Regulation Authority and this has resulted in the lack of personal, cheaper and efficient legal services to the minority community. As regards the future, the directions of my firm are very clear. We are a Bilateral firm, we can operate in Cyprus as well as here. Further, we are expecting to be more involved in Human Rights, particularly in the Middle East and also Cyprus. In Cyprus we have established a movement called "ONE CYPRUS", and the campaign is mainly to unite Cyprus as one state under one Central Government, to abolish checkpoints and borderlines. We wish to see all the armies to be withdrawn from Cyprus and all people to live peacefully with equality and the right to protect themselves against any Authoritarian Regime. We feel that it is a historical mission and if we can achieve it as lawyers, that would be the crown of our success. As regards the UK, the legal market on 2018-2019, is to be uncertain and is shrinking because of the Brexit's unknown situation. As regards Cyprus, we would be expanding on account of the petrol and gas discoveries in the island and the continuous installation of foreign companies on the island. Certainly, progress would be better if Cyprus is united, which we hope to achieve. In England and Wales the firms and especially the black and ethnic minority firms will benefit from a more democratic and transparent regulator.
Dr
Contact Details: Katherine Alexander Highgate Hill Solicitors 98 Dresden Road London N19 3BQ
Theodotou
0207 263 6445 highgatehillsolicitors.eu.cy@cytauk.net
Law Office of Ramni Taneja Constitutional Law Firm of the Year – India Born on 4th December 1955 in New Delhi, Ramni Taneja is a citizen of India, having been educated in Mumbai, India, and London, England. She enrolled as an Advocate on 17th October 1980, on the Roll of the Bar Council of Maharashtra, [Mumbai], India; subsequently transferred to the Bar Council of Delhi, India, on 20th October 1997. On 3rd March 1997, she was admitted as a Solicitor of the Supreme Court of England and Wales, [now known as the Senior Courts of England and Wales]. In 1999, she was appointed as a Notary by the Government of India, New Delhi, India. Since 1997, Ramni Taneja practises in New Delhi, India, as an Advocate in the Supreme Court of India and the High Court of Delhi, apart from various other tribunals and courts in Delhi and in India. From 1980 till 1982 she practised as an Advocate with Little & Co., Advocates and Solicitors, Mumbai, India; she headed the office of Little & Co., Advocates, in New Delhi, India, from 2002 till 2006. From 1983 till 1997, Ramni Taneja was licensed and practised as a Legal Consultant with A.R. Hilal & Associates, Advocates and Legal Consultants, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Her law firm, Law Office of Ramni Taneja, began in New Delhi, India in August 2006. Ramni Taneja completed her school education in the United Kingdom [UK] at Grey Coat Hospital, Westminster, London, England, UK, as a consequence of which she obtained the University of London, General Certificate of Education, Ordinary Levels and Advanced Levels, between 1972-1974. She obtained her BA Honours [First Class Honours] Degree in English Literature [Major] French Literature [Subsidiary] in 1977 from Elphinstone College, University of Bombay, India. She obtained her LLB Degree [First Class] in 1980 from Government Law College, University of Bombay, India. She was awarded the Diplôme Supérieur d’Etudes Françaises Modernes in 1975 by l’Alliance Française, Paris, France, [Mention Tres Honourable: i.e. Distinction] and was ranked first in the examination in 1975 in India and Asia. Ramni Taneja is the author of Foreign Direct Investment and Globalisation, published by Eastern Book Company, 2014. She has written legal articles that have been published in international and Indian legal journals on various legal issues Ramni Taneja’s principal areas of legal practice covering litigation and transactional legal work are: all areas of commercial law, civil law, corporate law, constitutional law and criminal law. Other areas of legal practice covering litigation and transactional law inter alia are:
Arbitration [international and domestic], air law, banking law, consumer protection law, due diligence, direct and indirect taxation and international taxation, extradition law, laws relating to asylum, family law, foreign direct investment, including foreign exchange law, insurance law, initial public offerings, intellectual property law, infrastructure law, employment law, laws governing the media, mergers and acquisitions, immigration and nationality law, maritime law, succession law, private international law, public international law and property law. Contact Details: RAMNI TANEJA, Advocate and Notary LAW OFFICE OF RAMNI TANEJA Address: A 34 DEFENCE COLONY NEW DELHI 110024, INDIA Telephones: +91 11 4155 2051; +91 11 4155 2052 Fax: +91 11 4155 2053 email id: ramni@ramnitaneja.com http://www.ramnitaneja.com/
Insurance Litigation Law Firm of the Year – USA McKennon Law Group PC represents a full range of individuals, professionals, and businesses in all types of insurance coverage, including bad faith litigation, disability insurance, life insurance, health insurance, ERISA/employee benefits, long-term care insurance, property & casualty insurance, professional liability insurance, insurance agent & broker liability, unfair competition and business litigation matters. We primarily specialize in disability insurance; life insurance and ERISA litigation matters and we have been doing so for over 30 years. Our law firm is committed to the highest level of client service while maintaining the highest standards of legal excellence and professional ethics. Our litigation practice is thoughtful, experienced, and integrated with each client’s needs, budgets, and goals. We pride ourselves on our impeccable reputation for work product and professional and client relationships along with our intelligent, innovative and practical approach to the practice of law. McKennon Law Group’s attorneys have attended the top law schools in the country and bring a strong sense of pride and quality work ethic to everything they do. McKennon Law Group’s attorneys have big firm experience because they previously practiced at some of California’s finest law firms. Therefore, they combine a rare mix of big firm expertise and legal quality with small firm attention to your case. We are also able to provide our clients with a level of trial experience rarely found in firms of our size. McKennon Law Group PC and its attorneys have also received many prestigious awards and recognitions. Our law firm specializes in arbitrations, trials and appeals on all lines of ERISA/Employee, insurance—life, health, disability, property/casualty, commercial general liability, professional liability, officers and directors liability, employment practices liability, and homeowners and business owners property and liability— successfully resolving both coverage and bad faith claims on behalf of our clients. We represent our clients’ interests in all state and federal courts in California and in federal courts nationwide. We have been involved with recovering multi-million dollar judgments, arbitration awards, and settlements for our clients. Our attorneys have extensive experience representing insurance companies and policyholders in life, health, disability and ERISA litigation, and in general liability, environmental, marine, and property/casualty litigation. We have been involved with recovering several multi-million dollar judgments, arbitration awards, and settlements for our clients. Although we primarily litigate in California, we take cases nationally and we have extensive experience litigating cases in other states, especially in the western United States, including Hawaii, Arizona and Nevada. Most of our consumer litigation cases, and many of our business litigation cases, are taken on a contingency fee basis, which means you pay nothing and we recover nothing unless you win your case by way of settlement or verdict. We welcome referrals from the legal community, and honour referral fee commitments in keeping with the rules of professional conduct. Robert J. McKennon is a founding shareholder of McKennon Law Group PC. He represents individuals and small-to-large corporations in sophisticated litigation matters in state and federal court. He has recovered millions of dollars for our clients from such insurance companies as: Unum, Prudential, Lincoln National, Standard Life, Sun Life, Met Life, Hartford Life, Mass Mutual, Paul Revere, Provident, Trustmark and Aetna for all types of insurance claims, including:
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Disability Insurance
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Life Insurance
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ERISA
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Health Insurance
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Long-Term Care
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Property & Casualty
Mr. McKennon is admitted to all federal and state courts in California, and regularly handles litigation matters in federal courts in the Western United States. He is a nationally recognized expert in insurance litigation matters and has tried, litigated, and resolved hundreds of insurance litigation matters, including ERISA/employee benefit, life, health and long-term disability and short-term disability insurance, insurance coverage, insurance bad faith, unfair trade practices, and insurance agent/broker litigation. Mr. McKennon has also handled numerous business litigation cases in the areas of general business and contract disputes and unfair competition. Mr. McKennon frequently serves as a guest speaker at local and national conferences concerning life, health, long-term disability, short-term disability and ERISA issues, and has chaired numerous national conferences on these topics. Mr. McKennon formerly represented numerous insurance companies in first-party insurance lawsuits involving life, health and short-term and long-term disability insurance disputes, insurance bad faith and punitive damages for over twenty-four years. He now represents insureds, claimants, businesses and other consumers who believe that their insurance companies have improperly denied their claims for insurance benefits. Mr. McKennon was the founder and editor of the Life, Health & Disability Insurance Law Blog at lifehealthdisabilityinsurancelaw.com while he was a partner at Barger & Wolen LLP. He is currently the editor of the California Insurance Litigation Blog at californiainsurancelitigation.com. He is also a regular contributing author of insurance articles in the Los Angeles Daily Journal, the most read and respected legal journal in California. The nationally respected Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory and the nationwide Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers has awarded Mr. McKennon their highest possible rating, “AV.” This assessment is based on confidential recommendations received exclusively from lawyers and judges. The rating highlights an attorney’s competence, ethical conduct, professional ability, diligence and overall performance. Mr. McKennon has been also awarded AVVO’s rating of “Superb,” 10.0 out of a possible 10.0, which also highlights an attorney’s competence, ethical conduct, professional ability, diligence and overall performance. Mr. McKennon has also been recognized as a 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016 Southern California “Super Lawyer,” which recognizes him as one of California’s top attorneys in ERISA and insurance coverage matters. Mr. McKennon was recently profiled in Forbes, American Lawyer, Coast magazine, Los Angeles Times, Corporate Counsel, and National Law Journal as a top Southern California insurance and business litigation attorney. Mr. McKennon was named as one of Orange County Register Metro’s Top Southern California Attorneys for 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016. Mr. McKennon was also named as a Corporate Livewire’s Global Awards for several years as Newport Beach, Orange County, California “Insurance & Reinsurance” Lawyer of the Year. The American Society of Legal Advocates has recognized him as one of the top 100 Insurance lawyers in the State of California for several years. Aggressive Advocacy Unlike many firms that are interested in doing as little work as possible because they know they will settle all cases, we aggressively litigate our cases, and we are not afraid to take our cases to trial. Our attorneys have extensive trial experience, and our strong reputation for excellence in trial advocacy will inure to your benefit when settlement discussions occur. This will maximize your settlement potential.
Integrity
We place a very high value on integrity and fidelity to our clients’ interests. You will get an honest assessment of your case during all phases of the pre-litigation and litigation process. You can expect a full and honest accounting of expenses relating to your case, including outlays for court costs, preparation of exhibits, hiring expert witnesses, obtaining medical records and depositions. Excellence Our attorneys are graduates of the top law schools in the country and previously have practiced law at large firms where we honed our litigation skills. We take pride in the quality of law that we practice. We engage in the necessary investigation and preparation of your case to ensure we achieve the best possible results for our clients. This preparation will include thorough investigation of facts and documentation, appropriate legal research, development of appropriate courtroom exhibits, hiring of experts, engaging in necessary discovery and more. Trust We pride ourselves on the relationships we have built with our clients. Our practice has been built on the confidence our clients have placed in us. When we commit ourselves to your case, you can count on the fact that you will receive the best representation available. We maintain regular and appropriate communication with you throughout your case and treat you as a vital and necessary team member as we litigate your case. As a result, we are proud of the referrals we receive from our clients, other attorneys and professionals. Personal Attention Rather than create a high-volume law practice, we limit the cases we accept to provide you with the personal attention you need and deserve. You will not be passed off to case managers or intake personnel, a common practice in many firms. We are committed to the highest level of client service and we are committed to ensuring you are satisfied with our level of service to you and the results we receive on your behalf. As your case progresses, you will be apprised of developments and important events as they occur Experience There are few firms anywhere that have more experience in handling insurance coverage, ERISA and insurance bad faith litigation than our firm, and we bring that experience to bear in every case we litigate. For nearly 30 years, we have successfully arbitrated and litigated insurance, business and employment litigation cases. Mr. McKennon is an accomplished trial attorney and is a nationally recognized expert in disability insurance, life insurance and ERISA/employee benefits litigation. He has chaired, and been a frequent speaker at, numerous local and national conferences on the subjects of disability insurance, insurance coverage, and life insurance and ERISA/employee benefits litigation. He has also authored numerous articles and book chapters on the subjects of disability insurance, insurance coverage, and life insurance and ERISA/employee benefits litigation. Mr. McKennon has received the highest possible rating for legal ethics and legal abilities. He is AV® Peer Review Rated and has received the highest AVVO rating of “Superb.” Mr. McKennon was recognized as a 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 Southern California Super Lawyer, a recognition given to fewer than 5% of attorneys in the country. As indicated in his attorney profile section of this website, Mr. McKennon has been recently profiled in several magazines and other articles, and has received several recognitions and awards as a top California insurance coverage, ERISA and business litigation attorney. Contact Details: Robert J McKennon Address: 20321 SW Birch St., Suite 200, Newport Beach, California 92660 Tel. (949) 387-9595 Fax: (949) 385-5165 Email: rm@mckennonlawgroup.com Web: www.mckennonlawgroup.com Blog: www.californiainsurancelitigation.com
Full Service Patent Advisory Firm of the Year – Canada A founding principle of PatentAxis Inc. is to treat every client as a premium client, with an emphasis on client communications and client satisfaction. Regardless of the size of the client a concerted effort is made to provide clear and practical advice at each decision point, and whenever relevant set out options with benefits and risks of each option. PatentAxis Inc. is a Canadian patent services firm located in Toronto, specializing in patent filing and prosecution. For local clients, patent portfolios and international filing strategies are managed and executed. International clients are represented for Canadian patent prosecution to achieve grant of a Canadian patent. Jai Chatterjee is a Director of PatentAxis Inc., and has over a decade of experience helping clients obtain patent protection for various technologies. His scientific background is in the health sciences having received a PhD in Biochemistry from McGill University. Early in his career his patent practice related to medical and biotechnology fields as a natural progression from his doctoral research, but over the years he has helped a great variety of clients having diverse technologies to the point that now discussions on most technologies are welcome. PatentAxis Inc. provides patent services that include search, analysis, filing and prosecution. A major emphasis is placed on prompt communication with clients and providing clients with clear and practical advice to allow clients to make informed and educated decisions. The firm endeavours to provide clients with a competitive advantage in relation to patents. Typically, this means successfully obtaining a patent for a client. But, sometimes providing a patent analysis or strategy tailored to a client’s commercialization goals can be significant. The firm’s clients range from local small and medium sized businesses to larger entities to foreign firms. Regardless of the size of the client, PatentAxis Inc. is inspired by the innovative activity and is committed to providing services in a clear and practical manner to secure a competitive advantage in patents. The objective is to make the patent process transparent so that clients can focus time and energy on effecting change with their innovations. Accessibility and prompt and clear responses to clients wishing to discuss strategy or query a patent practice is a cornerstone of PatentAxis Inc.’s service model. Client initiated discussion and questions are encouraged by a policy of not charging for short telephone calls. Every attempt is made to have calls directed to and answered by a relevant patent professional during business hours. Open communication channels provide clients with opportunities to make informed decisions when considering multiple parallel options that can arise during filing and prosecution and ultimately obtain patents that are better correlated with client goals.
PatentAxis Inc. is delighted to be named among the Annual Awards 2018 winners and enthusiastically accepts the opportunity to commemorate this recognition through Lawyers Worldwide Awards Magazine. The reputational value of this accolade cannot be overstated, and the firm is excited to leverage this recognition in its continuing efforts to recruit new clients and add new contacts to its global network of colleagues and associates. CONTACT DETAILS Company: PatentAxis Inc. Name: Jai Chatterjee Email: mail@patentaxis.com Web Address: www.patentaxis.com Address: 67 Yonge Street, Suite 602, Toronto, Ontario, M5E 1J8, Canada Telephone: +1-416-556-2999
Technology Law Firm of the Year – USA Firm Profile Scott & Scott, LLP is a boutique intellectual property and technology law firm with an emphasis on software licensing and disputes, technology transactions, and software copyright litigation. The firm is committed to monitoring the developing technology and emerging law in order to provide highly focused representation to clients that range from mature small businesses to publicly traded multi-national corporations. Robert J. Scott Managing Partner 214.999.2902 rjscott@scottandscottllp.com
Robert J. Scott, Managing Partner, represents mid-market and large enterprise companies in software license transactions and disputes with major software publishers such as Adobe, IBM, Microsoft, Oracle, and SAP. He has defended over 225 software audit matters initiated by software piracy trade groups such as the BSA and SIIA. He is counsel to some of the world's largest corporations on information technology matters including intellectual property licensing, risk management, data privacy, and outsourcing. He is regularly called upon by his peers and the media to share his expertise. His work has been published in Northwestern Journal of Technology & Intellectual Property, Westlaw Journal Intellectual Property, The Licensing Journal, and Texas Lawyer among others.
Julie Machal-Fulks Partner 214.999.2905 jfulks@scottandscottllp.com Julie Machal-Fulks, Partner, leads a team of attorneys in representing and defending clients in legal matters relating to information technology. Her practice focuses on complex litigation ranging from privacy and network security, data breach notification and crisis management, intellectual property disputes, service provider negligence claims, and content-based injuries such as copyright and trademark infringement in software, the Internet, and all forms of tangible media. Her focused practice has made Julie a trusted resource in her field. She is often invited to submit papers and present on topics including data breach notification, security incident response, software licensing and defense against regulatory and consumer class actions. Texas Lawyer, The Licensing Journal, Texas Wesleyan Law Institute, American Bar Association, and the IT Compliance Institute are a few of the publications that have published Julie’s work.
Practice Areas • • • •
Intellectual Property IT Transactions Software Audits Software Licensing & Disputes
Immigration Law Firm of the Year – USA FGI was founded as Fakhoury Law Group in 1997 exclusively serving U.S. businesses’ immigration needs. In 2006, FGI was formed as a separate entity to offer immigration services to a global clientele. The two entities are currently in the process of merging under the FGI namesake with global operations taking the name of Fakhoury Global Professional Services, Inc. Starting with Mumbai, India, FGI rapidly opened a series of branch offices in California, New York, and Florida. We achieved ISO certificated in 2005 and were ranked as an AV Preeminent law firm by Martindale Hubbell in 2012. As we have grown, FGI has acquired a global staff of over 100 attorneys, paralegals and specialized staff with expertise in all major U.S. visa classifications (H-1Bs, L-1s, EBs, O, TN, etc.) as well as those from foreign countries due to our extensive network Alliance Partner Network. FGI has grown to become Michigan’s largest independently-owned immigration law firm. Fakhoury Global Immigration (FGI) specializes in U.S. and global business-based immigration. Our client list comprises some of the world's most innovative brands in the automotive, engineering, healthcare, and IT industries. FGI is a leading service provider to high volume visa filers and have served clients in over 100 countries. What makes FGI unique is our three-part service approach. First, we have a single point-of-contact case management system so that clients always know who is in charge of these cases. Second, we feature Six Sigma-certified streamlined and technology-driven petition processing that maximizes efficiency, shortens time-tofiling, and has enabled us to achieve 98-99% success rates in many visa categories. Finally, we offer a competitive flat fee structure that enables our clients to plan and budget their immigration-related activities effectively and confidently. A prospective client asked if we could develop a central case management repository into which four of their globally based immigration law consuls could input and update case information. We modified our existing case management system to capture seamlessly and to report each case that the external immigration providers processed. Currently, our firm’s managing director is Rami D. Fakhoury, who is also founder of the firm. Carmen Fakhoury is President of FGI’s global arm, Fakhoury Global Professional Services, Inc. The firm’s attorneys control client teams that manage specific client accounts and serve as single-point-of-contacts for their assigned clients. Their teams generally consist of a paralegal and a support staff member (such as a technical writer). Our attorneys specialize in multiple visa categories. Our firm and attorneys have received multiple awards such as our inclusion in U.S. News and World Report’s Best Law Firms for 2016 and 2017, Corporate NTL’s Global Immigration Law Firm of the Year, and Who’s Who Legal Corporate Immigration for 2016 and 2017, among others. These awards testify to our
thought leadership, high ethical standards, and mastery of the domain of immigration law. Now more than ever, immigration has emerged as a national concern and firms like FGI have an important role to play both for our clients and for the broader public. With the increasingly likelihood of statutory and regulatory changes in the near future, we think it vital to help our clients navigate this changing terrain as smoothly and effectively as possible. To that end, we recently launched our revamped and interactive website: www.fakhouryglobal.com. It features multiple resources including Immigration Alerts which provide real-time updates of immigration law changes in over 140 countries, Global Webinars which provide indepth analysis on immigration trends, and a Global Immigration Resource Map that links to digital process maps that provide updated procedures for securing work permits and visas worldwide. More broadly, we believe we have an educative role to play as thought leaders to the larger public. FGI participates in many initiatives such as Global Detroit and the Forum for Expatriate Management that inform the public on the positive impact that immigration has on the U.S. economy. For more information about our services, please visit www.fakhouryglobal.com or contact us at info@fakhouryglobal.com. Contact Details:
Product Liability Law Firm of the Year – Asia A leader in global litigation management, Carroll Burdick has over 60 lawyers on three continents, speaking more than 16 languages including German, English, Mandarin Chinese, French, Latvian, Romanian, Russian and Spanish, with over 20 percent of the firm’s lawyers having legal educations in two or more countries. This unparalleled experience provides the cultural insights necessary for effectively working with international clients to meet their business goals. Founded in 1948 by three highly respected San Francisco lawyers—Jack Dale Burdick, Francis Carroll and Richard McDonough—Carroll, Burdick & McDonough LLP has enjoyed a stellar reputation for providing legal excellence, creativity, intellectual aggressiveness, and client confidence for over 65 years. Practice Areas: Appellate
Media & Entertainment Law
Class Action
Mergers & Acquisitions
Commercial & Business Litigation
Patent and Intellectual Property Litigation
Construction Litigation Consumer Litigation Defence
Pharmaceutical & Medical Device Litigation
Corporate, Finance & Commercial Law
Privacy and Data Security
Emerging Companies & Venture Capital
Products Liability Real Estate
Employment Litigation
Renewable Energy
Financial Institution Practice
Technology
Food and Beverage Litigation German Practice Insurance Coverage Litigation Intellectual Property International Business Mass Tort Litigation
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David Goh, managing partner at its Asia practice, has significant experience in large, complex and international commercial disputes, with particular emphasis on corporate issues and product liability matters. He also advises clients on regulatory matters, compliance, and anti-bribery/corruption cases, including the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and the UK Bribery Act. His experience includes leading or coordinating investigations on behalf of both corporations and regulators, as well as advising or acting in the defence of any prosecutions. In his more recent roles in senior management at various multinational corporations, Mr Goh developed significant experience in handling corporate and commercial matters, in particular, M&A transactions across the Asia Pacific region. He has developed proven methodologies in assisting companies to coordinate and manage their in-house and external legal service and continues to be consulted on such matters.
“Some cases carry more strategic weight than others. When your markets are threatened, when your business model is under pressure, when your operations are attracting lawsuits, then legal matters are no longer just about favourable results—it’s about your company’s core mission. At Carroll Burdick, we’re known for helping companies with matters of strategic value.”
Contact Details David Goh CARROLL, BURDICK & McDONOUGH LLP Suite 5904, 59/F Central Plaza 18 Harbour Road Wan Chai Hong Kong SAR Tel: +852.2511.1040
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Corporate & Financial Services Law Firm of the Year – Belgium Willkie is an elite international law firm of approximately 650 lawyers located in nine offices in six countries. For more than 125 years, we have represented companies across a wide spectrum of businesses and industries, most notably financial services. The firm is comprised of attorneys who are recognized as some of the world’s foremost practitioners in their respective areas. Xavier Dieux is a partner in the Corporate and Finance Department and in the Litigation Department. His practice areas encompass Public Offerings (including TOB), Capital Market Operations and Regulation, Mergers & Acquisitions, Corporate Governance and Financial Regulation, as well as Litigation in all areas of Financial, Corporate, Commercial and Contract Law. As to his Litigation practice, Xavier is also frequently appointed as arbitrator with respect to international or domestic proceedings. He practices in French and in English. Practice Areas: Corporate & Financial Services Finance Capital Markets Mergers & Acquisitions Private Equity/Venture Capital Structured Finance & Derivatives Business Reorganization & Restructuring Litigation Compliance & Enforcement Insurance & Reinsurance Securities, Litigation & Enforcement Complex Commercial Disputes
Contact Details: Avenue Louise, 480 / 3B 1050 Bruxelles T +32 2 290 18 20 F +32 2 290 18 21 E: xdieux@willkie.com
Business Criminal Defence Law Firm of the Year – Canada Fenton, Smith Barristers* is one of Canada’s leading criminal law firms with offices based in downtown Toronto. Our firm provides best-in-class professional legal advice and legal services to individuals, corporations, and governmental clients in a broad range of criminal, quasi-criminal, regulatory and professional disciplinary matters. Our professional services range from private consultative and advisory retainers to attending on all forms of criminal, quasi-criminal, and regulatory trials, tribunal proceedings, reviews and appeals. Fenton, Smith Barristers* Practice Areas: •Criminal litigation •Competition law •Corruption of foreign public officials •White collar crime •Professional discipline matters •Appeals •Judicial Review •Securities enforcement litigation •Occupational Health & Safety, Environmental Law, and other Regulatory matters Scott Fenton is a senior criminal defence lawyer experienced in criminal, quasi-criminal, constitutional and special prosecution matters. He has appeared as counsel on numerous trials, argued many appeals in the Court of Appeal for Ontario and has had multiple appearances in the Supreme Court of Canada, including R. v. Stillman, R. v. Goldhart, R. v. Silviera, R. v. Farinacci, R. v. Jarvis, R.v. Ling, R. v. Harrison, and R. v. Wallace. Scott Fenton is experienced in all types of criminal cases, including individual representations and corporate/commercial crime, white collar crime, cross-border investigations, foreign corruption, tax evasion, anti-trust/competition, securities, Elections Act, administrative monetary penalties (AMPs), policing (Special Investigations and Police Service Act matters), internet gaming, professional disciplinary matters, proceeds of crime and provincial regulatory prosecutions.
Contact Details: Fenton, Smith Barristers* Registered business name of Scott Fenton Professional Corporation Address: 235 King Street East, 2nd Floor, Toronto, ON, M5A 1J9 Tel: 416-955-1611 | Fax: 416-955-1237
Full Service Law Firm of the Year – UK Mackrell Turner Garrett is an award-winning, full service London law firm, with a truly global reach. Headquartered in central London with an additional office in Surrey, we have been providing high quality legal advice and services since 1845. As a firm, we are here to make your life easier. Providing clear, practical solutions through an otherwise complex web of legal jargon, our ability to make legal advice accessible has resulted in us maintaining an impressively high retention rate amongst our clients. Despite significant growth in recent years we remain personal enough to provide the tailored service clients look for and every case is supervised by one of our Partners, working closely with our team at all levels throughout. We are also large enough to offer comprehensive and practical expertise so our clients are able to use our firm to deal with all of their legal needs, no matter what the scale or complexity may be. Being a full service firm also allows us to easily refer work between departments– avoiding outsourcing of parts of a client’s legal requirements saves the client both time and money; something we are able to provide both domestically and internationally through our international association Mackrell International. We are founders of Mackrell International, a world leading global network of approximately 5000 lawyers across 60 countries, enabling us to offer the added value of immediate international legal advice and assistance in any jurisdiction worldwide. We are a worldwide web of lawyers, with local knowledge. Our expertise is also widely recognised within our profession, in the UK and further afield. In 2015, we were named Litigation Law Firm of the Year and Dispute Resolution Firm of the Year, and in 2016, Full Service Law Firm of the Year and Arbitration Law Firm of the Year Mackrell Turner Garrett – an innovative, traditional, local and truly global firm, in one. Nigel is the Managing Partner and Head of Litigation and Dispute Resolution in the London office of Mackrell Turner Garrett. He is experienced in complex litigation matters, and various forms of dispute resolution. Clients include in the banking and hedge fund sector [Indus Capital LLP, KBC Bank NV]; Information Technology and Management [AFD Software, Blue Cube Group]; Property [William Pears Group]; Motor [JLC Ltd (Jaguar Land Rover), Imperial Carriages Limited]; Publishing [Financial-I, Grapo AS]; Restaurant & Entertainment [Sketch, Wainscott Studios]; Architecture & Design [Space Projects Ltd]. A brief look at his experience of acting in the last year including cases with potential injunctions includes:-
Acting for a US hedge fund against a UK bank in a claim for in excess of $10m claiming misrepresentation Acting for a UK based software company in a claim for £15m against a UK infringer claiming commercial infringement Acting for a US film producer in a claim against a UK media company claiming commercial infringement of rights Acting for a US high net worth individual in a claim against a UK architect designer claiming substantial over invoicing Acting for a SA company in a £12m claim against a Canadian conglomerate – share dispute Acting for a UK motor trader in a £1m+ claim against a UK individual – breach of guarantee Acting for a UK company director in defending a claim against an Iranian state owned business – alleged misallocation of payments Acting for a Middle Eastern Royal in defending a £20m+ claim made by a UK bank – alleged bank guarantee default. Nigel has considerable experience in defending FCA prosecutions, and HMRC Appeals. He is an International committee member for EMEA on Mackrell International, the independent network of 80+ law firms around the world and Chairman of the Membership Committee for Mackrell International. As a result of the firms membership of Mackrell International, Nigel is very experienced in cross-border disputes, and multi jurisdictional litigation. Nigel studied at Caterham School, City of London University before training at Mackrell & Co who he joined in 1988. He was made partner at Mackrell Turner Garrett in 1991. In 2012 Nigel was named England and Wales Dispute Resolution Lawyer of the Year as well as being appointed Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America, Member of the Diversity Law Institute and Member of the Trial Law Institute.
Contact Details: Tel: 00 44 (0) 207 240 0521 Fax: 00 44 (0) 207 240 9457 Email: nigel.rowley@mackrell.com
Accounting Firm of the Year – Mexico KSI México is a global network, member of KS International, an association of independent accountancy firms with over 100 offices; we operate in some 50 countries around the world to deal with your international business need. KSI México offers a personal service, focused on the growth and success of our clients. We outstand for the quality of our services, offering a complete solution for each client. We provide a wide range of business service to companies in a variety of industries. The firm specializes in corporate finance advice, accounting, tax planning, consultation, and auditing services. We belong to the PCAOB (Public Company Accounting Oversight Board), as a corporation to oversee the audits of public companies in order to protect the interests of investors and further the public interest in the preparation of informative, accurate and independent audit reports. Our commitment is to help your business succeed by keeping up-to-date with your affairs and offering a high standard of both commercial and supportive advice. The Key to our approach is to build a close relationship between partner and client. Qualities you will find in a KSI México firm include: A real understanding of your business. The partners are in tune with your needs and aspirations. Regular attention and support from accessible partners. Commercial realism in the advice you receive. Technically reliable responses to your enquiries. Additionally, KSI México firm attach great importance to recruiting and training quality staff.
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