Excellence awards 2015

Worldwide Financial Advisor Awards Magazine Excellence Awards 2015

WWW.WFAAMAG.CO.UK

Worldwide Financial Advisor Awards Magazine

To advertise here for 12 months please contact admin@wfaamag.co.uk

To vote for the law firm you think should be named as Law Firm Of The Year Please send the Law Firms Name and Representatives name to:

Voting@wfaamag.co.uk

From everyone at Worldwide Financial Advisor awards Magazine we hope to hear from you soon.

WWW.WFAAMAG.CO.UK

Worldwide Financial Advisor Awards Magazine Excellence Awards 2015 Worldwide Financial Advisor Awards Magazine 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 Excellence Awards 2015 recognises a select number of leading professional firms around the world working both nationally and internationally in their field of expertise.

Worldwide Financial Advisor 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.

Worldwide Financial Advisor Awards is currently being read by Lawyers, Advisers, Consultants and corporate executives.

We aim to showcase every company individually and to its full potential.

Worldwide Financial Advisor Awards Magazine Excellence Awards 2015 Deep & Far Intellectual Property Law Firm of the Year – Taiwan Lubis Ganie Surowidjojo Arbitration & Litigation Law Firm of the Year – Indonesia Meyerlustenberger | lachenal Rechtsanwälte Real Estate Law Firm of the Year – Switzerland Minter Ellison Insolvancy & Restructuring Law Firm of the Year – Australia O'Gradys Solicitors Insolvancy & Restructuring Law Firm of the Year – Ireland Sadis & Goldberg Domestic & Offshore Hedge funds Law Firm of the Year – USA Saxinger, Chalupsky & Partner Rechtsanwälte GmbH (SCWP Schindhelm) Advisor of the Year 2014 - M&A, Real Estate, Banking & Finance and Corporate Law firm of the Year – Austria Tax Partner AG Real Estate Tax Law Firm of the Year - Switzerland

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.

Area of Practice: Intellectual Property, including patent, trademark, copyright and trade secret.

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 50% of the patent-experienced companies in that park have ever entrusted their IPR works to this firm.

Experiences: Mr. Yu-Li Tsai, a patent attorney graduated from Department of Electrical Engineering of National Taiwan University (NTUEE), which is the best engineering school in Taiwan. Because of interest in communication system, he then attended in the Graduate Institute of Communication Engineering (GICE) of NTU. During his research life in GICE, he also started to get involved in knowledge and skills of patent-related matters for taking and receiving the qualification of patent attorney. Mr. Tsai also attended to receive an IP master from Law School of University of New Hampshire, also known as Franklin Pierce Center for Intellectual Property, had an internship with InterDigital, Inc., and passed the U.S. Patent Bar Examination. Currently, Mr. Tsai is working for Deep & Far Attorneys-at-Law as a patent attorney.

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 well-believed that such properties are key factors for peoples to properly and competently behave themselves. Because the clients become more understood in the knowledge of IP and more budget-sensitive, they usually want to select an agent who can more efficiently and effectively deal with their IP matters. They often invite bids, set out tenders and call for interview before they decide to entrust a service provider. Taking patent for example, they gather information of costs for patent prosecution, previous works, and firm introduction materials in a preliminary choice stage, and hold an interview to obtain further details of the firm which has passed the preliminary choice stage. We represent international giants, e.g.

InterDigital, MPS, Schott Glas, Toyo Ink, Motorola, Cypress, Google, Armani.

We always keep updating the newest state of this firm, recruiting elite patent engineers and strictly training them the essential skills, improving the efficiency and quality of service, and developing new strategies that can assist the clients effectively protecting their intellectual property rights. This firm believes that if the efficiency, quality, and enthusiasm of the services can be consistently monitored and maintained, overcoming complexities, challenges or changes is just a result rather than an issue.

Our aspiration and directions would be developing more potential clients either in domestic or foreign countries, and expanding the size of this firm to assist more clients in pursuing most satisfactory IP protection. Although the domestic IP market, especially in the patent field in 2013 shrank a little, we expect this situation may finally change because there is a phenomenon that the gross economy is starting to recover in 2014.

Contact details Deep & Far Yu-Li. Tsai Tel: 886-2-25856688#900 Fax: 886-2-25989900//886-2-25978989 Add: 13th Fl., 27 Sec. 3, Chung San N. Rd., Taipei, Taiwan Web: www.deepnfar.com.tw Email: lawtsai@deepnfar.com.tw

Arbitration & Litigation Advisor of the Year – Indonesia Mohamed Idwan (‘Kiki’) Ganie is the Managing Partner of Lubis Ganie Surowidjojo (LGS). He graduated from the Faculty of Law of the University of Indonesia and holds a PhD in Law from the University of Hamburg. Dr. Ganie is a Chairman of the Association of Indonesian Anti-Trust Lawyers, a member of the Regional Panel of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC), and a fellow (FSIarb) of the Singapore Institute of Arbitrators.

Dr. Ganie has more than 30 years of legal experience, and specializes in commercial transactions and commercial litigation, including alternative dispute resolution and has acted as an expert in a number court and arbitration proceedings. His expertise covers general corporate/company law, banking law, finance, bankruptcy and restructuring, mining, investment, acquisitions, infrastructure projects/project finance, antitrust, and shipping/aviation, with a particular focus on corporate governance and compliance.

In the course of Lubis Ganie Surowidjojo’s (LGS) more than three decades of service, we have secured our position as the premier Indonesian corporate transaction and commercial litigation law firm. This combination of commercial law experience and litigation uniquely positions LGS to deal with the full range of commercial issues faced by our clients. We work closely with our clients to understand their problems, determine their needs, and arrive at practical solutions that are both cost-effective and viable over the long term.

Consumer-oriented sectors appear to be the most attractive investment opportunities at present. This is due to the rapidly growing middle class, and an overall gradual shift in the Indonesian economy from being an exporter of natural resources to an economy that is increasingly driven by domestic demand. Recently, banking and insurance have been two notable areas that have seen a fair amount of activity due to a market that is presently under-served and the consequent great opportunities for expansion. Longer-term, natural resource investments have been significantly under-represented, at least in part due to problematic government policies, however, it is entirely possible that this sector will see a resurgence.

For transactions to be successfully agreed, and even more importantly to be successfully implemented, in current circumstances it is important to design transaction structures in such a way so as to reflect the parties’ expectations. This may mean structuring a deal in such a way that a party with an optimistic view will be able to benefit should such hopes materialize, while the more conservative party’s costs are kept low in the event that the more pessimistic view becomes the reality. Ultimately, the key is managing expectations and making sure the parties’ interests are accurately reflected.

Our unique selling point is the combination of our long-standing commercial law practice and our premier litigation department that has extensive experience in dealing with commercial disputes in the context of alternative dispute resolution as well as litigation in the Indonesian courts. This allows our corporate transaction departments to benefit from such litigation experience to ensure that any transactions handled by the firm are carried out with a view to the potential for future disputes and any existing risks.

Founding Partners:

Mr. Timbul Thomas Lubis heads the Lubis Ganie Surowidjojo litigation section. Mr. Lubis specialises in commercial transactions and company law, as well as labour, property and real estate law.

Dr. Mohamed Idwan Ganie is the Managing Partner of Lubis Ganie Surowidjojo. Dr. Ganie specializes in commercial transactions and commercial dispute resolution, and has a focus on corporate governance.

Mr. Arief Tarunakarya Surowidjojo specializes in corporate law and has acted as the lead lawyer in hundreds of IPOs, rights issues and other capital market transactions, and more than 100 M&A deals.

Partners: Mr. Abdul Haris Muhammad Rum’s field of expertise includes general corporate, restructuring, capital markets, M&A, project finance, syariah, and oil and gas law.

Mr. Harjon Sinaga has a strong general corporate background and specializes in commercial litigation, concentrating in the fields of bankruptcy and antitrust.

Mr. Rofik Sungkar’s practice focuses on litigation, debt restructuring and general corporate law.

Ms. Dini Retnoningsih specialises in corporate transactions.

Mr. Mochamad Fajar Syamsualdi specialises in M&A. Mr. Ahmad Jamal Assegaf specialises in restructuring, investment, M&A, and telecommunications.

LGS has over a hundred lawyers and experience representing a diverse range of clients, including domestic and multinational corporations, public and private companies, Government instrumentalities and State Owned Enterprises.

Contact Details: Dr. Mohamed Idwan (‘Kiki’) Ganie Managing Partner Lubis Ganie Surowidjojo Address: Menara Imperium 30th Floor Jl. H. R. Rasuna Said Kav. 1 Kuningan Jakarta 12980, Indonesia Tel: +62 21 831-5005, 831-5025 Fax: +62 21 831-5015, 831-5018 Email: ganie@lgslaw.co.id Website: www.lgsonline.com

Insolvency and Restructuring Law Firm of the Year - 2015 Minter Ellison is one of the Asia Pacific's leading law firms. Established in Sydney in 1827, our firm today operates in Australia, Hong Kong, mainland China, Mongolia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom through a network of integrated offices and associated offices.

Our success has been driven by the vision of our partners, the in-depth industry expertise of our lawyers, and our commitment to work closely with clients to deliver seamless service wherever they need us.

We understand the challenges that businesses operating in a globalized marketplace face, and offer clients services that are multi-disciplinary and industry facing. Our deep understanding of how business is conducted in our region, local language skills, and proven track record for delivering outstanding work mean that client’s access local experience and expertise that is informed by an international perspective.

Our strong technical skills, underpinned by the ability to deliver commercially practical solutions that assist clients to achieve their business goals and objectives, have led to our firm's involvement in some of the Asia Pacific's most innovative and high-profile transactions.

Ian Walker is one of Australia's leading insolvency and restructuring specialists. He has more than 30 years' experience in security enforcement for all types of creditors, banking litigation, and insolvency, restructuring and work out issues.

While Ian’s practice spans a wide range of industries and private and public sector clients, he has extensive experience in the financial services industry.

Ian advises insolvency appointees including liquidators, receivers, administrators and deed administrators on creditors’ rights, their powers and duties and on the full range of commercial and legal issues that face insolvency practitioners during the course of an insolvency administration. He also advises third parties affected by insolvency such as creditors and directors. This includes advising company directors on the governance issues that face them when insolvency is imminent and drafting schemes of arrangement and deeds of company arrangement involving large numbers of creditors and complex corporate structures.

Ian's broader practice encompasses litigation and commercial dispute resolution. He acts for government, statutory corporations and corporate clients on a range of litigious and non-litigious matters principally in the areas of contractual disputes and trade practices legislation. He has significant banking and finance litigation experience, acting for banks with regard to securities lending exposure.

Contact Details: Level 23, Rialto Towers 525 Collins Street Melbourne 3000 Australia +61 3 8608 2607 ian.walker@minterellison.com

“litigation powerhouse“

—The American Lawyer, L.A. Business Journal, IP Law & Business, Chambers U.S.A., Focus Europe

The last word in Litigation.

Quinn Emanuel Deutschland: info.germany@quinnemanuel.com Hamburg/Brussels: Dr. Nadine Herrmann Tel: +49 40 89728 7000 (Hamburg) Tel: +32 2 416 5000 (Brussels) nadineherrmann@quinnemanuel.com

urquhart & sullivan, llp

Litigation only www.quinnemanuel.com

Mannheim: Dr. Johannes Bukow Tel: +49 621 43298 6000 johannesbukow@quinnemanuel.com Munich: Dr. Marcus Grosch Tel: +49 89 20608 3000 marcusgrosch@quinnemanuel.com

BRUSSELS | CHICAGO | HAMBURG | HONG KONG | LONDON | LOS ANGELES | MANNHEIM | MOSCOW | MUNICH NEW YORK | PARIS | SAN FRANCISCO | SILICON VALLEY | SYDNEY | TOKYO | WASHINGTON, D.C.

In Association With

About LGS In our more than 29 years of service, we have secured our position as the premier Indonesian corporate transaction and commercial litigation law firm. We have over a hundred lawyers and experience representing a diverse range of clients, including domestic and multinational corporations, public and private companies, Government instrumentalities and State Owned Enterprises. We work closely with our clients to understand their problems, determine their needs, and arrive at practical solutions that are both cost-effective and viable over the long term.

Representative Clients Adaro Indonesia; American Bureau of Shipping; Astra International; Astratel Nusantara; Bank Mandiri; Charoen Pokphand Indonesia; DBS Bank Ltd; Goldman Sachs; Hitachi; Hutchison (Hong Kong); Indonesia Infrastructure Guarantee Fund; Indonesian State Electricity Company (PLN); Japan Tobacco International Indonesia; Krakatau Steel; Liga Primer Indonesia (LPI); Medco Energi International; Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Indonesia; Mitsui & Co., Ltd; Mitsui Banking Corporation; Mitsui Indonesia; Pamapersada Nusantara; Sampoerna Strategic; Sime Darby (Malaysia); Simpson, Spence & Young (SSY); Standard Chartered Bank; Sumitomo; Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited; and Unilever Indonesia.

ISO LGS has obtained Lloyd’s Register Quality Assurance certifications of ISO 9001:2008 for Quality Management systems and ISO 14001:2004 for Environmental Management systems to ensure that all aspects of the firm’s operations and the quality of services are on par with the most well managed companies and organizations in the world.

Our Practice Areas • ADR and Arbitration • Antitrust • Bank and Debt Restructuring • Banking and Secured Transactions • Bankruptcy • Capital Markets • Construction • Consumer Protection Defence Litigation • Corporate Finance • Distribution of Goods and Services • E-commerce

Menara Imperium 30th Floor Jl. H.R. Rasuna Said Kav. 1 Kuningan Jakarta 12980, Indonesia Tel: +62 21 831 5005 Fax: +62 21 831 5015

• Energy • Foreign and Domestic Investment • Forestry and Plantations • General Corporate • Information Technology • Infrastructure • Insurance • Intellectual Property Rights • International Trade • Labour • Maritime and Shipping

lgs@lgslaw.co.id www.lgsonline.com

• Mergers and Acquisitions • Mining, Oil and Gas • Privatization • Project Finance • Property and Real Estate • Refinancing and Bank Lending • Shariah Transactions • Structured Finance • Telecommunications • US Representative Offices and Strategic Investment for Residency

DEEP & FAR Attorneys-at-Law 13th F1., No. 27, Sec. 3, Chung San N. Rd. Taipei 104, Taiwan, R.O.C. Tel: +886-2-2585-6688 Fax: +886-2-25989900/25978989 email@deepnfar.com.tw Deep & Far was founded in 1992 and is one of the largest law firms in this country.

The firm is presently focused 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, counseling, litigation and/ or transaction thereof. Since this firm edges itself into the IPRs field, the firm quickly comes to fame. As an illustration, this firm often is one of the largest sources from which foreign filing orders originate.

The fascinating rise of this firm begins from the founder of Deep & Far attorneysat-law, C. F. Tsai, who is the one first patent practitioner in this country who both has technological and law backgrounds and is qualified as a local attorney-at-law.

The patent attorneys and patent engineers in this firm normally hold outstanding and advanced degrees and are generally graduated from the top five universities in this country and/or the university in the US. Our prominent staffs are dedicated to provide the best quality service in IPRs. 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 are/were clients of this firm.

Furthermore, Hi-Tech companies in the science-based industrial park located at Hsin Chu play an important role in booming the economy of this country. About one half of which have 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.

We have experienced in seeking IPR-protections for our clients in more than 100 territories all over the world. We have thousands of IPR-cases respectively prosecuted before official Patent Offices of major industrialized countries.

This firm not only is the most competent in IPR-related matters in this country but also is very familiar with IPR-practices in major industrialized countries. As a matter of fact, this firm oftentimes tries and makes precedents of new claim-drafting styles. While we might have become wonderfully famed locally with remarkable appreciation and respects, we would like to extend our services for internationalized or quality service-requiring foreign conglomerated giants, corporations or individuals. We strongly believe that we will win more

www.deepnfar.com.tw

IT & Technology Advisory Firm of the Year - UK During our 25 years, Cavendish has only acted for business owners. Over the past 12 months we have advised on the sale of 14 businesses, helping proprietors achieve the best possible price for their companies, in what remains a tough economic environment, and finding new owners who can take those businesses forward and accelerate their growth and performance.

Understanding the range of businesses and technologies to a micro level is the challenge we at Cavendish have set ourselves. Helping us achieve this objective are our specialist team led by experts with backgrounds in fields such as engineering and finance together with years spent in corporate finance.

Our entrenched expertise in so many subsectors is matched by unrivalled contacts with leading UK and multinationals. In addition we can leverage centres of excellence within M&A International such as the oil and gas team in Dallas, our aerospace team in Seattle or the automotive and aerospace hub in Germany.

M&A International Inc. was created in 1985 to harness the entrepreneurial spirit of a group of highly specialised and focused merger and acquisition advisory firms across the globe.

The shared spirit of our member firms has enabled M&A International Inc. to grow to become one of the largest M&A teams in the world. Our global coverage facilitates the delivery of expert support by over 600 professionals to clients undertaking important transactions anywhere in the world.

The professionals within M&A International Inc. possess extensive experience in completing transactions with global organisations in a wide range of industries. This achievement, on behalf of our clients, has afforded M&A International Inc. outstanding success in mergers and acquisitions, placing us in a leading position among advisory firms worldwide.

The relationships across the alliance underpin our commitment to continuous investment in innovation, leadership and the incorporation of best practices from across all of our business activities.

The smooth conclusion of the sales such as Fanstan Electric Group Limited shows the importance of bringing well-capitalised overseas strategic purchasers such as the Wabtec Corporation to the table through a controlled process. This has been the exit route for more than half of the 450 plus businesses Cavendish has been involved in over the past 25 years.

The Exit Review is an essential component of the Cavendish approach to marketing businesses because it is the most effective way to achieve the highest value for your business.

The Cavendish Exit Review is part of a uniquely holistic approach to selling combining the disciplines of management consulting with corporate finance in a way that old fashioned corporate finance houses and accountants simply cannot deliver. This detailed, stringently conducted, strategic process can be concluded within two months at any time from 6 months to 3 years before sale – in corporate terms not a long period but it can yield disproportionately enormous benefits.

To achieve such success, against such a difficult market backdrop, we have developed an unrivalled knowledge of potential buyer pools and established teams of sector specialists, who are recognised authorities in their areas offering business owners expert advice on the best preparation, strategy and likely buyers to ensure a successful sale. Utilising our international network of M&A advisors we have continued to source overseas buyers, who typically pay a premium for UK businesses – about half of the companies we sold last year were to international buyers.

There are almost no other firms that operate in the corporate finance arena that have the sole purpose of selling businesses; most represent buyers as well and this invariably begs the question by astute owners of business, are our advisors completely aligned with us? For 25 years, Cavendish’s answer has been unequivocally “yes”.

Cavendish Corporate Finance LLP 40 Portland Place London W1B 1NB

Tel: 020 7908 6000 Email@ info@cavendish.com

www.cavendish.com

Full Service Law Firm of the Year – UK Mackrell Turner Garrett are International Solicitors in London and Surrey.

As a founder of Mackrell International, an international network of 4,200 lawyers in 90 firms in 110 offices around the world, we can offer immediate international legal advice and assistance in any jurisdiction worldwide.

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].

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 90+ law firms around the world and Chairman of the Business Development Committee for Mackrell International.

As a result of the firm’s membership of Mackrell International, Nigel is very experienced in cross-border disputes, and multi-jurisdictional litigation.

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 nigel.rowley@mackrell.com Tel: 00 44 (0) 20 7240 0521

G. E. Ehrlich (1995) Ltd. The Rogovin-Tidhar Tower, 15th Floor 11 Menachem Begin Road Ramat-Gan, 5286104, Israel Tel.: 972-73-791-9199 Fax.: 972-73-791-9100 info@ipatent.co.il

COMMERCIAL ARBITRATION LAWYER OF THE YEAR UK CHARLES N. BROWER has been a Judge of the Iran-United States Claims Tribunal for 30 years, has served as Judge ad hoc of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, and currently serves also as Judge ad hoc of the International Court of Justice. He is also a member of 20 Essex Street Chambers in London. He has served as Acting Legal Adviser to the United States Department of State and as Deputy Special Counsellor to the President of the United States. Judge Brower in 2009 was awarded the American Society of International Law’s Manley O. Hudson Medal for “pre-eminent scholarship and achievement in international law . . . without regard to nationality”; in 2010 received the Stefan A. Riesenfeld Award of the University of California Berkeley School of Law (Boalt Hall) in recognition of “outstanding achievements and contributions in the field of international law”; in 2013 received the American Bar Association’s Section of International Law’s Lifetime Achievement Award; and in 2013 received the Pat Murphy Award of the Institute for Transnational Arbitration of the Center for American and International Law “For Exceptional Civic Contributions and Extraordinary Professional Achievements in International Arbitration.” In October 2014 he became the first inductee into the Legal Media Group Euro money “Hall of Fame” for “significant contributions to commercial arbitration during his career.” In February 2015 he was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award from Global Arbitration Review at its awards ceremony held in Washington, DC.

Contact Details The Honorable Charles N. Brower

20 Essex Street Chambers 20 Essex Street London WC2R 3AL England Telephone: +44 20 7842 1200 Fax: +44 20 7842 1270 Email: cbrower@20essexst.com

Legal Costs Specialists A&M Bacon Limited are an award winning national firm of Civil Litigation Costs Specialists.

We have been established for over 25 years and were founded by Michael Bacon, the father of the Leading Costs Counsel, Nicholas Bacon QC. The practice is led by Jessica Swannell and together with Senior Costs Lawyer Caroline Cousins were both awarded the Gold Cup for qualifying as Costs Lawyers as top of their class.

A&M are an industry leading practice with a wealth of knowledge in all areas of Legal Costs.

A&M are fully regulated by the Costs Lawyers Standards Board and must comply with a strict code of conduct. As fully qualified Costs Lawyers, we have rights of audience in all costs matters up to but excluding the Court of Appeal.

We are a special advisors to the Law Society Practice department on practical costs budgeting.

International Structuring & Domestic Transactions Law Firm of the Year USA Worldwide Financial Advisor Magazine has named Orlando’s Entrepreneur Law Center as the winner of its prestigious Golden Advisor Award and International Structuring & Domestic Transactions Law Firm of the Year in the United States in 2014. Worldwide Financial Advisor Awards selects the best professional & financial institutions from around the world and showcases their 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. The Golden Advisor Award is based on a global study of research and analysis of law firm achievements over the past year, including the complexity, strategic nature, scale, and any groundbreaking or innovative processes that the firm undertakes.

The Entrepreneur Law Center, with offices in Orlando and Tampa, Florida, is a unique boutique law firm that offers a wide range of specialized multidisciplinary services. The firm not only offers services related to business planning, mergers & acquisitions, venture capital and private equity, and strategic planning, but its forensic accounting and fraud examination services truly sets the firm apart. This small boutique firm has engaged in a wide range of advisory services, including conducting merger and acquisition due diligence for large multinationals on crossborder transactions as well as advising and structuring foreign acquisitions of companies in the United States. The firm has also been engaged by the Metropolitan Bureau of Investigation, a multi-jurisdictional task force established to fight organized crime, narcotics, racketeering, and vice-related offenses, such as human trafficking. Providing forensic accounting and other financial services related to investigations evolved into a general counsel and outsourced CFO role with the Fraternal Order of Police. Ken Hamner, the firm’s Managing Member said, “having no prior law enforcement background, I never saw myself working on Civil RICO and forfeiture cases or managing the financial affairs of police officers. This is some of the most rewarding work I’ve done.” Steve Klapka, the District 7 Director of the Fraternal Order of Police said, “Hiring Ken as our General Counsel is one of the best moves this organization has ever made. He not only has helped us tremendously with helping us manage our financial and legal affairs, but he has helped many of our members through their lodges negotiate higher compensation in their contract negotiations with the counties. His combined financial and legal skills make him an invaluable strategic advisor.”

The firm’s Managing Member, Ken Hamner, began his career in the financial services practice at Arthur Andersen, and after a stopover at Ernst & Young’s consulting practice, became the CFO of an early stage venture before returning to school to retool. Already holding a BS in Accounting and a BS in Finance from George Mason University, Ken went on to earn a JD and MBA from Florida State University, a MS in Entrepreneurship in Applied Technologies from the

University of South Florida and a Master of Accounting in Forensic Accounting from Florida Atlantic University. He is a Master Analyst in Financial Forensics, a Certified Fraud Examiner, a Certified Merger & Acquisition Advisor, a Certified Due Diligence Professional, a Certified Business Intermediary, a Licensed Real Estate Broker, and holds a Series 63 FINRA securities license. Internationally, he also completed specialized certificate programs in law at Humboldt University in Berlin, Germany, the China University of Political Science and Law in Beijing, China, and the University of the West Indies in Barbados.

Dennis Wilkinson, the General Manager of Transpacific Services for DHL Global Forwarding and previously a senior executive with Kuehne + Nagle and Worldlink Logistics said, “I have worked with many attorneys and Ken was absolutely the best. Without a doubt his common sense approach coupled with flawless strategy produced positive results far greater than expected. Ken has so many skill sets not commonly found in even large law firms. I have called on Ken’s expertise to structure M&A deals, to conduct due diligence on acquisition targets, and for general business insight into a wide variety of matters over the years.”

Ken said, in closing, “I’ve enjoyed a career ranging from negotiating cross-border acquisitions in the hundreds of millions of dollars down to buying and selling small businesses. I’ve also had the opportunity to help in turnarounds of companies and help small companies grow to be large and successful. Globalization has started to erode borders and make relationships viable that never would have been possible. I’ve had clients all over the United States, in Canada, the Caribbean, South Korea, Japan, China, in Europe and South America. Technology and global markets have changed our world and will continue to provide opportunities for this firm to help companies expand into new markets and find new customers. This is just the beginning.”

Contact Details The Entrepreneur Law Center, P.L. 250 North Orange Avenue, Suite 1200 Orlando, Florida 32801 Phone: 407-601-4980 Fax: 407-601-4981 khamner@entrepreneurlawctr.com www.entrepreneurlawctr.com

IP Law Firm Of The Year – Mexico With more than 75 years of experience, Goodrich has a long tradition of standing alongside its clients when helping them make their business objectives a reality. By means of a cross practice among service areas and industry teams, our carefully trained lawyers achieve an innovative approach towards the rendering of contemporary legal services tailored to the demanding business community worldwide.

We pride ourselves in knowing what drives key industry sectors and are able to provide on a daily basis, the best creative and cost-effective business solutions beforehand. Our clients are medium-size, as well as leading global companies of numerous nationalities and economic sectors.

We ensure that our clients are competently represented wherever their businesses take them. This is why, in addition to our network of correspondents in Mexico and our own office in Paris (since 1971), Goodrich actively participates as founder firm of the Bomchil Group, an association of independent law firms with offices in practically every Latin American country. Today, Goodrich has a professional and administrative staff of over 250.

Professional ethics and effective team work, leading to solid solutions and constant innovation are embedded throughout our firm. In addition to sponsoring training programs for our lawyers, both, nationally and internationally, we encourage the participation of our partners as part time lecturers and research fellows in high ranking law schools in Mexico. Goodrich actively participates in trade associations, local and international bars. Some of our members are frequently invited to speak at both, domestic and foreign conferences, as well as to hold leadership positions in sections of bar associations and industry organizations. Last but not least, sustainability, corporate social responsibility, pro bono work and gender equality are also essential elements of our existence.

In our firm we are constantly striving to renew ourselves and in being prepared to face the everchanging legal challenges that lie ahead. We are a firm of young lawyers with the highest professional and ethical standards.

Practice Areas: Antitrust Banking & Finance Bankruptcy Corporate & M&A Environment Law & Climate Change

Immigration Intellectual Property Labor Law & Social Security Litigation & ADR Mining & Natural Resources Oil & Gas Power Generation & Clean Energies Real Estate & Tourism Tax Law & International Trade TMT Transportation The vast majority of our intellectual property work is for non-Mexican companies conducting business in Mexico. Our staff of attorneys, engineers and computer specialists helps adapt foreign patent specifications and claims to Mexican law, secure patent inventions and trademark registration and maintain them by handling the necessary renewals. Our computer system, which is linked to the Mexican Patent and Trademark Department, permits us to provide our clients with a timely notice of their intellectual property matters. We also perform trademark searches and prepare and register license agreements. Due to recent changes in technology, we are increasingly being called on for assistance in licensing and litigation relating to computer software as well as for complex licensing negotiations and settlements involving patents, trademarks and copyrights. Our lawyers handle litigation for clients in all areas such as licensing, patent and trademark infringement, including counterfeiting, unfair competition cases, pirating and unlawful duplication of computer software. We are active players in Entertainment and Sport deals.

In keeping with our pioneering spirit and desire to be in the vanguard of international legal developments, Goodrich opened a European office in 1971 in Paris. Today the Paris office is attended by qualified Mexican attorneys who speak French. They handle the needs of our European clients with interests in Latin America. The lawyers travel widely throughout Europe, maintaining close contacts with leading European law firms, companies and business organizations and participating in international conferences and forums on matters affecting Latin America. Modern communications allow us to support our Paris office with the full resources of the Mexico City office.

Goodrich recognized long ago that our clients’ needs required us to extend our presence beyond Mexico City. Today, we have collaborating attorneys throughout Mexico. Our office in Paris and participation in the Bomchil Group associated with offices in every Latin American country enable us to ensure that our clients are competently represented wherever their businesses take them. As our clients’ needs continue to change, Goodrich, Riquelme will grow to satisfy them.

Contact Details: Paseo De La Reforma 265 06500 Mexion D.F. mailcentral@goodrichriquelme.com Telephone: (52 55) 55 33 00 40 Fax: (52 55) 55 25 12 27

FULL SERVICE LAW FIRM OF THE YEAR PORTUGAL Raposo Bernardo is full service international law firm born 20 years ago, with offices in 9 countries, two continents (Portugal, Spain, Poland, Romania, Angola, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Sao Tome and Principe). Our 70 lawyers are specialized in the structural economic sectors such as Banking and Financial Markets, Energy and Infrastructure, Construction and Real Estate, Health and Pharmaceutical, Insurance, Tourism or Transports.

The firm has been consistently recommended by Legal500 EMEA, Chambers and Partners and IFLR1000 in all the relevant practice areas covered for the jurisdictions where it acts. Furthermore, Raposo Bernardo has been recognized by its performance by Finance Monthly, Corporate INTL, ACQ, and many other specialized legal publications.

The firm stands for delivering top quality in every operation performed, wherever its jurisdiction, thus enhancing the sharing of relevant knowledge and local experience and transforming it into something useful by all our lawyers in their daily work.

We believe this award is further evidence our firm makes a valuable long-term difference in our clients’ businesses.

Areas of expertise: Corporate and M&A Banking and Finance Capital Markets Energy and Natural Resources EU and Competition Employment Tax Dispute Resolution Arbitration Public Law Real Estate Intellectual Property Raposo Bernardo managing partners are strong technically, academically best reputable lecturers, and experimented lawyers in complex and innovative international operations. The managing skills are clearly identified by the hierarchy of managing global partners and country managers, who are able to produce a sustainable decision making process to respond to the needs of the international network, in real time.

Nelson Raposo Bernardo is the global managing partner of Raposo Bernardo. His reference practice areas are banking and finance, capital markets, corporate law, M&A, project finance and private equity.

He advises national and multinational leading players in operations concerning debt, equity, structured finance and securitisation, M&A, project finance, private equity, restructuring and regulation. He is also strongly experienced and reputed in legislating, being co-author of the present Portuguese Securities Code and has led several legislative reform committees, in several countries, in banking, financial, real estate and construction areas. He has published books and articles on corporate law, banking and contract law, and participated as a speaker in seminars and conferences in Portugal and abroad. He was a member of a commission of the Conselho Superior da Magistratura (Supreme Judicial Council), for the approval of ad-hoc judges (2000) and consultant for Capital Markets of the Portuguese Auditors Association (1998-2006).

He holds a degree in Law from the Law School of the University of Lisbon, a Masters in Juridical Sciences (Corporate Law) from the same School, where is he is also presently working on his doctorate in Corporate Law. Assistant Professor of Corporate and Commercial Law at Law School of the University of Lisbon and in Entrepreneurship and Family Enterprise Start-Up and Management courses at INDEG/ISCTE (Audax) (2005-present), one of the best reputed business schools in Portugal. He is chairman of boards of general meetings of several companies and associations. He is fluent in Portuguese, English, French and Spanish.

Joana Andrade Correia co-heads Raposo Bernardo’s corporate and M&A department. For over ten years, she has dedicated her work to this area, building a solid experience and notable reputation. Throughout her career, she was involved in numerous relevant domestic and international operations, concerning corporate restructuring and mergers and acquisitions for reference players of different sectors, like pharmaceutical, banking and finance, tourism and energy, among others. Outside the Portuguese jurisdiction, Joana has also participated in elaborating several legislative packages, by invitation of different governments and of the World Bank. She holds a degree in Law from the University of the Lisbon Law School and is a post-graduate in Business and Corporate Law (by the Catholic University of Lisbon), in Legistics (by the University of Lisbon Law School) and in Tourism Law (by the Estoril Tourism School). She is fluent in Portuguese, Spanish, French and English.

Contact details Av. Fontes Pereira de Melo, Ed. Aviz, nº 35, 18º, 1050-118 Lisboa – Portugal Tel: (00351) 21 312 1330 Fax: (00351) 21 356 2908 • E-mail: lisboa@raposobernardo.com • www.raposobernardo.com

Shipping & Maritime Law Firm of the Year – Ukraine The ANK Law Firm founded in 1996 in the port city of Odessa, provides for complex legal support of citizens and enterprises whose personal and commercial interests in some way concern the Odessa region.

Taking into account the special nature of the Odessa region ANK Law Firm, since the moment of its foundation, pays special attention to the sea law. Without prejudice to others, legal support of merchant shipping activity is still one of our most valuable and favorite practices.

At the same time, ANK doesn't restrain itself to the area of sea practice. Any issues of real estate, tax, corporate, civil, labour and many other "overland" branches of law are equally close to us.

Professional resources of the ANK Law Firm allow us to function as a self-sufficient mechanism able to provide for exhaustive legal evaluation of the business entity's activity, to work out individual strategy of protection of client's interests and, actually, to realize such strategy by means of complex legal support.

From the point of view of organization the ANK follows the principle of internal specialization: the firm personnel includes qualified specialists, whose sphere of interests was defined in the course of their professional development and experience in different branches of law practice. The client may be sure of the competence of our lawyers advice. Any services rendered by the firm are available in four languages: Ukrainian, English, Russian, and German.

The ANK maintains close contacts with lawyers from Austria, Azerbaijan, Great Britain, Germany, Greece, Georgia, Italy, Latvia, the Russian Federation, the USA, Turkey and other countries that allows to react promptly and engage foreign colleagues when it is required for the protection of our clients interests.

The ANK Law Firm supports numerous non-commercial projects. They include the assistance to bodies of state authority and local government by consulting and independent legal analysis of legal acts.

The ANK renders complex legal assistance to the Honourable consulate of the Federal Republic of Germany in Odessa.

Contact Details 9, Lanzheronovskaya Str., Odessa, 65026, Ukraine. +38 (0482) 348 716 office@ank.odessa.ua

Worldwide Financial Advisor Awards Magazine

To advertise here for 12 months please contact admin@wfaamag.co.uk

To vote for the law firm you think should be named as Law Firm Of The Year Please send the Law Firms Name and Representatives name to:

Voting@wfaamag.co.uk

From everyone at Worldwide Financial Advisor awards Magazine we hope to hear from you soon.

WWW.WFAAMAG.CO.UK

Worldwide Financial Advisor Awards Magazine

WWW.WFAAMAG.CO.UK