Hong Kong, August 7, 2007 – LAWFUEL – The Law Firm Newswire – Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP announced today that Mark J. Lee, formerly a member of Debevoise & Plimpton’s Mergers & Acquisitions and Securities Groups, has joined the firm as a partner in its Hong Kong office. Mr. Lee is the sixth new partner added in Orrick’s China offices in 2007, and is joined by David Cho, of counsel and an associate, also from Debevoise & Plimpton LLP.
“Mark is one of the most highly respected Korea-focused international lawyers, and he is an excellent addition to our pan-Asian practice,” said Christopher Stephens, Managing Partner of Orrick’s Asian offices. “Mark and his team fill several strategically important roles for Orrick by providing additional on-the-ground U.S. capital markets experience in Asia and bolstering our growing Asian M&A and private equity practices.”
Lee has represented a broad base of clients including underwriters, private equity funds, governmental agencies, telecommunications and technology companies in various high profile transactions. In Asia, Lee represents domestic and multinational companies as well as all of the major underwriters on a wide variety of matters, including U.S. SEC-registered initial public offerings, and Rule 144A/Regulation S equity/debt and equity-linked offerings. He also represents clients on significant cross-border mergers and acquisitions transactions for strategic and financial investors.
“Orrick’s demonstrable commitment to Asia, its broad-service platform, dynamic leadership and its practice-oriented management all drew us to the firm,” said Lee. “These characteristics are critical for success in the Asia market because it requires local nimbleness while having the full resources and support of an international firm.”
At Orrick, Lee will round out a Korea team that includes Eugene Chang, a Tokyo-based finance partner who focuses on project and structured finance and M&A transactions involving Korea, and Michelle Taylor, a Hong Kong-based partner and head of Orrick’s regional structured finance team who has advised on numerous prominent transactions including the first future flow securitization in Korea.
“South Korea is the world’s 12th largest economy, and is continuing to open its domestic markets, accelerating the pace of privatizing state-owned companies and enjoying significant liquidity and high stock valuations. At the same time, more foreign investment is flowing into Korea and Korean companies are increasingly active in their outbound financial and commercial investment activities,” said Stephens. South Korea is completing free trade agreements with the U.S., Canada, the European Union, Australia and New Zealand, and the resulting surge expected in the foreign direct investment sector bodes well for our Korea practice,” said Stephens.
Lee received his B.A. from the University of Chicago in 1990. He received his M.B.A. in Corporate Finance from the University of Chicago in 1993 and his J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1996. David Cho received his B.A. from the University of California at Los Angeles in 1992 and his J.D. from Chicago-Kent College of Law in 1995.
Joining Lee and Cho is associate Una Cho. Cho received her B.A. from Yonsei University in 1994, her M.A. in Communications from Syracuse University in 1996 and her J.D. from Columbia Law School in 2002. All are fluent in English and Korean.
About Orrick
Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP is an international law firm with more than 980 lawyers in North America, Europe and Asia. The firm focuses on complex and novel finance and innovative corporate transactions and litigation. Orrick clients include Fortune 100 companies, major industrial and financial corporations, commercial and investment banks, high-growth companies, governmental entities, start-ups and individuals. The firm’s 18 offices are located in Beijing, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, Milan, Moscow, New York, Orange County, Pacific Northwest, Paris, Rome, Sacramento, San Francisco, Shanghai, Silicon Valley, Taipei, Tokyo and Washington, D.C.
