Singapore's government has looked to generate revenue and put the country on the international business map, issuing more foreign law licenses and supporting the Singapore International Arbitration Centre.
Jordan said trading and commodities clients based in Europe are increasingly looking to relocate their operations to Singapore because of the country's favorable tax and business environment and the closer proximity to their customers.
"We think this is going to be very successful right off the bat between the work people are bringing and relationships we already have and clients interested in us being closer to them," Jordan said.
While all firms are more cautious about expansion in this market than they were in 2005 or 2006, Jordan said Reed Smith is expanding into a market where it already has clients and it will focus on areas in which it has expertise. Jordan said Reed Smith won't be opening a number of offices in the next year, nor are there any other immediate plans for new offices in Asia. He said the firm's sights are next set on Houston, where it has been trying to open for several years.
Reed Smith is not the first Pennsylvania firm to open in Singapore. Duane Morris opened an office there at the end of 2006, led by firm partner and former Mexican ambassador to Singapore Eduardo Ramos-Gomez. K&L Gates opened in the city-state in 2009.
A number of the initial lawyers hired by Duane Morris in Singapore ended up leaving, with the exception of Ramos-Gomez, but the firm has rebuilt and is now up to more than 30 lawyers, Chairman John Soroko said.
In 2010, Duane Morris took the opportunity under relaxed Singaporean law to open a joint venture rather than apply for a license to practice local law. It joined with Singapore firm Selvam to form the joint venture Duane Morris & Selvam.
"We're getting everything we think we need there through our enhanced joint venture," Soroko said, adding Duane Morris doesn't want to work on someone's deed in Singapore, but rather wants to do international corporate law there. The Selvam firm can handle their joint clients' needs when it comes to local law in the region, Soroko said.
Duane Morris & Selvam recently served as lead counsel to Heineken in its attempts to increase its holdings in Asia Pacific Breweries through a $4.6 billion deal.
Along with the transactional and international arbitration work handled out of Singapore, Soroko said Duane Morris uses the office "as a hub to do legal work throughout the region." The only other location where Duane Morris has opened in Asia is in Vietnam, but through its Singapore office, the firm has "desks" in which there are lawyers who specialize in Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and India.
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