Taipei, Taiwan.
Duane Morris has opened an office in Taipei, Taiwan, the firm announced Monday, further expanding its on-the-ground presence in Asia.
Duane Morris & Selvam Taiwan will be focused primarily on intellectual property issues. Duane Morris established its joint venture with Selvam LLP in 2011, in Singapore, as part of its expansion strategy in Asia.
(Clockwise from top left) John Soroko, Eric Chu, Christopher Neumeyer, and Richard Thurston.
Opening in Taiwan has been a topic of discussion for several years, chairman and CEO John J. Soroko said, given the firm’s ongoing legal work for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.
“As a practical matter, all the stars seemed to be aligning” for a Taiwan office, Soroko said. “It enables us to get on the ground and more involved with a long-term client.”
Richard L. Thurston, who is of counsel in Duane Morris’ New York office, was general counsel at Taiwan Semiconductor before he rejoined the firm in 2015. Thurston spearheaded the development of a Taiwan law office, Soroko said.
“He’s one of the best known and best connected lawyers in Taiwan,” Soroko said of Thurston, noting that he also taught law school there.
Thurston will continue working in the New York office, but will travel to Taiwan periodically, Soroko said.
Duane Morris hired special counsel Christopher M. Neumeyer and legal consultant Cheng Hsiang “Eric” Chu to staff the new office. They joined the firm within the last year, Soroko said, and continued to work out of Taiwan while the firm awaited approval for the new office from the Ministry of Justice.
Neumeyer most recently had his own firm, and was previously counsel at Texas Instruments and legal director at Lite-On Technology Corp. He works with companies on intellectual property matters involved in developing and selling products and services, as well as corporate transactions.
Chu was previously in-house counsel for Taiwan Semiconductor and Winbond Electronics Corp. He advises companies on patent licensing, patent infringement actions and intellectual property clearance.
Other than Taiwan Semiconductor, Duane Morris has handled matters for other companies in Taiwan, including Acer, Epistar, AU Optronics, VIA Technologies, Innolux, Nanya Plastics and Giant Manufacturing.
“It’s a whole other ball game to have an office on the ground there,” Soroko said.
The practice areas of interest for Duane Morris & Selvam Taiwan will be centered on the active technology industry, Soroko said.
“You have a confluence of high-tech companies and the issues that are on the table with those companies are protection of intellectual property and obviously the growth of those companies through venture capital or other financing,” Soroko said. “Those things go hand-in-hand.”
Taiwan is Duane Morris’ fourth new international office since 2013. Soroko said the firm will continue to focus on expansion in Asia. It established that presence beginning in 2007, when it opened an office in Singapore and two in Vietnam.
The firm opened its first Middle East office in Oman through a joint venture in 2013, and became the first U.S. firm with an office in Myanmar later that year. In August 2014, it entered a strategic alliance with Shanghai Veritas, allowing it to establish an office in Shanghai.
“We have a very heavy focus on the opportunities we see in emerging markets,” Soroko said. “That’s where the center of world GDP is heading.”
Other U.S.-based firms with offices in Taiwan include Jones Day, Baker & McKenzie, K&L Gates and Winston & Strawn.
Contact Lizzy McLellan at [email protected]. On Twitter: @LizzyMcLellTLI.
