Asian
briefings
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contact Associate Editor Joshua
Shields at j.shields@acc.com.
a special supplement to ACC Docket
An Overview of the State of the
Legal Profession in Australia and
Across the Asia Pacific Region
in 2016
By Sandra Gibson, managing director, Australia, LOD | Lawyers On Demand
Asia Pacific is vast with exceptionally diverse legal, regulatory, and
economic environments. As such,
making predictions about the future
of the legal profession for the entire
region is challenging. However, we
believe there are a number of key
trends that have emerged over the
past few years, particularly in Australia and Asia, which will influence
and shape the region’s legal markets
in 2016. These are globalisation,
deregulation, and the burgeoning of
alternative services providers and
innovative solutions.
Significant economic and regulatory factors underpin these trends
and they are reshaping the way
legal services are both delivered
and offered to clients. Here are our
thoughts about each trend and how
they may impact in-house legal
teams going forward:
Mergers and the emergence
of the global firm
Throughout Asia, foreign law firm
leaders remain optimistic about legal
market growth1 based on the overall
macro-economic conditions in China
and Southeast Asia. Despite a recent
slowdown in Chinese GDP, there was
an increase in cross border deals, with
M&A activity in the Asia Pacific region
(excluding Japan) reaching a peak in
2015.2 In addition, the establishment of
the ASEAN Economic Community in
2015 has contributed to rising economic integration among Asian countries, 3 which has a standardising effect
on cross-border trade and regulatory
practices and mechanisms.
However, regulatory issues and
competitive challenges from entrenched domestic law firms are moderating that optimism. This has led
to a climate where some foreign law
1 An Overview of the State of the Legal
Profession in Australia and Across the Asia
Pacific Region in 2016
By Sandra Gibson
6 Seizing Opportunities
By Matthew Sullivan
8 See This, Asia
By ACC