Hong Kong’s lateral hire market was the busiest in the region last month, with a dozen partners hired by major international law firms (Clifford Chance, Wilson Sonsini, Hogan Lovells and Stephenson Harwood etc.), large PRC law firms (Guantao), and local boutiques (Li & Partners, Broadfield, Howse Williams etc.). Other notable movements included Jones Day’s team hire of five partners across Brisbane and Sydney and Freshfields’ partner hire in Japan from MoFo.

Last month also witnessed some prominent new office launches, including Sullivan & Cromwell’s opening in Abu Dhabi, and Wilson Sonsini and King & Wood’s launching in Singapore.

Check out our final market update of October 2026:

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