Deacons (law firm)

Deacons
HeadquartersHong Kong
No. of offices4 internationally
No. of attorneys300
No. of employees700
Major practice areasFull service
Key peopleLilian Chiang (Senior Partner)
Date founded1851; 173 years ago (1851)
FounderWilliam Bridges
Company typePartnership
Websitewww.deacons.com.hk

Deacons is a leading law firm in Hong Kong with over 300 attorneys and 700 employees.[1]

Founded in 1851, it provides full service for all major practice areas such as corporate mergers & acquisitions, regulatory compliance, intellectual properties, insurance, international arbitration and litigation. It serves a long list of private clients and high-profile conglomerates, including Google,[2] McDonald's Corp, Samsung, Alibaba Group, JP Morgan Asset Management, Shangri-La Hotels & Resorts,[3] Yahoo Inc!, and the HKSAR Government.[4]

The law firm is currently based in Hong Kong, with additional offices in Beijing, Guangzhou, and Shanghai.[5][6][7] It is the longest established and largest law firm in Hong Kong, and has experienced practitioners for every level of the court system.

It also maintains connections with other large, independent law firms around the world to deal with multi-jurisdictional disputes. It is the only member firm of Lex Mundi in Hong Kong.

Private elevators to Deacons' Hong Kong office at Alexandra House, Central

History

The firm is named for the English solicitor Victor Deacon, who in 1880 joined the legal practice established by William Thomas Bridges in 1851 in Hong Kong.[8] Bridges was the second barrister to commence practice in Hong Kong.

Within two years, Victor Deacon was made a partner and within 20 years, under his own name, he had firmly established Deacons as one of the colony's leading law firms, a position it has retained to this day. In 1860, with offices on Queen's Road, the firm was based close to the Supreme Court. In 1910, the larger firm required bigger office space and Deacons moved to Ice House Street.

Deacons grew steadily throughout the 20th century, flourishing during Hong Kong's post-war boom. By the mid-1970s, Deacons was a busy, full-service business law firm and a highly respected name in commercial circles throughout Asia.

Since 1985, it has resided in Alexandra House, Central, progressively taking more floor space to accommodate the expanding team of lawyers. Its headquarters is equipped with internal staircases alongside two private elevators, spanning 6 individual floors. It also operates an office location in Sheung Wan.

Deacons formed a strategic alliance with Graham & James, operating in Asia under the collective name "Deacons Graham & James". The alliance dissolved in June 2000, with Deacons backing out due to Graham & James's failure to commit resources to Asia and dwindling position in US law firm rankings.

In 1986, Deacons opened an initial presence in the People's Republic of China in Beijing. In 2002, Deacons established a representative office in Beijing and was one of the first Hong Kong law firms to be granted a licence to open a second office in the PRC. Deacons became the first firm to be awarded a third foreign law firm license in mainland China. Deacons celebrated 170 years in Hong Kong in 2022.[9]

Practice Areas

Deacons is listed in The Legal 500 and Chambers and Partners.[10] It is a globally ranked, first-tier law firm offering legal services for 15 key service areas, as well as additional specializations within each:[11][12]

Recognition

Deacons has been highly acclaimed for its service, corporate social responsibility (CSR), employee benefits, working environment and graduate recruitment over decades. A selection of the recent three years' awards includes:-[13]

2017

  • IFLR "Private Equity Deal of the Year 2017"
  • IFLR "Hong Kong Firm of the Year 2017"
  • Managing IP "Hong Kong Firm of the Year 2017"
  • Chinese Business Law Awards "Construction & Infrastructure Firm of the Year 2017"
  • Chinese Business Law Awards "Hong Kong Firm of the Year 2017"
  • The Asia Legal Award "M&A Deal of the Year: Private Equity & Venture Capital 2017"
  • Human Resources Asia "Best Graduate Recruitment Programme 2017"


2016

  • Chambers Asia-Pacific "Hong Kong Law Firm of the Year 2016”
  • ASIAN MENA "Firm of the Year 2016"
  • IFLR "Hong Kong Firm of the Year 2016"
  • Euromoney Asia "Best National Firm for Talent Management 2016"
  • Asian Legal Business "Employer of Choice 2016”
  • Asian Legal Business "Annual CSR List Awardee 2016"
  • HFM Asia Hedge Fund Services Award "Best Onshore Law Firm 2016"


2015

  • Chambers Asia-Pacific "Hong Kong Law Firm of the Year 2015”
  • China Law & Practice's "Hong Kong Firm of the Year 2015”
  • ASIAN MENA Counsel "Most Responsive Domestic Law Firm of the Year 2015"
  • IFLR "Hong Kong Firm of the Year 2015"
  • Asian Legal Business "Employer of Choice 2015”
  • Asian Legal Business "Citizenship Law Firm of the Year 2015"
  • The Asian Lawyer

References

  1. ^ England, Vaudine (1998). The Quest of Noel Croucher: Hong Kong's Quiet Philanthropist. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press. pp. 195–207. ISBN 9622094732.
  2. ^ "Deacons > Hong Kong > Hong Kong | The Legal 500 law firm profiles". www.legal500.com. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  3. ^ "China – Intellectual Property (International Firms) Lawyers & Law Firms – Asia-Pacific – Chambers and Partners". www.chambersandpartners.com. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  4. ^ Wong, Douglas. "Hong Kong Law Firm Deacons Plans Independent Expansion in China". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  5. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 15 December 2009. Retrieved 15 December 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. ^ Sumitra, Giri. "Deacons". World Attorney Directory. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  7. ^ "Top law firm protects its information with confidence with Symantec Solutions". Symantec. Archived from the original on 29 October 2015. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  8. ^ Deacons website: "About Us Archived 2011-10-03 at the Wayback Machine"
  9. ^ "Our Heritage - Deacons". www.deacons.com.hk. Archived from the original on 5 February 2016. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  10. ^ "Deacons – Hong Kong – Law Firm Profile - Chambers Global 2015 – Chambers and Partners". www.chambersandpartners.com. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
  11. ^ "The Legal 500 > Deacons > Hong Kong, > What we say". www.legal500.com. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
  12. ^ "Our Services - Deacons". Deacons. Archived from the original on 27 January 2016. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  13. ^ "Lex Mundi - Lex Mundi: The World's Leading Law Firm Network". lexmundi.com. Archived from the original on 5 July 2017. Retrieved 5 February 2016.