The Legal 500 Asia Pacific 2022 rankings: Kennedys recognised across the region

What the team is known for

UK-headquartered insurance leader Kennedys has had a presence in Sydney since 2006, and recently launched in Perth with the hire of a large team from Clyde & Co. The practice, which also includes a fast-growing Melbourne team, works with major insurers, reinsurers, brokers, and policyholders on a diverse span of insurance law issues.

The team is led from the Sydney office by international insurance and re-insurance authority Matt Andrews, where he is supported by professional indemnity expert Raylee Hartwell and special counsel Llinos Kent.

What the clients say

"The team are quick to respond and provide advice regarding notification requirements under the Privacy Act. In addition, if a notification is not required, they do not drag out their involvement. They provide continuous and relevant updates during more complex matters and keep the client updated with plain English advice."

Ranked lawyers

Matt Andrews (Leading Individual)

Raylee Hartwell (Leading Individual)

Llinos Kent (Rising Star)

What the team is known for

On the contentious side, the insurance team at Kennedys advises clients on financial risks, casualty and liability, and healthcare and construction-related insurance matters. Elsewhere, non-contentious work is another driver of activity, including competition, regulatory, transactional and product development mandates.

What the clients say

"They have international reach, as well as servicing the client to its fullest need."

"Knowledge of local market especially the local contacts local branches of international insurers and local Chinese Insurers who we have on our slip."

Ranked lawyers

Joanie Ko (Leading individual)

"Joanie Ko is recommended for cyber matters, including cyber incident responses, coverage advice and policy drafting."

Rupert Skrine (Leading individual)

"Rupert Skrine, who is dual-qualified in Hong Kong and England & Wales, is particularly experienced in negligence claims."

What the team is known for

Global insurance sector-oriented firm Kennedys Legal Solutions stands out for representing multinational and local insurance companies in a variety of high-value claims in Singapore, as well as advising on capital, operational and regulatory issues related to running an insurance business in the jurisdiction.

Julian Wallace heads the team, co-ordinating work across the Asia Pacific region, with expertise in corporate insurance issues. Peng Lim, global head of the aviation practice, has significant experience in catastrophic aviation loss cases and is ably supported by Anita Quy.

What the clients say

"Kennedys' aviation team in Asia Pacific is the leading aviation regional practice."

"The team has a combined regional expertise which far exceeds the other firms."

Ranked lawyer

Peng Lim (Leading individual)

"Peng Lim and Anita Quy, have extensive regional experience and knowledge and understanding of social and economic factors"

What the team is known for

Kennedys is noted for its expertise in the insurance and reinsurance space and advises clients on a broad range of contentious and non-contentious matters relating to coverage disputes, claims, corporate and regulatory work. The team acts for local, regional and multinational companies on insurance mandates across Asia and the Middle East. 

Kennedys is noted for its expertise in the insurance and reinsurance space and advises clients on a broad range of contentious and non-contentious matters relating to coverage disputes, claims, corporate and regulatory work. The team acts for local, regional and multinational companies on insurance mandates across Asia and the Middle East. 

What the clients say

"The team is well versed in various lines of business with legal knowledge of the Thai law and jurisdiction, as well as the common international jurisdictions that we see in insurance contracts."

Ranked lawyers

Suraphon Rittipongchusit (Leading individual)

"Suraphon Rittipongchusit, who jointly heads up the practice alongside Ian Johnston, has experience in representing Thai and international insurers in complex disputes."

Ian Johnston (Next generation partner)

"Ian Johnston has always been and continues to be approachable, knowledgeable, realistic and will offer honest advice. With his background in the Asia region, he is well connected with the knowledge of various industry sectors."

What the team is known for

Noted for its expertise in commercial litigation and international arbitration, Kennedys represents local, regional and international clients, including corporations and small and medium-sized companies, reinsurers and local authorities, across a range of industry sectors.

What the clients say

"The Kennedys Thailand team has a strong combination of Thai and international lawyers that are smart, strategic and pragmatic. They are communicative, accessible and in general very commercial to work with."

Ranked lawyer

Suraphon Rittipongchusit (Leading Individual)
"Suraphon Rittipongchusit has a wealth of knowledge and experience in handling hospitality construction and shareholder disputes."

What the team is known for

Kennedys has a wealth of experience in handling high profile international arbitrations, notably across the insurance and hospitality sectors, and acts for a range of clients, including listed companies, corporations, as well as local and international reinsurers.

Ranked lawyer

Ian Johnston (Next generation partner)

"Ian Johnston has experience in handling arbitrations both across Southeast Asia and in the UK."

What the team is known for

Patrick George leads the team at Kennedys, which spans across Sydney, Melbourne and Perth and has a focus on insurance litigation, acting for insurers and the insured. The practice also handles commercial disputes, employment-related disputes, and reputation risk matters, representing public and private companies, senior professionals, family offices and high-profile individuals.

What the clients say

"In my view, the litigation team’s key strengths are its depth (with lawyers with a range of experience levels), its continuity and stability,  and the manner in which team members have a genuine investment in the outcome of the litigation."

"Very tactical in litigation. Strong negotiators. Very strong in use of technology."

What the team is known for

The "approachable and easy to work with" Kennedys team offers a range of corporate and financial service-related assistance.

What the clients say

"Kennedys’ litigation team constantly delivers very high-quality services. Rudy Chung, Wilson Tam and their respective teams put the client’s interests first and are efficient in providing practical, suitable and commercial solutions to clients."

"The team is not only full of specialists but they work really hard to produce the quality preparation necessary to achieve the best result. Their paperwork is top-notch. They are engaging as individuals, and individually and collectively committed to their clients’ litigation. Their instructions to counsel are always helpful and their analysis always insightful. Although good on the law, they are extremely practical and have a good commercial sense."

"Christine Tsang, Sandy Cho and Meiling Yip all share the same understated but serious and mature dedication to their cases. They are all excellent lawyers and team leaders who insist on excellence"

What the team is known for

Kennedys is well-placed to handle regional and international M&A work and acts for clients across the hospitality, retail and insurance sectors.

The corporate and commercial group is led by Supreedee Nimitkul, who represents domestic and multinational companies in commercial disputes, as well as advising on M&A transactions and joint ventures. Special counsel Tassanu Chutikanon handles M&A and restructuring matters, and is particularly active in Southeast Asia region.

What the team is known for

Kennedys handles a significant amount of advisory work for clients, including contract drafting, policy drafting and IT and data protection matters. Contentious work is also a driver of activity, including wrongful termination claims and discrimination claims. The team is led by corporate and commercial head Richard Bates. Counsel Emily Duncan is qualified in England and Wales, Australia and Hong Kong and advises individuals and employers on employment law and related litigation.

Ranked lawyer

Emily Duncan (Rising Star)

What the team is known for

Justin Le Blond and Chris Molnar lead the employment practice at Kennedys, which has a focus on acting for insurers. The team has expanded recently, with a new office opening in Perth and the addition of Jonathan Wyatt to compliment the offerings in Sydney and Melbourne. The team in Australia also benefits from the firm’s international presence.

What the team is known for

The media team at Kennedys combines experience with sophisticated AI tools to advise major corporations, politicians, and sporting groups on high-profile defamation matters.

Headed by senior partner and defamation authority Patrick George at the Sydney office, the group’s client base includes the Australian Olympic Committee, and former prime ministers the Honourable Paul Keating and the Honourable Kevin Rudd.

The group’s expertise covers pre-publication clearance, reputational management, drafting broadcast agreements, and product licensing and distribution issues. The team is supported by special counsel Nathan Buck in Sydney, and, in Melbourne, by Emily Schneider, who specialises in social media defamation claims.

Ranked lawyer

Patrick George (Leading individual)

What the team is known for

Kennedys' "helpful and responsive" Hong Kong team has a diverse client base, which includes entities from the financial services, media, healthcare and communications industries. The group also has a strong profile in the IT sector, where it has expertise in matters such as software licensing and maintenance, website design and hosting, procurement of software and hardware, and system integration. In addition, the team advises on data privacy and IP issues.

What the clients say

"The team is well-equipped to handle cyber and privacy-related matters with knowledge and industry connections needed to be able to support the matter across the region."

"Always helpful and responsive. Very efficient in delivering comprehensive but succinct legal advice which can be easily understood."

"Joanie Ko has great industry knowledge and connections with a range of forensic and crisis communication partners."

What the team is known for

Noted for its ability to assist financial sector clients, Kennedys places an emphasis on handling investigations and proceedings brought in relation to allegations of corporate crime, fraud, bribery and corruption. The team is also adept at handling general compliance issues in the insurance and securities sectors. Department head Kevin Yam draws on a wealth of experience previously gained as an in-house practitioner in the accounting space.

What the clients say

"The team are well versed in financial regulatory matters in Hong Kong, with the much needed Chinese-language capability in the current legal climate."

"The team has a no-nonsense practical approach that is efficient, leading to solutions."

What the team is known for

Kennedys Legal Solutions is a recognised force in shipping in Singapore, particularly in marine insurance. It represents many of the biggest P&I Clubs and marine insurers that are active in the region, along with a range of shipowners, charterers and other parties. The Singapore team has an established record in cases across Southeast Asia and North Asia; especially Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Japan and South Korea. Karnan Thirupathy and Nick Francis have extensive contacts across Asia Pacific and have established a reputation.

What the clients say

"Specialist marine and insurance outfit and they have specialist lawyers covering the nitty-gritty aspects for a wide range of disputes / legal problems faced by insurers / P&I Clubs."

"Plenty of knowledge and experience about both Singapore law and English law."

"Good communications with clients."

What the team is known for

The marine group at Kennedys advises domestic and international insurers, P&I clubs, shipowners, ports, and charterers involved in high-value cross-border transactions and claims. Headed by marine dispute authority Chris Finn in the Sydney office, the group assists such clients as Navigators Corporate Underwriters, Brit UW, and Markel Capital with a wide range of shipping issues. These extend to share and purchase contracts, collision and salvage claims, third-party liability claims and policy drafting. The team is supported in Sydney by shipping litigation specialist Joseph Nicholls and Peter Craney, who advises on hull, liability, and cargo insurance. Additional strength arrived with partner Jonathan Wyatt, who brought his team of eight lawyers from Clyde & Co LLP to the Perth office in May 2021.

What the clients say

"The team all put themselves in our position and try to resolve issues in the most practical way, rather than incurring fees for the sake of it."

"Peter Craney and Jonathan Wyatt are very knowledgeable across the industry segment that I work in. They are approachable to talk through issues on a face-to-face basis, which creates a basis for working towards solutions as a partnership."