Two Leading Law Firms Join Forces To Create Global Offshore Enterprise

by Amanda Banks, for LawAndTax-News.com, London

19 January 2004

It emerged last week that Bermuda's Appleby Spurling & Kempe, and the Cayman Islands' Hunter & Hunter are to merge their business operations on April 1, 2004, forming a hundred-lawyer offshore specialist firm.

The move was approved by partners of Appleby Spurling & Kempe and Hunter & Hunter in December.

In addition, the firms revealed that they would be expanding their presence in the British Virgin Islands, an announcement which prompted executive director of the BVI International Finance Centre, Lorna Smith to remark that:

"The British Virgin Islands is very positive about this development. It shows that the market is demanding a specialist legal infrastructure, and also that BVI's status as a preferred location for business continues to grow and be enhanced."

The firms will additionally be expanding their presence in Hong Kong and London.

The specialities of the combined group, which will be known as Appleby Spurling Hunter, will include: general company and corporate advice, insurance, funds and investment services, asset finance and banking, telecommunications, dispute resolution, insolvency and restructuring, capital markets and financial structures, trusts and real property.

Additionally, the legal offerings will be complemented by trust, corporate administration and company management services.

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