Leading offshore law firm Appleby has been shortlisted in several individual, firm and deal categories at the Asian Legal Business (ALB) Awards 2020. This includes "Dealmaker of the year" (Judy Lee); "Woman lawyer of the year" (Fiona Chan); "Offshore law firm of the year"; and "Equity Market deal of the year" (AMTD's Listing on Singapore Stock Exchange). The prestigious awards aim to pay tribute to the outstanding performance of private practitioners and in-house teams in Hong Kong and around the region.

In particular, three of the four nominations are female led this year, proudly demonstrating Appleby's commitment to promoting diversity across the organisation and the benefits this brings. Asia Group Head and Hong Kong partner Judy Lee has been shortlisted as "Dealmaker of the Year" two years in a row from 2019 to 2020 as well as three years in a row from 2014 to 2016, the only offshore lawyer recognised in this category for all these years. Judy has extensive experience in international and dual listings, and her work with AMTD has also been shortlisted in the "Equity Deal of the Year" category, for which we acted as a Cayman Islands counsel. Partner Paul Cheuk was also involved in the deal.

Judy Lee commented on the nominations saying "I am proud to once again have been acknowledged in the Dealmaker of the Year category and pleased to see myself and my team's capability in providing Cayman legal advice for complex listings endorsed in the Equity Market Deal of the Year category."

Hong Kong Partner Fiona Chan has once again been shortlisted for "Woman Lawyer of the Year". This is Fiona's second year in a row, recognising her active contribution to raising awareness around the challenges women confront in the workplace through leading the Female Leaders Network for Appleby in Hong Kong and her work through professional female lawyers' associations. In addition to these initiatives Fiona regularly speaks at conferences and seminars, such as the Fund Finance Symposium, Blockchain for Finance and various economic substance seminars, and leads the Banking and Finance practice for the Hong Kong office.

Fiona Chan commented "I am thrilled to be in a position to promote diversity in the legal industry and to see more female lawyers succeeding in our profession."

Managing Partner of the Hong Kong office, Cameron Adderley said "I am delighted that the exceptional service provided by our Partners and wider team has been recognised by Asian Legal Business. I am pleased to see both Judy and Fiona nominated in three categories and this endorsement of our commitment to promoting diversity in our practice. We are proud to demonstrate once again our position as a leading specialist in Hong Kong for complex offshore Bermuda, British Virgin Islands and Cayman Islands corporate advice."