Allen & Gledhill adds funds lawyer

Lynette Lee has joined Allen & Gledhill in Singapore as a partner in its investment funds practice, returning to the firm where she launched her legal career as a senior legal associate.

She is replacing Choo Wai-Hong, who recently departed to join Wong Partnership. Allen & Gledhill's managing partner, Lucien Wong, explains Choo's departure gave him the chance to beef up the investment funds practice. In addition to Lee, he has put two partners on investment funds full time, as well as two more part time.

Lee's main role will be helping fund management companies register domestic or offshore unit trusts with Singaporean regulators. The firm is also active in high-end products such as real estate investment trusts, having helped pioneer the launch of these last year.

Lucien Wong says, however, that the funds business will remain a relatively small part of the firm's overall business. "Funds are high-volume, low-margin - it's not a growth area for us. But we can't wholly service the likes of Goldman Sachs if we can't advise them on funds."

From 2002 to January, 2003 Lee was previously a partner at a joint venture between Shook, Lin & Bok and Allen & Overy. Prior to that she was legal counsel at Aberdeen Asset Management.