Private client specialist firm Charles Russell Speechlys has hired international arbitration and investigations expert Peter Brabant as a partner in its recently opened Singapore office from King & Spalding, where he was a counsel.
His hire means that CRS’ Singapore office, which was launched in July last year, now has three partners. The others are Simon Green, the firm’s head of Asia, and Jeffrey Lee, both of whom relocated from Hong Kong.
With over 15 years of experience acting for clients in the Asia-Pacific region, Brabant focuses on resolving international construction and energy disputes, and investor-state arbitrations relating to decommissioning and energy transition.
He also has an investigations practice and acts for companies in Asia, Australia and the Middle East on matters ranging from anti-bribery/corruption, incident response and fraud to cybersecurity and anti-trust.
Prior to joining CRS, Brabant spent over four years at King & Spalding in Singapore, advising on contentious matters in the energy, projects, and infrastructure sectors. He started his career in Australian law firm Corrs Chambers Westgarth before joining Jones Day focusing on disputes and investigations. Brabant moved to Singapore in 2017 to complete a secondment at Chevron, where he managed disputes and investigations for the oil and gas major’s downstream businesses.
“In terms of the market perception of us as a firm, Peter’s arrival is incredibly significant. We offer a range of legal services from Singapore, and his addition means we can solidify and expand our international arbitration offering in the region,” said Lee, head of the firm’s Singapore office and private client partner, in a statement.
The London-headquartered firm, known for its specialisation in private wealth, real estate, and tax offerings, has been keen to bolster its arbitration and investigations practices in the Asia Pacific region.
“Bringing Peter on board means we have a disputes partner on the ground who can best serve clients in Singapore and across the Asia Pacific region and directly leverage the expanding and evolving opportunities in the market,” said Thomas Snider, head of international arbitration, in the statement.
