London-based international law firm RPC has appointed Antony Sassi, its Asia managing partner based in Hong Kong, as the new global head. This move highlights the firm's ongoing focus on Asia, as confirmed by Asia Business Law Journal. Sassi, a litigator qualified in both Hong Kong and England and Wales, will succeed James Miller, the current global managing partner and insurance practice veteran, on May 1, 2025. Sassi will relocate to London to take on the role for a four-year term.
Sassi told Asia Business Law Journal, that having spent more than a decade helping to build RPC’s platform in Asia, he was acutely aware of the opportunities and challenges the markets and this region presented.
“Our disputes and regulatory practices across the Hong Kong and Singapore offices remain extremely busy, driven by a diverse caseload. A significant portion of our activity in Hong Kong is professional indemnity cases, which remain particularly active in the region.”
The UK firm said that a new Asia managing partner would not be appointed. In August 2023, RPC restructured the management of its Asia offices with the appointment of partner Charles Allen as Hong Kong office head, and partner Navin Joseph Lobo as Singapore office leader.
As the current Asia managing partner, Sassi emphasized an integral part of the global strategy played by his firm’s international desks, including Japan, Indonesia, and South Korea. He said RPC was not tied to any formal alliances or representative offices, calling it a rigid approach that seldom delivered the best solution for either the client or the firm with expertise not often being the best fit for the matter at hand.
“With a significant investment from the firm, we have enjoyed great success to date in the development of our international desks. This is an area where we are highly ambitious, and we continue to explore opportunities with the right partners and in the right places,” he said.
Under his upcoming global leadership, Sassi said his priority would be ensuring the Asia practice remained fully integrated with the firm’s global platform and growth strategy while continuing to strengthen its international presence in core areas of expertise such as disputes, regulatory, insurance, and reinsurance, and corporate and commercial.
“Our pipeline for disputes work in Hong Kong and Singapore remains robust, with key drivers including regulatory changes and enforcement, market volatility driven by economic uncertainties, and professional negligence claims”, he added.
RPC has been expanding its partner bench in its Asia offices in Hong Kong and Singapore, operating through a joint law venture with local firm Premier Law in Singapore. Last June, the UK firm hired M&A expert Kiat Wee Lau, a former partner at WongPartnership, one of Singapore’s largest firms, to strengthen its corporate practice in the city. In Hong Kong, RPC enhanced its commercial disputes practice by bringing on partner Ivan Chang, previously a partner at Addleshaw Goddard, in September 2023 to bolster general dispute resolution and contentious regulatory work.