I am very pleased to share with you the first edition of our new alumni newsletter as part of what I hope will grow into an expanded alumni program. The above photo is the view from the 13^th floor of our offices at One Taikoo Place. If you haven’t had a chance to stop by, I hope you can come by soon to check it out.

For those of you who do not know me, I am the current HK/China Managing Partner. One of my goals is to develop greater connectivity with former Baker McKenzie colleagues who have gone on to new challenges, whether they be in-house, with other law firms, or out of law completely. Our hope is to deliver this newsletter to you twice a year.

In addition to this bi-annual publication, we hope to launch in person and virtual alumni events and networking opportunities. We want to ensure this is two-way engagement, so we have also created an alumni mailbox (click here), so that if you have any questions you’d like to ask, suggestions for events, content to share with the wider network, or anything or anyone you would like us to profile in this publication, we would be very keen to hear about it. Alternatively, you can email me directly here.

In this edition, we have managed to get a little time with our new Global Chair, Milton Cheng, to get his thoughts regarding taking on his new global role, as well as hearing from Marianne Shaw, who many of you will know as one of our longest serving and most trusted HK-based BD managers. And from his home in Western Australia, we hear from former Hong Kong Managing Partner David Fleming about life after retiring from the Firm. We also have a bit of news on what is happening at the Firm now.

We hope you enjoy and gain something from the publication, and look forward to hearing from you, including what you would like to see in future editions.

Warm regards,
Steven Sieker
HK/China Managing Partner

Alumni News spoke to Marianne Shaw, former AP Senior Client Development Manager, and now Director of Conservation Systems, Asia Pacific, The Nature Conservancy, about transferable skills and a different type of business travel. Read more

After nine months in the top job, HK-based Baker McKenzie Global Chair Milton Cheng has faced more challenges than many law firm leaders would over their entire tenure. Here Milton reflects on an eventful start to his new role. Read more

This issue we catch up with David Fleming, former HK Managing Partner and multiple Christmas party talent show winner. Find out what he has been doing since retiring from Baker McKenzie. Read more

We also have updates on what is happening at the Firm now, from farewells to our long-serving retirees to warm welcome to new joiners in 2020, and a high-stakes inter-department Table Tennis Tournament. Read more