The firm also brought in its first Mandarin-speaking mariner
Ince’s Singapore arm, Incisive Law LLC, has announced the regional and specialist practice heads for its office.
The firm elected Kimarie Cheang as the head of the China group, Boaz Chan as admiralty head, Mohammad Haireez as litigation head and Wole Olufunwa as head of the Africa group.
Cheang specialises in maritime, oil and gas, mining and offshore industry disputes. She has handled non-contentious matters such as trade finance and regulatory issues, and provided advice to global clients.
She has in-house experience gained from her time seconding in international companies, and is qualified to practise in Singapore, Hong Kong and the UK. As head of the China group, she will take point in advising Singapore companies, major Chinese companies in Singapore and international companies doing business in China.
Chan is a litigator with particular expertise in maritime and shipping law, taking on contentious and non-contentious shipping matters. He has investigated and handled high-profile maritime casualties and claims in both Singapore and throughout the APAC region. He is qualified to practise in Singapore and England.
Litigation and arbitration expert Haireez has a particular focus on international trade, commodities, energy and maritime disputes. He has advised on high-profile disputes, including one that involved a major oil trader and its related shipping arm filing for insolvency protection and judicial management in Singapore.
Last year, the Singapore Academy of Law named him an accredited specialist in maritime and shipping law; he was among the youngest lawyers in the inaugural select group of Singapore-qualified lawyers.
Singapore-based Olufunwa is a director in Incisive Law, and has over a decade of experience in contentious commercial law. He has advised on matters involving the shipping, international trade, energy (mining/coal/LNG/offshore) and investment sectors in Asia, the UK and West Africa.
He is an expert in international arbitration, and is qualified to practise in the UK. He has been crucial to the growth of the firm’s West Africa business.
“We look forward to working closely with these new and talented leaders in our Singapore practice and are confident that Kimarie, Boaz, Haireez and Wole will lead the firm and the Ince network to even greater heights,” said Bill Ricquier and Wai Yue Loh, the joint managing director of Incisive Law. “Rewarding well-deserved talent has always been a part of what we do as a firm and we believe these strategic roles will enhance our market-leading position in the legal services sector within their specialist practice group areas and clients could continue to benefit from our local and international offerings.”
The firm also welcomed Extra Master Mariner Binoy Dubey to the roster as admiralty manager and James Ng as marine manager. Dubey, formerly of Reed Smith, is a seasoned veteran when it comes to handling seagoing and onshore maritime and legal claims, and has become knowledgeable in the Indian market as well. Meanwhile, Ng has worked with the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore, and is the first Mandarin-speaking mariner in Ince history.
“It pleases me to see such an investment in talent from Incisive Law and I am confident that everyone is excited to settle into their new roles and will continue to offer industry leading service to present and future clients,” Ince Group CEO Adrian Biles said. “At Ince, we are driven by attracting top talent and building industry leading teams and we have demonstrated this through our recent focus on our maritime practice, for which we are renowned. Our worldwide mariner team is one of the largest mariner teams within the legal sector.”
