Conference programme

A new generation is entering the profession just as its tools are changing fundamentally and law firms are having to manage both shifts at once. This session will examine these two developments and how they bear on one another.

1. Artificial intelligence in the firm: talent, ethics and management

• Whether AI is a useful instrument for those entering the profession, or a threat to entry-level work
• What AI means for how firms recruit, develop and assess talent, and for professional ethics
• How AI is changing business development and the management of firms

2. The new generation of lawyer

• The declining appeal of the traditional partner track and the place of work-life balance
• What has changed in recruitment, in how younger lawyers engage with firm life and what they expect from a firm
• How the generations now regard one another within the firm

Cross-border M&A in Asia Pacific is entering a new era shaped by geopolitical change, regulatory complexity, technological disruption and evolving investment priorities. This session will explore the forces expected to influence regional dealmaking through 2030, including shifts in global supply chains, foreign investment regulation, artificial intelligence, private capital, ESG and energy transition and the growth of digital infrastructure. The discussion aims to provide practical insights into how businesses and advisers can anticipate emerging trends, manage execution risks and position themselves for the next generation of cross-border transactions across the Asia Pacific region.

Cross-border litigation is often won or lost well before the first substantive hearing. A failed transaction, supply-chain breakdown or shareholder conflict may trigger proceedings in several jurisdictions, urgent applications for interim relief and a race to preserve evidence across borders. Counsel must quickly decide where to sue, how to respond to competing proceedings and how to navigate conflicting rules on service, disclosure, privilege, data transfer and confidentiality.

Drawing on practical scenarios from across the Asia-Pacific region, this session will compare common and civil law approaches to forum selection, parallel proceedings, anti-suit and other interim relief and evidence preservation.

As a major capital importer and exporter, China offers global opportunities across manufacturing, mining and energy, infrastructure and artificial intelligence/the digital economy. This session explores both directions of investment—outbound Chinese investment and inbound foreign investment—examining policy factors such as export controls, sanctions and tariffs that shape global supply chains, alongside risks and regulatory developments. Featuring lawyers, general counsel and scholars from across the Asia Pacific region, the dialogue will deliver actionable insights on navigating cross-border investment in and from China.

Artificial intelligence is fundamentally reshaping the employer-employee relationship, from recruitment and performance management to workplace monitoring and workforce mobility. For multinational organisations, the legal challenges are magnified by divergent employment, privacy and AI governance regimes across jurisdictions.

This session will examine how in-house counsel and HR leaders can navigate the rapidly evolving legal landscape while deploying AI responsibly across global workforces. The discussion will explore the compliance risks associated with AI-driven recruitment and candidate screening, including:

• algorithmic bias and local labour law obligations; 
• the growing threat of intellectual property and trade secret leakage when key employees move between competitors; 
• the tension between employee monitoring technologies and increasingly stringent data protection laws such as the European Union GDPR and South Korea’s PIPA; and 
• the complex question of liability when AI systems influence hiring, performance evaluations, promotions or disciplinary decisions.

Through practical case studies and emerging regulatory developments, the panel will provide actionable guidance on building governance frameworks that enable innovation while mitigating legal, regulatory and reputational risk in an AI-enabled workplace.

The Asia Pacific is home to the world’s most advanced chipmaking, artificial intelligence computing and materials supply chains. The region also sits at the centre of an escalating web of export controls, sanctions and countermeasures. This panel maps the trends reshaping these sectors and asks how regional companies and their counsel can plan amid permanent geopolitical and regulatory volatility.

As the US/Israel-Iran conflict has a direct impact on energy export routes, the relationships between the Gulf states and the broader Asia Pacific region, energy majors are facing higher costs on account of delayed shipments and rerouting.  While many counties in the Asia Pacific region are in the middle of the energy transition, national energy policies vary due to states’ individual energy security needs and geopolitical position. Some countries are increasingly using/developing renewables, others are expanding fossil fuels together with ammonia value chains. This session explores how legal professionals can help their clients survive and prosper in the changing business environment and in the process manage geopolitical risk.

As trade and investment activity in the Asia Pacific region continues to grow, so does the complexity of disputes spanning multiple jurisdictions and legal systems. This panel brings together leading arbitration practitioners from the region to examine the evolving landscape of cross-border dispute resolution. Panellists will discuss key considerations in structuring effective arbitration clauses, managing multi-jurisdictional proceedings and navigating the recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards — drawing on practical insights from their experience throughout the Asia Pacific region.

Fuelled by the generative artificial intelligence expansion, South Korean technology and semiconductor players have surged into the core of global technology supply chains, creating an unprecedented co-dependence between South Korean and US/global capital markets. Yet, this global capital inflow brings intensified cross-market volatility, driven by US-China tech rivalries, tightening international export controls and shifting macroeconomic policy. To stabilise domestic capital flows and align with international investor expectations, South Korea has enacted sweeping regulatory overhauls — including landmark Commercial Act amendments extending directors’ fiduciary duties to minority shareholders, mandatory treasury-share cancellations and revamped short-selling regulations. This session will examine the broader global capital ecosystem, analysing cross-border investment and ADR listing structures, supply chain compliance under geopolitical trade constraints and emerging legal disputes—ranging from institutional shareholder activism and proxy battles to international regulatory enforcement.