KPMG Law’s merger with ZICO Law has suffered exits, with member firms in Cambodia, Indonesia and Malaysia breaking away and operating independently since their departure in April.
In December 2022, KPMG International announced that several law firms and teams from the ZICO Law network had joined its network. The KPMG and ZICO merger brought nearly 300 additional lawyers, including about 80 partners, from 10 Southeast Asian jurisdictions: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, with Malaysia having the largest number of lawyers.
Stuart Fuller, KPMG’s former global head of legal services, spearheaded the merger deal.
However, Hanim Hamzah has now left KPMG. She was the former regional managing partner of the ZICO Law network, the former regional head of legal services at KPMG and the former head of corporate at ZICO’s Indonesian member firm, Roosdiono & Partners.
King & Wood Mallesons’ chief global operating officer, Wang Rongkang, confirmed with Asia Business Law Journal that Hamzah has been appointed as the firm’s international partner for business development, following her departure from KMPG. She played a key role in the merger, taking on multiple roles as a partner at both Roosdiono & Partners and its Malaysian counterpart, Zaid Ibrahim & Co.
Hamzah also served as a senior adviser at Icon Law in Singapore, which operates under a “best friends” arrangement with KPMG Law, though it is not an official member of the network.
“Due to regulatory requirements at the moment, we are not an official member of the KPMG Law network, but we are best friends firms in Singapore, and we get referrals from the KPMG Law network,” Icon Law’s managing partner Chun Bin Soh told ABLJ.
He added that the departure of the other firms has not impacted their existing relationship, and they continue to work with other members of the KPMG Law network whenever possible.
In Malaysia, Gilbert Gan, a managing partner at Zaid Ibrahim & Co, also confirmed the firm’s exit from the merger. “Zaid Ibrahim & Co regularly considers how to ensure it is best positioned to meet the changing needs of our clients, both worldwide and in Malaysia,” said Gan. He added that the firm would continue to work closely with KPMG Law on client matters when appropriate.
A KPMG spokesperson also commented: “KPMG regularly considers how to ensure it is best positioned to meet the changing needs of clients in the markets and territories in which it operates.” The spokesperson said that this sometimes results in changes to how a jurisdiction is covered, which can include firms leaving the KPMG global network. These decisions are based on domestic market factors and do not affect KPMG Law’s strategy.
ZICO Law in Laos remains unaffected. “ZICO Law is an independent law firm operating in Laos, which is not included in the KPMG-ZICO Law merger,” said Aristotle David, a managing partner at ZICO Law Laos. He confirmed that recent developments have not impacted their operations, which continue as usual.
In Cambodia, ZICO’s former partner, Sok Siphana & Associates, has found a new foreign ally. The firm recently announced an alliance with European firm Kinstellar and local firm Sethalay Law Office, following its departure from the network. The new alliance, named “Sok Siphana Sethalay in association with Kinstellar Southeast Asia”, is led by Vanseka Sok, the new managing partner of the alliance and a former managing partner of Sethalay Law Office.
