Charles Russell Speechlys welcomes two new Dispute Resolution Partners in Singapore

Charles Russell Speechlys today announces the appointment of Henry Winter and Gavin Margetson as Partners within the Commercial Dispute Resolution team. Both join from Mishcon de Reya LLP and will be based in the Singapore office.

Henry specialises in cross-border dispute resolution, international commercial and investor-state arbitration, litigation, and investigations. He has significant experience working with regulators across the Asia Pacific region, representing multinational corporates, foreign investors and governments in complex disputes. Henry has a wide sector focus including international trade, fintech and cryptocurrency, energy, natural resources, financial services, fraud, infrastructure, hospitality, and construction. Prior to his time at Mishcon de Reya LLP, Henry was Senior Legal Counsel at QBE and a Senior Associate at Hogan Lovells.

Gavin is a dispute resolution specialist and focuses on international arbitration and cross-border litigation, corporate crime issues and related investigations. His practice extends to energy and TMT sectors, especially fintech, blockchain and digital assets. Gavin was previously the head of Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP’s regional arbitration hub, and prior to that a Partner in the dispute resolution team at Herbert Smith Freehills LLP (in Tokyo, Bangkok and Singapore).

Stewart Hey, Partner and Divisional Managing Partner of the Litigation and Dispute Resolution division, comments: “We are witnessing a huge increase worldwide in the International Arbitration space and with offices strategically located in our core jurisdictions across UK, Europe, Middle East and Asia, we are very well positioned to leverage this growth. The hire of two leading arbitrators and dispute resolution specialists in the region further cements the strength of our global arbitration and litigation offering and we are thrilled to have them on board.”

Simon Green, Partner and Head of Asia, comments: “This is an exciting time for our Firm in Asia. Henry and Gavin bring more than 40 years’ APAC experience between them, with decades operating in key sectors that closely align with our own areas of focus. Both have networks extending across Vietnam, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, Australia and Japan, and practices that are well aligned to the parts of the world we operate in as we execute on our international private capital strategy.”

Jeffrey Lee, Partner and Head of the Singapore office, comments: “It is wonderful to see our office continue to grow with Henry and Gavin’s appointments. Since the launch of the Singapore office in 2023, we have expanded the team significantly and remain on an exciting upwards trajectory. Singapore is absolutely key to the Firm’s international growth ambitions, given the abundance of interesting work in the region as families, individuals and businesses look to deploy and protect their capital internationally.”

Henry Winter adds: “I am delighted to be joining today. The Firm has been investing significantly across Asia in recent years and offers a strong platform for collaboration. It is also active in a wide range of sectors that I too have specialist expertise in. I look forward to meeting new colleagues across a range of practice areas and exploring opportunities for new streams of work.”

Gavin Margetson adds: “Charles Russell Speechlys has a strong reputation for International Arbitration, and I look forward to helping the Firm maintain its reputation and be seen as a major player for International Arbitration in the Singapore market. It’s fantastic to join a Firm that is growing so quickly, and I am extremely excited to contribute to its continued success.”

Simon Ridpath, Managing Partner, comments: “Asia represents a key area of growth for our Firm, and we remain committed to strengthening our offices and capabilities in the region in a way that aligns with our Private Capital strategy. We already have strong Private Client, Corporate Tax and Real Estate offerings within the region, and these two senior hires showcase the breadth and depth of our Firm and the wide range of services we can provide to our clients internationally.”

The news follows the appointment of Tun Zaw Mra in the Corporate team in Singapore earlier in January, as the Singapore office has continued to grow since its launch in 2023. The Firm was also recognised within the 2024 Asian Legal Business (ALB) Asia Fastest Growing Firms list in December 2024, and posted 30% revenue growth in Asia in its last set of financial results.

Related coverage:

Law.com International (subscription required), Global Arbitration Review, Commercial Dispute Resolution (subscription required), Asia Business Law Journal, Asian Legal Business, Wealth Briefing Asia, Global Legal Insights