British Virgin Islands

Cayman Islands

Dubai

Hong Kong

Jersey

London

British Virgin Islands

Walkers' office in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) opened in July 2002 and is led by resident managing partner Heidi de Vries. It is a full service law office providing advice on all aspects of BVI law with particular emphasis on matters of corporate and international finance law and trusts. Through its affiliate companies management company, Walkers is also able to facilitate the incorporation and management of companies in the BVI.

The BVI is a group of more than forty islands situated in the Eastern Caribbean approximately sixty miles east of Puerto Rico. It follows United States Eastern Standard Time and is connected by frequent daily flights to San Juan in Puerto Rico. San Juan is an international juncture with direct flights to the United States, South America and Europe.

As a British Overseas Territory, the BVI offers security and stability. The territory is responsible for its own internal self-government and is governed by democratically elected officials. The BVI has an independent legal and judicial system based on English Common Law, with a right of final appeal to the Privy Council in London.

The BVI's policies and legislation have all been developed in close partnership with the private sector ensuring that they meet the needs of the financial community. Through this partnership, the BVI government has established sophisticated and efficient supervision and regulation to safeguard the integrity of the jurisdiction while creating an operating environment that is highly attractive to private enterprise.

Further information about the BVI can be found at the web site of the BVI Financial Services Commision at www.bvifsc.vg

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Cayman Islands

The Cayman Islands office was opened in January 1964 and is Walkers' main office. Led by Global Managing Partner, Grant Stein, the Cayman office is consistently ranked in the number one tier of Cayman based law firms by all leading legal directories and periodicals and attracts leading international financial and corporate clients. These include major financial institutions, investment banks, arrangers, promoters and managers, leading law firms, accounting firms, major corporations of all kinds, partnerships, trust companies and other fiduciaries.

An extensive team of lawyers and support staff focus principally on corporate and international finance law, with an emphasis on capital markets and structured finance, asset finance and investment funds. The Cayman office has an international reputation as the leading hedge fund and private equity funds practice in the Cayman Islands, advising the best-known asset managers, promoters and institutional investors in the investment world for more than four decades.

In addition, the Cayman office is internationally recognised as having the premier insolvency and restructuring group in the Cayman Islands. It also has an experienced commercial litigation, private client and trust department, as well as specialist banking, trust disputes, e-commerce, insurance and regulatory groups.

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Dubai

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Hong Kong

Walkers' office in Hong Kong is led by resident managing partner Hugh O'Loughlin.

The Hong Kong office is fully linked to our global IT network and enables Walkers to offer real-time Cayman and BVI legal advice during Asian office hours.

Our Hong Kong office advises clients throughout the ASEAN region and from locations including People's Republic of China, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Australia, Taiwan, Japan and South Korea. If required, clients may speak with fluent Mandarin, Cantonese or Japanese speakers. Contact Denise Wong, Lora Yip, Thomas Granger or Skip Hashimoto.

The Hong Kong general corporate and funds team provides specialist advice on mergers and acquisitions, mutual and hedge funds, unit trusts, private equity and joint ventures, public offerings of shares and securities of offshore companies listed on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and the Growth Enterprise Market (GEM) and general commercial matters. Contact Philip Millward or Carol Hall.

The Hong Kong finance team provides specialist advice on banking, capital markets, structured debt, asset and project financing and securitisation. Contact Hugh O'Loughlin or John Rogers.

The Hong Kong office also advises on the formation of companies, partnerships and a range of investment vehicles, the formation of trusts and the management of companies and partnerships and the provision of nominee directors, corporate officers and shareholders.

The Hong Kong office worked on the Mandra Forestry deal, which recently won the "Debt and Equity Linked Deal of the Year" award at the 2006 IFLR Asian Awards.

The Hong Kong office works closely with the Tokyo branch of Walkers SPV Limited.

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Jersey

Walkers' office in Jersey was established in July 2006 by merger with one of the oldest and most reputable law firms in Jersey, Crills Advocates. The office is led by managing partner Julie Melia. It is a full service law office providing advice on all aspects of Jersey law with particular emphasis on matters of corporate and international finance law, real estate, litigation and trusts. Through its affiliated management company, Walkers is also able to facilitate the management of companies in Jersey.

Jersey is located in the English Channel and is the largest of the Channel Islands, which are dependencies of the British Crown. Jersey is 15 miles from the Normandy coast of France and SE of Guernsey. Saint Helier, the capital, is on St. Aubin's Bay.

Further information about Jersey can be found at the web site of the Jersey Financial Services Commission www.jerseyfsc.org.

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London

Walkers established a presence in London in 1999 and expanded in 2001 with the opening of new offices in Gracechurch Street, in the heart of the City of London. Led by resident managing partner David Whittome our London office provides greater proximity to the firm's European client base and enables the firm to provide time zone sensitive advice.

We advise leading financial institutions and corporations worldwide in relation to Cayman Islands law. Specialisations cover a wide area of institutional expertise and include banking, capital markets, structured debt, securitisations, asset financing, captive insurance, international equity offerings and listings, mutual and hedge funds, venture capital, commercial and private trusts and commercial and trust litigation.

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