Dr. Vinh Quoc Nguyen, a partner with the corporate and commercial team in Tilleke & Gibbins’ Ho Chi Minh City office, has been elected to serve a one-year term as chair of the Vietnam Business Lawyers Club (VBLC), a leading professional organization affiliated with the Vietnam Bar Federation. VBLC was established in 2015 with the mission of developing a collaborative group of Vietnamese lawyers engaged in cross-border commercial practice. In addition to providing a forum for practitioners to share experience and offer mutual support, VBLC regularly conducts classes and seminars, and advises lawmakers on policy issues. A well-known figure in Vietnam legal circles, Dr. Vinh is also a lecturer at the Judicial Academy and an arbitrator with the Vietnam International Arbitration Centre (VIAC). In November 2021, he was honored by Vietnam’s Ministry of Justice for his contributions to the development of the country’s legal practice.

Tilleke & Gibbins is pleased to announce the promotion of four exceptional lawyers to the partnership, effective January 2022: Chaiwat Keratisuthisathorn is head of Tilleke & Gibbins’ property practice based in the firm’s headquarters in Bangkok. He specializes in both corporate and real estate matters in Thailand and advises an impressive range of global clients on drafting and structuring agreements related to commercial and residential acquisitions, leases, and developments; legal and land due diligence; title searches and transfers; property taxes; and all other aspects of property law in Thailand. Chaiwat is also heavily involved with M&A matters, regularly leading legal due diligence exercises ahead of major commercial transactions—especially those involving substantial portfolios of immovable assets. In addition, he advises clients on establishing and operating businesses in Thailand including foreign investment and foreign land ownership restrictions. Chaiwat holds degrees from Thammasat University and Case Western Reserve University, is a member of the Lawyers Council of Thailand and the Thai Bar Association, and currently sits on the Board of Directors for the Australian-Thai Chamber of Commerce. He is ranked as one of Thailand’s most prominent real estate lawyers by Asialaw Leading Lawyers and is described by The Legal 500 as “an expert in all facets of property law ranging from property acquisitions and lease agreements.” Charuwan Charoonchitsathian is based in Tilleke & Gibbins’ Bangkok office, where she advises multinational clients on their commercial operations in Thailand. Her client roster includes several of the largest regional and global operators in the technology, media, telecommunications, and energy sectors, who value her experience and advice on telecom regulations, fintech, project finance, data protection, business reorganization, mergers and acquisitions, and cross-border transactions. Charuwan has over a decade of experience advising clients in Thailand, and has previously held senior positions at some of Bangkok’s largest and

Partner Loc Xuan Le shared his thoughts on Vietnam’s accession to the WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT), a special agreement under the Berne Convention, with a reporter from Asia IP magazine in a recent article: “In my opinion, Vietnam’s Law on Intellectual Property has already covered and satisfied WCT’s requirements, so the accession to WCT is just us acting on our commitment when we joined the EU – Vietnam Free Trade Agreement and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. By joining WCT, Vietnam ensures that we shall provide IP rights protection at international standards, which I believe is crucial in developing Vietnam as an attractive business destination for foreign investors.” Loc further added, “On the other hand, Vietnam has a strong and growing community of artists who generate content on the Internet daily, so the official accession of Vietnam to WCT shall provide solid legal grounds to protect Vietnamese creators in the digital era. This, in return, shall act as an incentive to promote the creative sector.” Asia IP, published by the Apex Asia Media Group, is a leading source for analysis of the IP issues facing companies in Asia, and a source of market intelligence for IP owners in the region. The full article can be read at the Asia IP website.

On December 15–16, Kasamesunt Teerasitsathaporn and Pongpalin Chantrapirom of the firm’s dispute resolution group in Bangkok offered a two-part Thai-language webinar series titled “Violations of the Personal Data Protection Act and Case Studies in Europe” to equip Thai businesses with proper knowledge and understanding before Thailand’s Personal Data Protection Act comes into full effect in June 2022. In the webinar series, Kasamesunt and Pongpalin provided a comprehensive overview of obligations of the data controller and data processor; discussed civil liability, criminal offenses, and administrative penalties; addressed enforcement structures; covered complaint proceedings; and shared case studies from Europe to highlight mistakes that Thai companies should learn from. Video recordings of the two parts (in Thai) are available on the Tilleke & Gibbins YouTube channel.