Herzfeld Rubin Meyer & Rose is the First Licensed American Law Firm to Open in Myanmar

YANGON, Myanmar and NEW YORK, Oct. 25, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Herzfeld & Rubin PC announced today that on July 29^th, 2013, it became the first American law firm to open a law office in Myanmar, as well as the first U.S. investor in the professional services industry to hold a 100% ownership interest under the new 2012 Myanmar Investment Law.  The new law office, which is staffed by both American and Myanmar attorneys, is named Herzfeld, Rubin, Meyer & Rose Law Firm LTD (HRMR) and is located in Yangon, Myanmar. The firm also plans to open a satellite office in Nay Pyi Taw, the national capital.

An on-the-ground presence in Myanmar allows the firm to support the needs of its global clients as they navigate business opportunities in Myanmar and, more broadly, in Southeast Asia. The office, which is fully integrated with Herzfeld & Rubin's affiliated offices in the United States, Romania and Israel, leverages the firm's deep bench of expertise in emerging and frontier markets. It offers a full-range of legal and business development services in international transactions, banking, corporate law, commercial litigation and international arbitration, employment law and immigration, energy, government affairs, insurance coverage analysis, intellectual property, real estate, trade (import/export) law, and personal wealth administration.

"Herzfeld & Rubin's attorneys have a rich history of helping develop legal frameworks in several emerging and frontier economies around the world, and our presence in Myanmar represents a substantial commitment to Southeast Asia. The HRMR law office, the first of its kind in Myanmar, will assure foreign investors, and specifically American companies, that their interests will be represented with the same skill, expertise and ethical standards from which they benefit elsewhere in the world," said Eric C. Rose, a principal of HRMR.  Mr. Rose, whose legal experience has covered more than 50 countries across the globe, has been involved with Myanmar since American Standard's entry into the country prior to the 2003 imposition of U.S. sanctions.

Dr. Andrew Ngun Cung Lian, who was educated in the U.S. and also served as the Deputy Chief Negotiator of the Chin National Front (CNF) in its peace negotiations with the Myanmar Government, will serve as Managing Director of the office and will lead a staff of five American and Myanmar attorneys. 

U Kyaw Hoe, one of the leading civil and criminal litigation experts in Myanmar and a member of the National League for Democracy (NLD) party's Central Committee, heads HRMR's Litigation practice and is a leading Myanmar attorney, representing clients in contracts, real estate, labor and immigration law, as well as intellectual property matters.

In 2013, in part as a result of significant positive changes in Myanmar, the European Union and other countries lifted most trade sanctions previously imposed on Myanmar.  The United States recently suspended or let expire a number of sanctions in recognition of the political and economic reforms under the leadership of President U Thein Sein, as well as of the Myanmar Parliament, in particular the Pyithu Hluttaw under Speaker Thura U Shwe Mann. These substantial changes have included the adoption of over forty new laws (including the Foreign Investment Law).  In addition, the Myanmar government has made a successful effort to negotiate peace treaties with all of the major ethnic groups, has abolished press censorship, freed political prisoners, held free by-elections, and instituted other confidence building measures.

"The result of sweeping political and economic reform has ignited interest in Myanmar by American and other global investors—including our clients. Their renewed focus in the region, and Southeast Asia generally, is the impetus behind our decision to establish a presence there," said Herzfeld & Rubin's Managing Director, Ian Ceresney.

In the infancy of sustained economic development, Myanmar is home to more than sixty million people and has abundant natural resources including natural gas, petroleum, timber, tin, zinc, copper, lead, coal, precious stones, and fertile lands.  Adding a stable government and a hard-working, literate and dedicated work force, Myanmar is at a pivotal moment. Analysts predict that Myanmar could quadruple the size of its economy and create more than ten million nonagricultural jobs.

Founded in 1948 and headquartered in New York City, Herzfeld & Rubin P.C., an AV-rated firm listed in the Martindale-Hubbell® Bar Register of Pre-Eminent Lawyers™, is a full-service, internationally-known law firm with over 200 attorneys in New York and four affiliated offices in the United States, Europe and Israel. It is also a member of the Alliott Group, a worldwide alliance of over 180 independent accounting, law and consulting firms located in 80 countries, allowing the firm to fully meet the local and cross-border needs of its clients.

SOURCE Herzfeld, Rubin, Meyer & Rose Law Firm LTD