WLN London Conference Report

 

 London called… And WLN answered!

With the largest delegation of lawyers at a conference in five years, our meeting in London forged new connections, strengthened inter-firm relationships, and created many memories for years to come. The motto of our conference was ‘Bridging Borders for International Business’; and both our business and social events were curated with this goal in mind.

Over 70 delegates & guests travelled from 20 countries to join this truly international conference and it was wonderful to spend time networking, knowledge-sharing, and exploring London with them all.

Huge thanks are due to our great hosts, ebl miller rosenfalck. Their team worked hard to organise an interesting and engaging program of events (and they even succeeded in convincing the weather gods to bless us all with some British sunshine – at least on Friday!).

 

Evening program 16th May:

The conference commenced with a wonderful welcome reception hosted by ebl miller rosenfalck at their offices in Farringdon. A big thanks to Steen Rosenfalck and the whole firm for hosting this reception and for providing such a warm welcome.

Our restaurant on Thursday evening was the top floor and roof terrace of Smiths of Smithfield, overlooking the historic Smithfield Market. Smithfield is the famous death site of Wat Tyler, leader of the 1381 Peasants’ Revolt in England, who met his fate at the hands of King Richard II after negotiations turned sour… Luckily our dinner was much less eventful, though I hope will also be remembered.

 

Business program Friday 17th May:

We met for our internal network conference in the historic Law Society on Chancery Lane, in the Strand, Fleet and Bell Room. It was interesting to listen to and participate in the following presentations and discussions:

• ‘The UK Legal System & International Arbitration’: Simon Newman (barrister at Enterprise Chambers, London) andProf. Steve Ngo (arbitration specialist at Aquinas Law Alliance and Founding President of Beihai Asia International Arbitration Centre, Singapore) shared the stage to discuss the strengths and limitations of court systems and arbitration. We also learned about the role of the barrister in the UK and how the journeys to becoming a barrister differs from that of a solicitor. Thank you to Kevin Harrison (ebl miller rosenfalck, London) for introducing our speakers and moderating.
• ‘Cybersecurity-Gate’: The WLN Technology Focus Group led this important discussion, outlining relevant cases and sharing preventative advice to support our firms to become resilient against cybercrime. The panel was led and moderated by the Group’s chair Diane Frank (Schmid Frank, Augsburg). We thank the panellists for sharing their expertise:Renata L. Lewicka (Gorazda, Świstuń, Wątroba i Partnerzy adwokaci i radcowie prawni, Kraków); Jakob Tasser (bureau Plattner, Bolzano), Chris Erb (White and Williams LLP, Philadelphia); and Jackie Wu (Long An Law Firm, Shanghai).
• ‘Business and Trade in the UK’: Lord Dominic Johnson of Lainston CBE was appointed Minister of State in the Department for Business and Trade on 7 February 2023. The Minister outlined why he believes the English rule of law plays a huge role in attracting foreign investment into the UK. We thank Steen Rosenfalck (ebl miller rosenfalck, London) for introducing the Minister and for moderating his presentation.
• Legal London Tour: The Temple area of London is steeped in legal history. With our knowledgeable and fantastic guides, Kevin Harrison and Laura Smith from ebl miller rosenfalck, we explored the Royal Courts of Justice and the Four Inns of Court.

Our network has welcomed four new firms recently and we were delighted to meet some of our new members in London. Thank you to Gary Biehn for introducing White and Williams LLP (USA), and Jacob Shwergold for introducing Abadi, Oiknine & Co (Israel). We look forward to meeting our other new firms, Legarreta y Asociados (Mexico) and SG Global Advice (Kazakhstan) at future events.

We were thrilled to welcome lawyers from ASEAN Legal Alliance: Aloysius Wee and Prof. Steve Ngo from Aquinas Law Alliance (Singapore); Matthew Yeoh and Joy Cheng from Yeoh Mazlina & Partners (Malaysia); and Kang Leap and Mao Samvutheary from HML Law Firm (Cambodia). Coupled with the fantastic presence from WLN members in Europe, China, UAE, and USA, our conference in London expediated business opportunities and relationships across the continents.

 

Evening program 17th May:

Licence to Grill…

For many of us the evening began with a walk towards the City and of course a quick photo stop outside of St Paul’s Cathedral. By the time we reached the steps of 1 Lombard Street, lawyers had truly been transformed into secret agents – MI6 has nothing on WLN…

Where to begin? Our Bond-inspired reception allowed for a tasting of several gin cocktails, including Vesper Martinis and French 75s, and everyone looked the part of a suave agent (or villain?…). We then enjoyed a three-course meal and more socialising, followed by drinks and dancing at Be At One in Covent Garden. It is safe to say that we were the only people with a licence to thrill on the dancefloor…

Business program Saturday 18th May:

On Saturday morning we had the great pleasure of welcoming experienced communication expert and voice coach Kim A. Page, who led an interactive and insightful session about Making Your Mark: Executive Presence & Networking. With over 20 years in the field, Kim brings a strategic perspective to her sessions and her book The Right Kind of Loud – Finding Your Communication Voice, is part of the curriculum at several business schools.

This session was extra special, for both Kim and the network. David Elvira met Kim 15 years ago when she delivered an impressive speech about how to influence as a speaker to WIJUS Barcelona, a German-speaking young entrepreneur organization, of which David was a member. At both events David introduced Kim and moderated the session. Within the stunningly historic Middle Temple, we learnt how to decode non-verbal cues to enable us to influence with our executive impact and presence.

 

Social program Saturday 18th May:

After a couple of wonderful days exploring London’s legal district, we had the opportunity to be whisked around other areas of the city on a Routemaster, including Borough Market and Covent Garden, with photo stops on London Bridge and opposite the London Eye in between.

The iconic red double-decker bus gave us a flavour of the traditional, whilst the flowing bubbles and disco music transported us back to the party atmosphere of Friday evening, and we soaked up more time to have fun and socialise together before the conference ended. Oh, and the sun even came out for the final hour!

Sometimes it really isn’t about the destination or the journey, but the company we keep along the way.

Thank you, ebl miller rosenfalck, for hosting this fabulous event in London!

 

Will you join us at our next conference in Autumn 2024?

We look forward to seeing you in…

BANGKOK!

25-28 September 2024

“Rising Global Trends”

This is the first time ever that Warwick Legal Network and ASEAN Legal Alliance have hosted a joint conference – you will not want to miss this momentous occasion!

 

For further information, please contact:

Hannah Mason, WLN Manager

e: manager@warwicklegal.com

 

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