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Latham & Watkins has advised energy and infrastructure company Dian Swastatika Sentosa (DSS) on the proposed sale of its 67 percent stake in Indonesia-listed Golden Energy Mines (GEMS) to United Fiber System (UFS) for S$1.55 billion ($1.24 billion), a deal that is expected to boost GEM’s profile as a regional coal company.

International law firm Reed Smith has poached the former head of Gateley’s construction team, Paul Taylor, as it seeks to expand and strengthen its construction disputes practice in Dubai.

Indian law firm Clasis Law has added to its Mumbai team with the hiring of shipping expert Harsh Pratap as a partner from local firm PSP Law Office.

Mallesons Stephen Jaques has acted for Singapore’s Ascendas Group and global hospitality giant Accor Group on the acquisition of a 49.2 percent stake worth $327 million in Australia’s Mirvac Wholesale Hotel Fund, an example of the growing global interest in Australian real estate.

ATMD Bird & Bird recently announced that former Baker & McKenzie.Wong & Leow partner Lorraine Anne Tay will be joining its intellectual property and technology practice in Singapore.

U.S. firm King & Spalding recently hired Mohammed Javid Shafi as counsel in its Middle East and Islamic Finance Practice Group at its Riyadh affiliate office. The law firm also recruited Simon Rahimzada as senior associate for its Abu Dhabi office. Both recruitments are part of the firm’s growth strategy in the region.

International law firm Jones Day has nabbed former Simmons & Simmons real estate head Duane Keighran and senior associate David Weir, as it looks to expand its Dubai office and bolster its real estate and projects practice.

Tilleke & Gibbins has promoted its Vietnam-based corporate/commercial expert Michael Lee to partnership in Ho Chi Minh City; a move that reflects the growing amount of corporate work originating in Vietnam for the firm.

International law firm Vinson & Elkins has ramped up its Middle East projects and finance practice by hiring former Norton Rose project finance head Dominic Harvey as partner, and recruiting five new associates at its Abu Dhabi and Dubai offices.

Offshore firm Mourant Ozannes recently opened a Hong Kong office, its first in Asia, to capitalise on the region’s growth opportunities and facilitate clients’ needs for offshore legal advisory.This is the firm’s fifth branch, alongside its existing outposts in the Cayman Islands, Guernsey, Jersey and London.

DFDL Mekong has hired Henri-Frédéric Hibon, former Rio Tinto Alcan chief counsel, as senior adviser for its Regional Energy, Mining and Infrastructure and Regional M&A practice groups. He will be based in Yangon, and will lead the expansion of DFDL’s M&A practice group in the region.

U.S. firm Morrison & Foerster ushered in the new year by electing 14 lawyers to partnership across nine out of its 15 global offices in January this year. Two of the 14 promotions took place at the firm’s Tokyo and Hong Kong offices.

Former Clifford Chance Asia finance partner Bruce Schulberg, who was with the firm’s Beijing branch till recently, will be joining the Singapore office of Hogan Lovells on Jan. 30 this year.

U.S. firm Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson recently recruited former Herbert Smith partner Carolyn Sng to shore up its Hong Kong office’s corporate capabilities.

Canadian law firm Bennett Jones has hired former Taylor Wessing partner Osama Hassan as senior partner at its Dubai office, bolstering its corporate practice in the United Arab Emirates as a result.

Dacheng Law Offices, one of the largest law firms in Asia and the first Chinese firm to enter into a joint law venture (JLV) in Singapore, has severed ties with its original partner, Central Chambers, and formed a new JLV with Wong Alliance. The new venture will be called Dacheng Wong Alliance (DCWA).

DFDL Mekong has appointed corporate partner Jérôme Buzenet, most recently of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, as its deputy country managing director for Vietnam in Ho Chi Minh City.

Sweet & Maxwell Asia, a division of Thomson Reuters, recently launched WestLaw Malaysia, a comprehensive and accessible legal research tool for the legal, accountancy and regulatory markets in the country.

Debt restructuring talks at Zabeel Investments, owned by the crown prince of Dubai, have ground to a halt with multiple loans in limbo and few assets available for sale, leaving banks facing steep haircuts, five people familiar with the matter said.

International firm DLA Piper recently appointed former Abercrombie & Fitch Asia senior director and general legal counsel William Marshall as an of counsel at its Hong Kong office.