SHANGHAI, March 1, 2017: Morgan Lewis is pleased to announce that K. Lesli Ligorner and a team of four lawyers, including one of counsel, have agreed to join the firm, building on Morgan Lewis’s growing presence in China and strengthening its broader global capabilities in the employment and corporate investigations areas. Ms. Ligorner has worked in China for more than a decade, where she is well known for representing US and multinational companies doing business in China and throughout Asia.
Ms. Ligorner’s practice focuses on employment policies and compliance issues; US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and local anticorruption compliance; employment discrimination and harassment issues; global mobility and immigration; employment and anticorruption due diligence in mergers and acquisitions; protection of trade secrets; and unionization and collective bargaining.
Ms. Ligorner and the team who join with her have handled sensitive investigations for US companies facing whistleblower allegations of public corruption and kickbacks, and have led numerous investigations into corruption at the subsidiaries of US-listed companies in China. Ms. Ligorner also has advised global investment banks on employment, unionization, and collective bargaining strategies in China, as well as a global Fortune 200 company with a large presence in China in the conversion of labor dispatch workers to direct hires.
“Lesli combines a highly regarded background in employment, corporate investigations, and compliance matters with a deep familiarity with China. Our multinational clients with workforce and compliance issues will benefit greatly from her extensive experience and keen insights,” said Firm Chair Jami McKeon. “And her decision to join Morgan Lewis comes at a very exciting time, right after we just added to our growing teams in Shanghai and Beijing, and have expanded into Hong Kong.”
Recognized by Chambers Global in Band 1, China, Employment Law, and Band 2, China, Corporate Investigations/Anti-Corruption, Ms. Ligorner was named Lawyer of the Year for Labor and Employment by China Law & Practice and Asia Money Women in Business Law. She also was named for three consecutive years as one of the Attorneys Who Matter in the labor and employment category by the Ethisphere Institute, which recognized her for advancing corporate ethics and compliance.
Joining with Ms. Ligorner are of counsel Dora Wang, and Katherine Liu, Xiaoqian Zhou, and Kevin Yang. The four lawyers have started with Morgan Lewis, while Ms. Ligorner’s start date will follow the completion of her notice period with her prior firm.
The addition of Ms. Ligorner and her team highlights the firm’s global commitment to its employment and corporate investigations practice, and builds on the firm’s recent expansion in the Asia-Pacific region. Last month, Morgan Lewis expanded significantly its Greater China corporate, capital markets, mergers and acquisitions, and private equity practice with the addition of 40 lawyers and legal professionals in Hong Kong, Beijing, and Shanghai. Last year, the firm expanded its mainland China representative office in Beijing and branch office of Morgan Lewis Consulting in Shanghai with a team of more than 25 lawyers and legal professionals. In 2015, Morgan Lewis secured a key base of operations in Singapore with its novel combination with The Stamford Law Firm. In 2014, Morgan Lewis expanded its Tokyo office with the addition of the leading asset management regulatory practice from Bingham McCutchen.