Apr 2024
Conyers is pleased to confirm the promotion of three lawyers to Partner in the Cayman Islands, Hong Kong and London.
Newly-promoted Partners are Róisín Liddy-Murphy in the Cayman Islands, Ryan McConvey in Hong Kong and Barnabas Finnigan in London.
Conyers Chairman and Global Managing Partner Christian Luthi said, “On behalf of my fellow Conyers partners and our entire firm, we offer our congratulations on their thoroughly deserved appointments.”
Sarah Howie has been promoted to Counsel in the Cayman Islands.
Eight lawyers in the firm have also been promoted to the role of Senior Associate, a role reflecting the increasing contribution Associates make to the success of the firm as they progress in their careers at Conyers.
“The promotions across the firm are a reflection of these lawyers’ expertise and their dedication to our clients,” Luthi continued. “This group of individuals represents the future of Conyers and I’m confident they will play an important role in the continued growth and success of the firm.”
ABOUT THE NEW PARTNERS
Róisín Liddy-Murphy, Head of Regulatory & Risk Advisory, Cayman Islands
Róisín Liddy-Murphy is Head of Regulatory & Risk Advisory in the Cayman Islands. She has extensive experience in representing clients on a broad range of multi-jurisdictional litigation and regulatory matters. Róisín’s clients include banks, investment funds, administrators, local businesses, investment managers and insurance sector clients. She specialises in regulatory advisory, investigations and disputes. She is dedicated to navigating regulatory landscapes, ensuring compliance and providing strategic advisory services to clients. She assists clients on all aspects of risk management and financial regulation advice. Róisín is recognised as a Rising Star by The Legal 500 Caribbean and as Up and Coming by Chambers & Partners for her regulatory expertise.
Ryan McConvey, Corporate, Hong Kong
Ryan McConvey has a broad practice which generally encompasses all aspects of Bermuda, BVI and Cayman Islands corporate and commercial law, with particular focus on mergers and acquisitions, takeovers, privatisations, corporate finance, equity and debt capital market transactions. McConvey was included on the ALB Hong Kong Rising Stars 2023 list, having been recognised by Asian Legal Business as one of Hong Kong’s top 30 next-generation lawyers who have demonstrated great potential in the industry.
Barnabas Finnigan, Corporate, London
Barnabas Finnigan’s practice encompasses all aspects of corporate finance and banking law, with a particular focus on aviation and shipping finance transactions. He advises a broad range of clients in connection with the entry into complex cross-border and multi-jurisdictional transactions including asset finance, project finance, structured finance, cross border financing, merger and acquisitions, and Cayman Islands stock exchange listings. Barnabas has worked on a number of market leading ABS transactions and has advised lessors on portfolio acquisitions and transfers as well as working on structured solutions for clients across the aviation industry in connection with the acquisition, financing and leasing of their aircraft. He also regularly assists Cayman Islands issuer vehicles in connection with the establishment and entry into repackaging and note issuance programs and other structured finance transactions. He is recognised in the 2024 edition of The Legal 500 Caribbean for his banking, finance and capital markets expertise.
ABOUT THE NEW COUNSEL
Sarah Howie, Regulatory and Risk Advisory, Cayman Islands
Sarah Howie specialises in Cayman Islands regulatory matters. Sarah’s practice involves advising clients on a wide range of regulatory and compliance matters including CIMA licensing and registration, CIMA inspections and remediations, economic substance, data protection, anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing, sanctions reporting and licensing, FATCA and CRS, CbCr, beneficial ownership and administrative fines. Sarah also assists clients with responding to personal data breaches, data subject access requests, production orders, CIMA enquiries and regulatory enforcement actions. Sarah’s clients include banks, investment funds, investment managers and advisors, administrators, companies managers, insurance managers, insurers and local businesses. Sarah has been previously recognised as a “Rising Star” by The Legal 500 Caribbean for her Regulatory and Compliance expertise.
ABOUT THE NEW SENIOR ASSOCIATES
Romane Duncan, Litigation & Restructuring, Cayman Islands
Romane has particular expertise in shareholders disputes, fraud and asset tracing, and appellate practice and procedure. Prior to joining Conyers, Romane worked in the litigation, insolvency and restructuring practice of a leading BVI firm. His practice mainly included advising high-net-worth individuals, multi-national corporations and nation states on the various interim remedies available to them to safeguard high value assets on an urgent basis. He has appeared in cross border disputes before all levels of court, including the Privy Council and has also appeared as counsel in commercial arbitration.
Kiah Estwick, Corporate, Cayman Islands
Kiah joined Conyers in 2018 as an articled clerk, qualifying in June 2020. Kiah’s practice includes all aspects of general corporate and commercial law, including cross-border corporate finance, fund finance, mergers and acquisitions, amalgamations, shipping, aviation, insurance and compliance and regulatory matters.
Jessica Almeida Harris, Corporate, Bermuda
Jessica’s practice includes all aspects of corporate and commercial law, with a particular focus on (re)insurance law and regulation, including the formation, licensing and ongoing regulatory requirements for Bermuda captives, special purpose insurers in the insurance-linked securities sector and commercial (re)insurers. She also advises on continuations, mergers and acquisitions, reorganizations, bond issues, IPOs and direct listings, equity and debt financing and private placements. She is also a member of the Conyers’ listing sponsorship team in Bermuda, assisting issuers of securities on the Bermuda Stock Exchange.
Katie Martin, Corporate, Bermuda
Katie has a broad corporate and commercial law practice with experience that spans mergers and acquisitions, IPOs, schemes of arrangement, re-domestications, partnerships, private equity and investment funds. She also has a specialised focus on the licensing and ongoing regulation of all classes of (re)insurers, Katie also advises on regulatory matters, such as economic substance and the ongoing regulatory compliance obligations for licensed entities. She is instructed by a number of public companies, (re)insurers and other leading financial institutions. Katie is also a member of the Conyers’ listing sponsorship team in Bermuda, assisting issuers of securities on the Bermuda Stock Exchange.
Nick Ward, Corporate, Cayman Islands
Nick has experience representing asset managers, fund sponsors and other international financial institutions on a broad range of finance and corporate matters. He specialises in upstream fund formation matters and downstream buy-side and creditor representations and has recently advised several ad hoc bondholder groups in respect of Chapter 11 restructurings. Nick calls on onshore experience in not only advising arrangers, portfolio managers and investors in relation to structured product issuances and investments, note issuance programs and repackaging and other structured finance transactions (particularly CLOs), but also hedge and private equity funds, banks, pension funds, insurers and corporates on a wide spectrum of trading, hedging and financing transactions, security arrangements and investment management-related matters. He has additional recent experience assisting issuers in relation to Cayman Islands Stock Exchange listings.
Tonicia Williams, Litigation & Restructuring, Cayman Islands
Tonicia’s practice covers a wide range of commercial and civil litigation matters including insolvency proceedings, shareholder disputes, trust and estate litigation and regulatory matters. Tonicia has particular expertise in cross-border insolvency and restructuring proceedings between Hong Kong, the USA and the Cayman Islands. Tonicia also assists with advising clients on regulatory matters, in particular, sanctions, licence applications and data protection breaches. She regularly advises insolvency professionals, shareholders, directors, local entities, insurance sector clients and advisors and various professional service providers. She appears frequently before the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands both on her own and as part of a larger team.
Li Yan, Corporate, Singapore
Li Yan’s practice covers all aspects of corporate and commercial law in relation to the jurisdictions of Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands, with a particular focus on funds. She provides assistance to investment advisers, funds industry players and fund managers on the formation and restructuring of mutual funds and private funds in the Cayman Islands. She also advises on a variety of capital market transactions across a range of sectors.
Manwa Yip, Litigation & Restructuring, Hong Kong
Manwa has experience in managing and assisting in cross-border contentious matters covering a wide range of issues. She has been recognised on the ALB Hong Kong Rising Stars 2023 list by Asian Legal Business as one of Hong Kong’s top 30 next generation lawyers. Manwa was seconded to the Cayman Islands office of Conyers in mid-2023.