5
3
53
LegAL SeRvICeS
AuDITINg
Macau’s market for legal services remains narrow
The availability and delivery of audit services
despite recent growth. This explains the lack
for larger public companies worldwide is
of differentiation among local lawyers
currently dominated by four giants –
who mostly specialise only in
PricewaterhouseCoopers, Deloitte
branches of law. In the future,
Touche Tohmatsu, Ernst & Young
with the expansion of the local
and KPMg. They audited 98
economy, an increase in
percent of the 1,500 largest
demand and specialisation
public companies in the US
of legal services in areas
with annual revenues of
related to business
more than US$1 billion in
are likely. This
2006 and 96 percent of
includes corporate
the FTSE 250 companies
law, mergers
in the United Kingdom
and acquisitions,
as of February 2008.
taxation and banking
It’s the same in Macau
and finance.
where all the gaming
concessionaires and
Local lawyers use
major utilities use one
a variety of billing
of the “Big Four”.
methods. In the
past, it was quite
Although, at present,
common to use a
only a select number of
fixed fee, charging
International Financial
the client a set amount
Reporting Standards (IFRS)
of money to provide a
are adopted in Macau,
required legal service. In
the government has said it
the wake of the boom, law
is inevitable that more IFRS
firms have begun to charge
elements must be brought into
hourly fees, usually with a cap
Macau in the future. To allow for
agreed to with the client. Local
local auditors to understand those
lawyers are also open to long-term fee
rules, the Committee for the Registry of
charging arrangements, where the law firm
Auditors and Accountants has been working in
is compelled to provide all legal services requested
recent years on collaborations with the Association
by a company without extra-charges. Success fees
of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) to
are not common.
organise a series of IFRS training courses.
HoW tHeY Do it
Be a lawyer and a boss
In order to lead a law firm you also need to be a manager, but and credibility, and their management
Macau’s cadre of senior lawyers don’t have a single management skills on experience.
qualification between them. One solution used by many overseas
Despite the phenomenal growth in demand for legal services firms to deal with this gap is to provide
since casino liberalisation, most law firms have not yet realised in-house management and leadership
they must invest in proper management and leadership training training workshops on specific issues
if they are to increase their bottom line. “We are not big enough and coaching.
to need that”, they say. This is quick, easy and
The question is whether a legal qualification equips someone potentially very useful in helping
to run a business that moves millions. The answer is obvious: No. lawyers to update their
Perhaps there is not a lot of time in their schedule to fit in the management and leadership
study hours required to complete a MBA. As for senior lawyers, knowledge and improve
they usually base their leadership skills on personal authority the law firm’s practices.
March 2010
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