A view from Ho Chi Minh City

There has been a transformation in Vietnam’s economy over the past three decades. Thuy Minh Lai has played her part in helping in that process, first as a lawyer for Herbert Smith Freehills from 1997 to 2004 and then as a lawyer and manager for Citibank. It has been an exciting time, she says.
 

Why did you decide to study law and why did you choose Herbert Smith Freehills? 

I was born and raised in Vietnam. Law appealed to me for the potential it offered. After working for a short time for a US company, I applied to join Freehills, as it then was. Freehills was an interesting law firm, having had offices in Vietnam since the early 1990s. I well remember the process, since I had to go through three rounds of interviews. The first round was an English language test, and there were about 300 people applying, all my former classmates and college friends, such was the demand for the position. I was then interviewed by the then managing partner of Freehills Hanoi, Andrew Messenger. Initially, the local Bar regulations meant we could not practise local law, but after a couple of years that changed, which meant I could offer Vietnamese law.

What did you enjoy about the practice?

Vietnam was then in the process of opening up, and it was a very exciting time. The country was transitioning from being a state planned economy to becoming a market economy. There was huge interest in the country, with much inward investment. There were new businesses wanting to set up joint ventures and other forms of business cooperation. Later on, I did litigation and handled one huge case. We were a small office in Hanoi so we did everything, with two foreign lawyers and three local lawyers.

How did it feel to be advising clients at such a formative time in the country’s development?

We definitely played a part in the growth of the country. As well as advising clients on deals, we participated in drafting laws and regulations and engaged a lot with government agencies on developing regulations. In fact, we were instructed by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to advise the government on the country’s first securities law.

Did the government listen to you?

They welcomed our advice, and asked for recommendations on international and best practice. We fed back investors’ concerns. While we clearly wanted to represent our clients, in order to be credible we had to understand the government’s position. If they accepted our recommendations, that was fine, but if they didn’t, then they would explain why, so we always had a good dialogue. 

Still to this day, of course, Vietnam’s regulatory environment is evolving. We really started from zero, but, in many ways, that gives the country an advantage, because it can learn from others. As the country’s economy has developed so fast, so the regulations have to keep pace, which is not always easy.