Donald Sham

Donald Sham is a home-grown partner of Reed Smith. He joined the firm as a trainee in 2010 and was promoted as a partner based in the Hong Kong office in 2021.

Donald specialises in Hong Kong court litigation and international arbitration proceedings. He also regularly advises on insolvency issues and acts in regulatory investigations. He maintains a broad range of sector expertise that spans pharmaceuticals, financial services, transport, energy, technology, garment, precious metals, logistics, insurance, cryptocurrency and consumer goods.

Donald has won many accolades from the most respected legal publishers and has been regarded as one of the top young lawyers in Hong Kong and Asia. He has been called “very on the ball and a good operator”, “very familiar with arbitration and litigation procedure” and “[a provider of] clear and commercial advice” with “rich practical experience in the field of international arbitration.”

Donald regularly acts as arbitrator and is admitted as a panel arbitrator in six arbitral institutions globally, which notably include the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre (HKIAC), Hong Kong Maritime Arbitration Group (HKMAG), China Maritime Arbitration Commission (CMAC) and Singapore Chamber of Maritime Arbitration (SCMA).

Outside of Reed Smith, Donald has been acting as the current Secretary of the Hong Kong Maritime Law Association (HKMLA) since 2019. He was a Lecturer in the Master of Laws (Arbitration & Dispute Resolution) Programme of The University of Hong Kong in 2017-2020.

Donald is fluent in English, Mandarin and Cantonese. He has been handling matters in both Chinese and English on a daily basis for more than a decade.