HSBC names two enforcement lawyers

Abstract

HSBC has appointed two new general counsel to oversee its litigation and regulatory enforcement departments. Shawn Chin joins from Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton where he was a white-collar partner, and Guy Nielsen moves internally; he was formerly HSBC's head of litigation for global banking and markets. The duo will report to the bank's chief legal officer Stuart Levey. The appointments were announced internally last October, following the decision by former global general counsel for litigation and regulatory affairs Preeta Dansal to stand down after a year in the role.

HSBC has appointed two new general counsel to oversee its litigation and regulatory enforcement departments. Shawn Chen joins from Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton where he was a white-collar partner, and Guy Nielsen moves internally; he was formerly HSBC's head of litigation for global banking and markets.

The duo will report to the bank's chief legal officer Stuart Levey. The appointments were announced internally last October, following the decision by former global general counsel for litigation and regulatory affairs Preeta Dansai to stand down after a year in the role.

HSBC has sought to revamp its internal regulatory and compliance controls since its record $1.9 billion (£1.2 billion) fine in a 2012 settlement with the US Department of Justice for breaching US money laundering and sanctions laws.

A partner in Cleary's Washington office since 2008, Chen will relocate to London for the new role. At Cleary, his practice focused on white-collar criminal defence, securities enforcement and complex civil litigation. Before joining the firm in 2004, he served as assistant US attorney for Connecticut for five years, and was formerly co-chair of the American Bar Association's subcommittee on corporate prosecutions.

In recentyears, Cleary has strengthened its ties with the lender, having been added to HSBC's Smart Search database in 2011, in a bid to improve its understanding of the US legal market. In 2012, Cleary was one of three US firms to win new appointments to HSBC's global legal panel. -AN