Tilleke & Gibbins is pleased to announce the addition of Sarah Galeski to the firm’s corporate and commercial team in Ho Chi Minh City, in the role of counsel. With over 12 years of professional legal experience, including almost eight in Vietnam, Sarah focuses primarily on matters of employment and labor law, as well as compliance and dispute resolution. Sarah was previously the associate director of KPMG Legal in Ho Chi Minh City, and an associate with Baker & McKenzie. A native of Canada, where she is a licensed barrister and solicitor, Sarah began her legal career with Fraser Milner Casgrain in Vancouver (now Dentons Canada) before moving to Vietnam. In Vietnam, Sarah has been actively involved with the European Chamber of Commerce, serving terms as Co-Chair of the Human Resources & Training Sector Committee and as a member of EuroCham’s Executive Committee.

On February 26, 2021, Yuwadee Thean-ngarm was the moderator for a finance- and technology-focused online discussion on the current situation in Myanmar, organized by the Thai Business Association (TBAM). She was joined by three distinguished panelists: Chana Sindhvananda, minister counsellor from the Royal Thai Embassy in Yangon; Nuttaphong Visitkitchakarn, chief representative from Kasikornbank PCL’s Yangon office; and Passakorn Hongsyok, general manager of Myanmar Information Highway Ltd. Together, they discussed how banking and finance operations, technology and social media usage, and Thai citizens’ daily lives are faring during the current political turmoil in the country. The Thai-language event, which was streamed live on Facebook, provided valuable practical business insights that have been difficult to find amid the intense interest and speculation on political developments since the military took power in February 2021. The speakers’ insights included detailed information on how banking activities are functioning during this time, the various government orders causing fluctuations in the availability of internet and social media services, and how the Thai government is caring for its citizens in Myanmar and keeping abreast of the situation. The recording of the discussion is available on the TBAM website.

On March 3, Varapa Aurat, head of Tilleke & Gibbins’ tax team in Bangkok, will deliver a webinar entitled “Tax 101: What E-commerce Startups Need to Know.” The webinar, cohosted by Tilleke & Gibbins and True Digital Park—one of Southeast Asia’s largest tech and startup hubs, will give Thai small business owners an opportunity understand local tax regulations to help them ensure their operations are compliant. During the hour-long session, Varapa will provide an analysis of key tax laws in Thailand that Thai companies should be aware of, including an overview of common pitfalls for small business owners. She will also lead a discussion on whether recent amendments to the Revenue Code to impose VAT on e-services will have an impact on local operators. The webinar will be broadcast via Facebook Live on Wednesday, March 3, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. In order to register for this session, which will be presented in Thai, please visit the event page on Tilleke & Gibbins’ Facebook page. Should you have any questions or require any further information, please send an email to [email protected].

A recent article on the progress of the business rehabilitation of Thai Airways quotes John Frangos, partner and deputy director of Tilleke & Gibbins’ dispute resolution department, on various aspects of the developing case. The article, titled “Lessors strike deals with Thai Airways,” was written by airline industry business information provider Cirium and shared through FlightGlobal, the world’s leading publisher of news, analysis, and other content for the aviation industry. The article reports that the majority of the aircraft lessors who have exposure to Thai Airways are in the final stages of signing agreements with the beleaguered airline to govern management of their aircraft in the business restructuring process. In discussing his own experience representing various creditors in the process, John explains that the airline may be adopting a blanket policy of objecting to requests for debt repayment. “It appears to be a clear strategy of the plan preparer to object to many debt-repayment applications as a way to try to reduce the overall debt amount,” he is quoted as saying. The article also notes that there is still considerable uncertainty surrounding the ongoing business rehabilitation. Part of this is related to the future makeup of the carrier’s reduced fleet, but the most pressing issue is whether Thai Airways will submit its rehabilitation plan by the March 2, 2021, deadline. If this deadline is not met, one possibility is that the airline would have to file for dissolution. However, John considers that even if they miss the deadline, other workarounds will be explored. “If they don’t finish and they do legitimately need more time, then at least for me personally I can’t see the whole process unravelling because they can’t submit by the deadline,” he says. To read the full article, please visit the FlightGlobal website.