by Chris Lee

The daily work routine of overseas lawyers in terms of general work scope and practice is not as distant to that of their colleagues in North America as their geographic distance is to the homes they have left behind. It is that geographic distance and the corresponding foreign environment and circumstances in which overseas lawyers must learn to operate that, more than anything else, distinguishes practice overseas on both the professional and personal level.

One basic circumstance is that you are a guest in a foreign country on a more or less permanent basis. This is of no small significance to both your work and personal life and, importantly, to that of any family members who may be accompanying you (the happiness of your family being, of course, inextricably linked to your own physical and mental well-being!). There are professional qualification and licensing considerations – to what extent and what type of law can you practise in the particular jurisdiction? There are cultural and language differences that can leave you feeling very much an outsider. There are lifestyle considerations – can you find those products and foods that you’ve come to know and love or are you going to be bringing an empty suitcase with you every time you go home for a visit? The environment and weather can be key factors (“It was typhoon time in Taipei…”).

Your clientele or company operate internationally, and so must you. Your clock is the world clock – world time zones are second nature to you and so are early morning and late night conference calls to accommodate them. You know the exchange rates of the major regional currencies to the U.S. dollar. The transactions you work on and the people involved are multinational, multicultural and multilingual. In Asia, while English is still the international business language, Chinese is commonly spoken in business circles in a number of markets. There is undeniable value to possessing second language skills, not only for facilitating direct communications but equally importantly for the cultural awareness and knowledge that is inherently gained from learning the language of that culture.

Working overseas, particularly in Asia, one is faced with differing legal systems at differing stages of development that are constantly changing (or need to) to keep up with the growth, development and change in the markets they regulate. Playing a part in that development through lobbying can be a prominent facet of overseas practice involving leveraging knowledge and experience in legal and regulatory systems in other jurisdictions.

Interpreting the law and the legal and regulatory environments for clients could be considered a basic part of any lawyer’s job. For an overseas lawyer, this involves interpreting different legal systems for both clients and regulators, interpreting different cultures and practices, and interpreting different languages, all in a very dynamic and diverse environment.

A day in the life of an overseas lawyer is always interesting and challenging, inevitably frustrating and demanding, but ultimately extremely rewarding.

Chris Lee began his legal career in Vancouver and it has led him on three trans-Pacific moves, most recently back to Asia to join Fidelity International as its Head of Legal Services in Taiwan.

This article was published in the October 2007 issue of BarTalk. © 2007 The Canadian Bar Association. All rights reserved.