Hong Kong-based law firm King & Wood  Mallesons’ DealTrends 2012 Report suggested that deal certainty has become a priority in the last 12 months, with minimising risk the vital factor for all parties involved.
The firm’s findings – reported by Lawyers Weekly – showed that risk minimisation has become the key to how deals are structured and in the specific commercial terms being signed up.

Eliminating risk

KWM mergers & acquisitions partner Ros Anderson told Lawyers Weekly that a common theme across deals in 2012 was ‘people trying to manage risk or eliminate it altogether', adding that in the past 'the theory might have been to get the deal through'.
The report also gauged the general confidence among law firms as high, and suggests that this year will see a strengthening in M&A activity as the sector recovers from the hit it took last year.