Mr Mordaunt began his career at Freshfields in 1999 and spent eight years at the firm in London, Brussels and Washington DC before joining the UK’s Office of Fair Trading, where he was director of its mergers group and then a dedicated competition enforcement team. He joined Clifford Chance as a partner in 2011 and has been based in the firm’s London office.

His return to Freshfields as a partner gives the firm a significant boost to its experience, as he has been both a litigator and a regulator. Asia managing partner Robert Ashworth said: 'Alastair's background as a regulator combined with our distinctive competition litigation expertise in Hong Kong will provide a compelling offering to local and international clients doing business in Hong Kong, where enforcement will take place largely through a contentious tribunal system.'

'In terms of the global regulatory environment in competition and antitrust, Hong Kong is a very exciting place to be,' Mordaunt said. 'Very rarely do companies have to come to grips with an entirely new regime in such a sophisticated market. In that sense, the Hong Kong competition regime poses some unique challenges for companies doing business in the jurisdiction.'