Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, INDUSTRY NEWS: Dr. Stanley Wong appointed CEO of Hong Kong Competition Commission, (Jul 22, 2014)

The Hong Kong Competition Commission announced yesterday that Dr. Stanley Wong has been appointed to the Commission as the Chief Executive Officer. His appointment is effective September 3, 2014. In his role as Chief Executive Officer, Wong will lead the work of the executive team and divisions in areas including investigations and enforcement, general counsel, economic advisory, public affairs, and corporate services.

Wong has close to 30 years of competition law related experience. He commenced private legal practice in 1984 in Canada, advising on all aspects of competition law including cartels, anti-competitive unilateral conduct, mergers, and private actions. He also acted as counsel before the Supreme Court of Canada, appellate and trial courts, and the Canadian Competition Tribunal.

In 2006, Wong was appointed a Member of the Competition Authority in Ireland and was responsible first for civil enforcement and then mergers. After his five-year tenure as a Member, Dr. Wong started up his own law practice in Canada to provide advisory services to competition authorities, courts and tribunals around the world including Singapore, Malaysia, United Kingdom, European Commission, Colombia, South Africa, and Canada.

Currently, Wong leads the European Commission projects to provide capacity building technical assistance to the Chinese competition authorities (Ministry of Commerce - MOFCOM, National Development and Reform Commission - NDRC and State Administration for Industry and Commerce - SAIC), as well as to the Competition Commission of India. Over the years, Wong has actively participated in the work of Competition Committee of Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and International Competition Network (ICN). He was also a co-chair of the ICN Merger Working Group.

He is qualified as a barrister and solicitor in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and British Columbia and as a non-practicing solicitor in England and Wales. Before entering the practice of law, he was an associate professor of economics at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada. Wong has two degrees in economics—a B.A. from Simon Fraser University and a Ph.D. from Cambridge University. He received his law degree (LL.B.) from the University of Toronto.

Ms. Anna Wu Hung-yuk, Chairperson of the Commission, said, “I extend my warmest welcome to Dr. Wong who brings with him a wealth of international experience in regulatory and litigation work related to many aspects of competition law and policy. His proven leadership and expertise in the field will be invaluable and his timely appointment is important as we move towards the milestone of the guidelines development and consultation, which is critical to the full implementation of the Ordinance.”

The Hong Kong Competition Commission is an independent statutory body established to enforce the Competition Ordinance, which was enacted in June 2012. The objective of the Commission is to prohibit conduct that prevents, restricts or distorts competition, and mergers that substantially lessen competition in Hong Kong.

News: Antitrust IndustryNewsTrends