Lawyers in the Asia Pacific are cautiously optimistic about 2021, although much will depend on the successful eradication of COVID-19.

The global distribution of COVID vaccines and the promise of a new U.S. government that would bring normalcy and predictability back to Sino-American relations are expected to send positive signals to the market, prompting transactions to pick up, especially in the private equity investment sector. And with more transactions, law firms are likely to expand staffing in related practices such as M&A and financing.