In 1890, William Alfred Tilleke, a Ceylonese solicitor, began a new practice in Siam. In 1894, Tilleke gained recognition when he successfully defended Phra Yot Muang Kwang, a Thai provincial governor, who had been accused of murdering a French military officer. In the face of colonial pressure by the French and before a French Court conducted in Thailand, Tilleke exonerated Phra Yot through affirmative evidence and all seven judges presiding returned a "Not Guilty" verdict. Ralph Gibbins, an Englishman, partnered with Tilleke in 1902, and the firm adopted the name, Tilleke & Gibbins. Later, Ralph became a legal adviser in the Siamese Ministry of Justice, before serving as a judge of the International Court in 1916. Samuel Brighouse and Reginald Atkinson led the firm from 1911 until Thailand’s involvement in World War II in 1941. During the war, the firm ceased operations. Some of the company documents were safeguarded by Ina Jorgensen, the former secretary of one of the firm's partners, Victor Jaques, who had fled abroad. In 1946, Mr. Jaques reestablished the firm as the sole partner remaining after the war had ended. In 1951, Albert Lyman purchased the firm from Victor Jaques for $2,500. Mr. Lyman and his wife, Freda, ran the firm with a Thai partner, Rojvit Periera. The Lymans’ son, David, joined the firm in 1967 and took over Tilleke & Gibbins’ operations after his father’s death in 1984. In addition to being Chairman of the firm, David also acts as the firm's Chief Values Officer. Darani Vachanavuttivong and Tiziana Suchartikul are the Co-Managing Partners of the firm.
Practice areas
Tilleke & Gibbins is a full-service law firm that has core practice areas focusing on commercial transactions and M&A, dispute resolution and litigation, and intellectual property. In total, the firm offers 18 areas of expertise:
Tilleke & Gibbins has been ranked as a leading legal practice in Southeast Asia in various legal directories, such as Asia-Pacific Legal 500', Asian Legal Business,Chambers Asia Pacific', and IFLR 1000. The firm's intellectual property practice has earned recognition from other, practice-specific directories, such as Asia IP, Intellectual Asset Management',Managing Intellectual Property', and World Trademark Review. In 2017, Tilleke & Gibbins won the "Southeast Asia Firm of the Year" award from Asialaw's Asia-Pacific Legal Awards. In 2018, Managing Intellectual Property named the firm as "Asia-Pacific CSR Firm of the Year." The firm has also been the recipient of Asian Legal Business's "Employer of Choice" award in both Thailand and Vietnam for five consecutive years.
Memberships
Tilleke & Gibbins is active in several international associations of independent law firms, including Lex Mundi and Multilaw.
The firm's Bangkok office is the site of the Tilleke & Gibbins Museum of Counterfeit Goods, established in 1989. The museum's collection includes more than 3,500 counterfeit copies of trademarked and copyrighted goods. The museum has been featured on CNN and BBC in documentaries on counterfeiting in Thailand. Additionally,TheCondé Nast Traveler,The Christian Science Monitor, and TIME magazine have also profiled the museum.
