Fiona is an experienced investigations and dispute resolution lawyer who has been resolving disputes and managing regulatory enforcement matters, crises, and internal investigations in the UK and Asia-Pacific (APAC) region for over 20 years whilst at the same time protecting client reputations.
She also has extensive experience identifying emerging compliance risks and then establishing suitable, proportionate and cost-effective processes, policies and procedures to mitigate these risks.
Fiona represents a wide range of clients across all jurisdictions globally, with a particular focus on the UK, the US and the APAC region where she also holds strong relationships with a wide network of advisers. When required, Fiona is well placed to recommend and appoint/work alongside lawyers throughout the APAC region for any litigation, arbitration or regulatory matter, ensuring they are managed efficiently and to international standards.
In addition, Fiona has in-house experience, having led the investigations teams at Barclays, Bank of America and McKinsey & Company.
Expertise
- Internal and external investigations of all genres
- Crisis management
- Complex, multi-jurisdictional dispute resolution – strategy, negotiating commercial settlements, managing external counsel
- Anti-corruption compliance and investigations
- Business ethics and compliance
- Management of and strategy for internal legal departments
- Cross-border and multi-jurisdictional disputes (litigation, arbitration and mediation)
- Mis-selling of a wide range of complex financial services products
- Market manipulation claims
- Insolvency-related claims
- Fee disputes
- Complex employment-related claims.
Experience
Internal and external investigations
- Advised Barclays and Bank of America on all internal and external investigations that arose in the Asia-Pacific region including insider trading, market manipulation, sponsor-related issues, rates issues, electronic trading, transaction reporting, and anti-trust (competition) issues. Liaised with regulators and external counsel in respect of these globally as and when required.
- Advised McKinsey & Company on anti-bribery & corruption issues, serious employee misconduct, government enquiries, potential tax issues, conflicts of interest, police matters, and privilege and disclosure-related issues.
- Advised a global investment bank on an internal and then regulatory investigation into a potential market manipulation offence in connection with a block trade that its investment banking division managed. In this crisis situation we collated the relevant data and conducted preliminary interviews in parallel before making a preliminary notification to the regulator. The internal investigation proceeded in parallel with the regulatory investigation.
- Advised a global investment bank in connection with allegations made by a short seller that a large PRC company whose IPO the investment bank acted as sponsor of was fraudulent. Conducted a large internal investigation on publication of the allegations before any regulatory investigation was initiated and produced a report that we were then able to use to defend the institution on initiation of the regulatory investigation. Led internal remediation efforts in the wake of the investigation and managed the attendant employee issues from a litigation and investigations perspective.
- Advised a leading management consultancy in connection with allegations made by a pro liberal publication that the consultancy had obtained a project working for the Mongolian ministry of transport through corrupt methods. Led an internal investigation to ascertain the facts (from over a decade previously) and worked with the communications team to respond to the allegations made by the publication in a reasoned, truthful and equanimous way.
- Advised a global investment bank on the follow on series of Competition investigations from Asian and Australian Competition authorities including the ACCC, that arose out of the MAS and HKMA’s rate setting investigations.
- Advised a global investment bank on its response to a National Assembly investigation into potential corruption in respect of various M&A transactions that it had advised on. The work included devising and implementing a large internal investigation into the transactions which dated back over a decade, preparation for potential dawn raids by prosecutors, advising on the dawn raids themselves when they happened, witness preparation for appearance by bank witnesses in front of the National Assembly, managing stakeholders internally within the client, and working with the client’s communications team to ensure the matter was dealt with properly externally as well.
Crisis management
- Managed many crisis situations for Barclays, Bank of America and McKinsey including preparation for dawn raids and then responses when they happened.
- Managed relations with stakeholders and the external law enforcement authorities responsible for the dawn raids on Barclays, Bank of America and McKinsey.
- Advised a global investment bank in connection with serious criminal employee misconduct issues of a high global public profile.
Anti-corruption compliance
- Advised McKinsey & Company on the drafting and implementation of its global Anti-corruption policy, focusing on the Asia-Pacific region including training relevant stakeholders where necessary.
- Advised a leading management consultancy on an internal anti corruption investigation that it conducted in respect of work that had been done by it in an Asian jurisdiction that was at the time in the process of conducting a well publicized anti corruption probe.
- Advised a leading management consultancy on a criminal investigation initiated by law enforcement authorities in India in respect of work done by the consultancy for a regional government advising on the establishment of a new capital city in that region. This work included a large scale internal investigation, witness interviews internally and with the police, and also preparation for potential dawn raids across the office network in India.
Business ethics and compliance
- Advised Barclays, Bank of America and McKinsey on how to identify and mitigate Ethics and Compliance risks across the businesses, including by raising awareness using thought leadership writing, speaking and training, and working to find cost-effective, proportionate and efficient processes, policies and procedures to mitigate these risks, and assisting with the implementation of the mitigation measures.
- Established a Compliance programme for a UK incorporated but global renewable energy company including formulating and implementing policies and procedures, rolling out training programmes for employees, leading a process to identify the best Compliance, Risk and Governance tools on the market for the client and then to implement these, and advising on ad hoc Compliance related queries on a day to day basis.
Management of and strategy for internal legal departments
- Built inaugural in-house litigation and investigations teams in Asia-Pacific for both Barclays and McKinsey, and grew the team at Bank of America.
- Created McKinsey & Company’s first law firm panel.
- Advised Barclays and McKinsey on the creation and establishment of proper escalation and reporting processes for litigation and investigations matters.
Complex multi-jurisdictional dispute resolution
- Advised the Government of Brunei on the recovery of billions of dollars of assets misappropriated by HRH Prince Jefri Bolkiah in the 1990s. This involved asset tracing and recovery across jurisdictions globally.
- Advised a global insurance company on a DOJ FCPA investigation in connection with its operations in Asia where it was ultimately ordered to pay a USD1.76 fine.
- Advised a global bank in connection with the liquidation of the formerly USD2.3 billion Akai Electronics Group and the subsequent insolvency litigation which ensued.
- Acted for an Asian national government in connection with an arbitration claim it had brought over its Exclusive Economic Zone under UNCLOS.
- Acted as the lead in-house lawyer for a global investment bank in connection with the Non Deliverable Forwards rates setting investigation brought by the Singapore MAS. The work included leading the document retrieval and review exercise, interviewing relevant bankers, managing relations with the MAS and the other relevant global regulators that notifications needed to be made to, managing the bank’s relationship with external counsel acting on the matter, and managing all other relevant internal and external stakeholders.
- Acted as the lead Asia-Pacific-based in-house litigation and investigations lawyer for a US investment bank in connection with all other follow-on rates setting investigations and litigation including the HKMA’s FX investigation and all of the follow-on competition investigations that arose.
- Acted for a US investment bank in a USD14 billion claim brought against it in Thailand by one of its debtors in connection with its position in the debtors’ insolvency committee. The work included liaising with both Thai and international external counsel to understand the client’s legal position, determining strategy for the litigation, and managing both internal and external stakeholder relations during the course of the litigation.
- Acted for a US investment bank in a JPY14 billion claim against it by one of its former clients in connection with derivatives transactions. The work included liaising with both Japanese and international external counsel to understand the client’s position, determining strategy, and managing both internal and external stakeholder relations.
- Acted for a US investment bank in connection with dawn raids by Korean prosecutors in relation to the Korea National Oil Corporation’s takeover of Canada’s Harvest Energy Trust, and the follow-on investigations. The work included liaising with both Korean and international external counsel, document review and retrieval, interviews, working with internal and external stakeholders to determine strategy, and managing all other relevant stakeholders, including regulatory relations, globally.
- Acted for a leading management consultancy in connection with a dawn raid in Paris by the French tax authorities over suspicions of aggravated tax fraud, and managed the follow-up investigation.
- Acted for a leading management consultancy in connection with preparation for actual and potential government enquiries in relation to work that it had done in the public sector for local and national governments.
Please note: The experience list above may include examples of work completed prior to joining Keystone Law.
Recognition
The Legal 500 GC Powerlist China and Hong Kong, 2017
TEDx talk on Living Life to the Fullest, 2017: https://www.ted.com/talks/fiona_callanan_thorsby_living_life_to_the_fullest
Bank of America award for outstanding performance in Litigation and Regulatory Investigations, 2016
Managing the Disability Community for the GC D&I network: https://www.gcdandi.com/
Career
Fiona qualified as a solicitor in 2005. Prior to joining Keystone Law in 2024, she worked at the following firms:
- Barclays
- McKinsey & Company
- Bank of America
- Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer