Charmaine Leung joined the firm as Partner in 2023.

Prior to joining Ip & Heathfield, Charmaine worked in an international law firm in Hong Kong where she refined her legal skills and honed her expertise in dealing with intricate family law cases. In 2022 and 2023, she was awarded the Doyle’s Guide Hong Kong Family Law Rising Star. She was also ranked in the “Excellence” Category of the Private Client Global Elite Directory 2024. In 2024, she was ranked as a ‘Litigation Star’ in the Family and Matrimonial Practice Area by Benchmark Litigation.

Having extensive experience in both contentious and non-contentious matrimonial cases, Charmaine handles matters with tact and sensitivity. She has been involved in various high-profile children cases, and handled cases involving high-conflict custody, care and control and access applications, relocation applications, and schooling applications. She also has experience in Hague Convention child abduction cases as well as cases involving domestic violence and child abuse. When it comes to financial matters, Charmaine advises on assets division and maintenance, and has extensive experience in financial disputes involving substantial assets and complex corporate structures. She has handled large-scale specific financial discovery applications and applications involving third party interests. Charmaine also has expertise in handling complex cross-border jurisdictional issues, and was involved in a Hong Kong landmark case on ‘habitual residence’ in the context of the jurisdictional basis for divorce.

Charmaine believes in the importance of securing an agreement to prepare for the worst-case scenario in these unprecedented times. She regularly advises on prenuptial and postnuptial agreements. In recent years, she has become increasingly involved in advising clients on Deed of Guardianship.

Empathy and compassion, being some of Charmaine’s greatest strengths, empower her to guide her clients through the most difficult times of their lives. While she is prepared to robustly litigate in Court where necessary, she strives to settle each case out of the court where possible and is a strong advocate for the use of alternative dispute resolution. She regularly attends without prejudice settlement negotiation meetings and mediation sessions with her clients, and in recent years, she works closely with experienced barristers in Private Financial Dispute Resolutions in Hong Kong. She has extensive experience in representing clients in Financial Dispute Resolution Hearings and Children Dispute Resolution Hearings and assists them in reaching a settlement to avoid the expense of a full trial. 

Proficiency in English, Cantonese and Mandarin are also Charmaine’s assets, and coupled with her basic language skills in Korean and Japanese, she has attracted clients of various nationalities.

Member, The Law Society of Hong Kong

Member, The Hong Kong Family Law Association

Recognized as the rising star lawyer in Doyle’s Hong Kong Family & Divorce Law Rankings