Investigations & Enforcement in Asia-Pacific

Career summary

I qualified as a barrister in the U.K., and I have been in private practice and served as general counsel in Malaysia and Australia over the past 28 years.

My focus is to critically assess competing interests, the client’s requirements, the available information and to consistently reach satisfactory outcomes, both commercially and professionally. I provide objective and pragmatic advice, including in difficult situations knowing what it means to the bottom line.

Experience

Of Counsel, Christopher & Lee Ong, Kuala Lumpur          June 2018 –June 2019

I was a Principal Consultant to Petroliam Nasional Berhador PETRONAS, Malaysia’s fully integrated petroleum corporation, when PETRONAS established a newly created Legal Compliance Division.

I provided legal and commercial expertise and led a senior team to evaluate PETRONAS’ legal compliance framework and establish potential areas of operational risk, and to then re-design processes and policies to ensure higher resilience in business-critical areas.

Ethics and integrity is a critical part of the legal compliance framework, and I provided specialist legal advice to achieve business outcomes and recommendations for improvements in line with generally accepted international best practices and standards.

General Counsel, Astro All Asia Networks plc          October 2005 –March 2017

& ASTRO Overseas Limited, Kuala Lumpur

ASTRO is Malaysia’s leading direct-to-consumer media and entertainment company.

My primary responsibility was to protect the organisation’s reputation, and provide legal counsel to both the Board and ASTRO’s senior executives on the management of real and potential risks. As a member of the senior team,I had oversight of all legal matters for ASTRO’s businesses worldwide.I also served as Company Secretary and led the Regulatory and Government Relations Division for several years.

I led teams that supported ASTRO’s businesses on matters ranging from management of key IP assets, acquisitions and divestments, corporate governance, to dispute resolution. Amongst others, I developed a strategy and protocol to analyse and address complex and potentially high-risk regulatory inquiries and related proceedings, and to effectively remediate compliance weaknesses.

Partner / Solicitor, Rashid & Lee, Kuala Lumpur          February 1992 –August 2005

& Middletons, Melbourne (now part of K&L Gates LLP)

My practice covered a wide range of corporate commercial matters, both advisory as well as transactional. This included:

• Infrastructure: Major international and domestic infrastructure projects.
• IT & Privacy: IT transformational projects, and implementation of privacy and data protection programs.
• Corporate commercial: Corporate exercises and workouts for financially distressed companies, and commercial property.

Education/ Professional Qualifications

Professional Qualifications:

Admitted to:

• The Victorian Bar and the High Court of Australia
• Malaysian Bar
• The Bar of England & Wales

Education:

• LLM, London School of Economics, University of London, U.K.
• LLB (Hons.), King’s College London, University of London, U.K.

Membership of Professional Associations:

• Vice-Chair, Corporate Counsel Committee, the Inter-Pacific Bar Association or IPBA.

Kristina is a graduate of the University of Toronto and is accredited as a Certified Meeting Professional (CMP), a globally recognized badge of excellence in the meeting and event industry. Prior to joining Cambridge Forums, Kristina worked for the Toronto International Film Festival where she successfully planned and hosted events for high-level donors, corporate clients and film stars. Outside the office, Kristina is passionate about learning new things, being outdoors, trying new cuisines and exploring the world one country at a time.