Donaldson & Burkinshaw

What Donaldson & Burkinshaw does

Donaldson & Burkinshaw is a Singapore-based full-service law firm established on 6 November 1874, operating as Donaldson & Burkinshaw LLP since 3 January 2014. It is one of Singapore's oldest law partnerships and serves commercial, corporate, financial, industrial, and public sector clients across Singapore, Malaysia (via Donaldson & Burkinshaw I.P. Sdn. Bhd. in Kuala Lumpur), and Brunei, with a foreign strategic partner network extending coverage to Indonesia, Australia, and Malaysia. The firm is organized into four core practices — Corporate & Commercial (M&A, IPOs, private equity, regulatory licensing, governance, employment, data protection), Intellectual Property (trademark, patent, industrial design, copyright prosecution and enforcement, with specialized Life Sciences and Mechanical/Electrical patent divisions), Disputes & Specialist (civil and commercial litigation, international arbitration, healthcare law, technology and data protection, criminal defence, construction), and Real Estate & Trusts.

Its IP Practice, established for over eight decades, is positioned as one of the largest and top-filing IP practices in Singapore, with claims of managing trademark and patent portfolios for multinationals since the 1930s. The firm earns revenue through professional service fees billed on matter complexity, time, and seniority of professionals engaged, with no publicly disclosed pricing model. Clients include multinational corporations across food and beverage, fashion, electronics, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, hotels, media, and entertainment sectors, alongside government bodies, non-profits, and individuals. The firm employs approximately 51-100 professionals including 19 partners and is independently owned as a limited liability partnership with no parent company, external investor, or public listing.

Name

Donaldson & Burkinshaw

Legal name

Donaldson & Burkinshaw LLP

Website

https://donburk.asia

Company type

Private

Founded year

1874

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Donaldson & Burkinshaw is a Singapore-based full-service law firm established in 1874, providing corporate/commercial, intellectual property, disputes, and real estate/trusts legal services to multinationals, governments, and individuals across Southeast Asia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Legal Services

NAICS

Offices of Lawyers (541110), Offices of Lawyers (54111), Legal Services (5411)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAHAMAA

Patent Prosecution & Portfolio Management

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Intellectual Property (IP) & Patent Services

SECONDARYBPAHAAAI

Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) & Securities Law

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Legal Services

SECONDARYBPAHAAAK

Family & Private Client (Trusts & Estates) Law

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Legal Services

SECONDARYBPAHANAL

Estate, Gift & Trust Valuation

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Valuation, Appraisal & Forensic Services

SECONDARYBPAHANAG

Litigation Support & Expert Witness (Valuation-Related)

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Valuation, Appraisal & Forensic Services

Keywords

• Legal services
• Intellectual property
• Corporate law
• Dispute resolution
• Real estate law

Headquarters

HQ city

Singapore

HQ country

Singapore

HQ region

Asia

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Legal Services Fees: Professional legal services billed to clients for corporate and commercial advisory, intellectual property protection and prosecution, disputes resolution, real estate transactions, and trusts matters. Revenue generated through professional fees for legal representation, advisory services, document preparation, and regulatory compliance work.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Donaldson & Burkinshaw LLP is a Singapore law firm practising as advocates and solicitors, notaries public, commissioners for oaths, and agents for trade marks, patents and designs. It provides corporate and commercial advisory (M&A, IPOs, private equity, corporate finance, regulatory compliance), intellectual property protection (trademarks, patents, designs, copyright prosecution and enforcement), disputes and specialist litigation (civil and commercial litigation, international arbitration, healthcare, technology and data protection, construction), and real estate and trusts services (estate planning, probate, property transactions, banking and financing) to commercial, corporate, financial, industrial and public sector clients.

Product overview

Donaldson & Burkinshaw is a full-service Singapore law firm organized into four core practice areas: Corporate & Commercial (M&A, IPOs, private equity, regulatory compliance), Intellectual Property (patents, trademarks, designs, copyright), Disputes & Specialist (litigation, arbitration, healthcare law, technology/data protection), and Real Estate & Trusts. The firm also maintains specialized divisions within IP including Life Sciences & Chemical Patents and Mechanical & Electrical Patents groups. A network of Foreign Strategic Partners extends coverage to Indonesia, Australia, and Malaysia. The firm offers corporate secretarial services as part of its Corporate & Commercial Practice.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Corporate & Commercial Practice

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• SA PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndonesian investment-oriented legal boutique based in Jakarta's South Central Business District. Services aligned with investment life cycle from entity establishment, business partner seeking, business structure advising, licensing, financing, to business expansions. Practice areas include investment, banking & finance, industry & mining, agribusiness & commodities, infrastructure, logistics & air transport, media & technology.
• SIP Law FirmcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAward-winning leading Indonesian law firm with principal office in Jakarta and associated offices in Surabaya and Yogyakarta. Founded in 2011. Provides full service covering litigation and dispute resolution, bankruptcy, insolvency and debt restructuring, medical and healthcare, corporate and investment, capital market, property, mining, banking, insurance, finance, criminal law, family law, privacy and data protection, arbitration, labour, and intellectual property.
• Meridian LawyerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAward-winning leading Australian national law firm with offices in Sydney, Melbourne, Newcastle, Brisbane, Perth and Canberra. Established in 2004. Provides legal services in health law, insurance law, corporate and commercial law, employment law, commercial litigation and dispute resolution. Known for expertise in insurance law and one of the most expansive health law practices in Australia.
• Yeoh Shim Siow & Lay Kuan (YSLK)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLeading Malaysian boutique law firm strategically located in the heart of Kuala Lumpur. Provides full range of legal services in dispute resolution, corporate rescue & litigation, conveyancing & property, intellectual property technology media and telecommunication (TMT), probate, trust & estate, and insurance & personal injury. Focuses on providing comprehensively bespoke legal services.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Allen & Gledhill: One of the largest Singapore-headquartered law firms with a broad full-service practice including corporate, M&A, IP, disputes and real estate. Competes head-to-head with Donaldson & Burkinshaw across practice areas but at significantly greater scale.
• Rodyk & Davidson (Dentons Rodyk): Historic Singapore firm (founded 1861) with a similarly broad full-service practice, now part of the Dentons global network. Overlaps directly with Donaldson & Burkinshaw in corporate, IP, real estate and disputes work and is a former employer of several of its current partners.

Direct peers

• WongPartnership: Singapore full-service firm competing across the same corporate, M&A, IP, disputes and real estate practice areas. Comparable positioning in the Singapore market and similar cross-border capabilities.
• Bird & Bird ATMD: Singapore-based IP and technology-focused firm with deep patent and trademark prosecution capabilities. A direct competitor in the IP practice that is the flagship strength of Donaldson & Burkinshaw.
• Marks & Clerk: Global IP-only law firm with an established Singapore office. Competes directly for patent and trademark prosecution work, especially for international clients seeking one-stop IP coverage across Asia.
• Drew & Napier: Singapore-founded law firm with a comparable full-service offering and a particularly strong IP practice, directly competing for IP prosecution, patent and trademark mandates from Singapore-based and regional clients.
• Ravindran Associates: Singapore firm combining IP and dispute resolution practices. Competes for IP prosecution and enforcement work as well as commercial litigation matters from Singapore clients.
• Spruson & Ferguson: Asia-Pacific IP specialist firm with offices across the region offering patent, trademark and design prosecution services. Directly comparable IP-only focus with overlapping geographic coverage across Singapore, Malaysia and broader Southeast Asia.

Emerging players

• IPHub Asia: Singapore-headquartered IP advisory and prosecution firm with regional coverage. Represents the newer wave of IP boutiques competing for prosecution and portfolio management mandates that are core to Donaldson & Burkinshaw's IP practice.
• Amica Law: Singapore IP-focused boutique that competes with Donaldson & Burkinshaw in trademark and patent prosecution, particularly for SMEs and mid-cap clients seeking specialist IP services.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles19 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Donaldson & Burkinshaw