Lester Kuo
- Associate
- Foreign Counsel (California, Arizona)
A US-qualified lawyer admitted to practise in both California and Arizona, Lester advises clients on cross-border M&A, fund investments and market entry into Thailand.
As Deputy Head of PDLegal’s China Desk and a fluent Mandarin speaker, Lester works with Chinese speaking clients on inbound investment opportunities in Thailand and the wider region.
His experience includes establishing Thai entities and joint ventures, securing Thailand Board of Investment promotions and supporting businesses on ESG compliance and carbon credit consulting.
Lester has previously clerked as a Judicial Extern to judge Honorable Richard L. Fruin Jr. of the LA County Superior Court.
Prior to joining PDLegal, Lester practised law in California. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Advertising and Media from Pepperdine University and earned his Juris Doctor (JD) from Loyola Law School in Los Angeles.
Key Practices
Qualifications
- Pepperdine University, B.A.
- Loyola Law School, J.D.
- Admissions: Arizona, California
Speaking engagements
Memberships
Selected Experience
- Represented EV Primus Company Limited on its strategic joint venture with Wuling EV, a globally recognised electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer, to establish a fully integrated EV production and distribution platform in Thailand. The transaction represents a cornerstone investment underpinning Wuling’s direct entry into the Thai market and its broader Southeast Asian expansion strategy.
- Advised on the establishment of Regen Capital Partners, a Cayman Islands search fund with a Thailand-focused investment mandate and a target capitalisation of up to US$30 million, representing the first Thai-focused search fund platform established and managed by a Thai general partner.
- Advised Morning Global (QS) Holding Limited (Morning Global) on the acquisition of PT Quantium Solutions Logistics Indonesia, as part of Morning Global’s complete acquisition of the Quantium Solutions group across five Asia-Pacific countries and territories.
- Assisted counsel in the closing of a Series B funding round for a Thai e-commerce company for the sum of US$2.5 million.
- Represented a leading venture capital on its investment into a Delaware-incorporated AI cybersecurity technology company.
- Represented a leading venture capital company on its Series B investment into an enterprise AI technology company.
- Regularly advise and assist investors from China, Hong Kong and Taiwan in setting up Thai companies and making investments in Thailand.
- Acted as co-counsel and successfully defending a client against all of plaintiff’s claims including fraud, conversion, breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, unfair competition and false advertising.
See Dong v. Zhou, et al. 23STCV23258. - Assisted counsel in acting for a defendant in a California Labor Commissioner’s Office investigation involving over 30 employees and 3 years of back pay worth over USD 5 million.
- Regularly represented enterprises in California Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board hearings.
