When President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) was hit with a front-page story in the China Times implicating him in the Zanadau scandal, he hired lawyer Lindy Chen (陳玲玉).
Chen Shui-bian moved to sue the newspaper after it ran a front-page story on Dec. 4 suggesting the president received a NT$4.5 million donation from Zanadau Development Corp majority shareholder Su Hui-chen (蘇惠珍) for his 1994 Taipei mayoral campaign. The story, whose veracity Chen denied, cited anonymous "reliable sources" and was published without a byline.
But after Chen Shui-bian threatened to sue, the newspaper printed a clarification on its front page and apologized to the president. The move prompted the Presidential Office to drop the threatened libel suit.
Lindy Chen, a graduate of the Law Department of National Taiwan University (NTU), was a schoolmate of Chen Shui-bian's. Lindy Chen graduated in 1973, while the president graduated in 1974.
As well as being a partner in the Baker and McKenzie law firm, Lindy Chen serves as legal consultant for the Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp and is the president of the Foundation for the Advancement of Media Excellence.
Baker and McKenzie is well-known for its business expertise and its major clients include many branch offices of foreign companies in Taiwan. Chen was made partner because she has strong connections with major local enterprises and has expertise in business law.
Lindy Chen's father, Chen Tu-ken (陳土根), was one of the founders of Cathay Trust Group (國泰信託集團). In addition, she has been working as a consultant for Fubon Financial Holding Co, whose vice chairman, Daniel Tsai (蔡明忠), was her schoolmate in college.
Lindy Chen began to develop her reputation while in college.
As a sophomore, Chen tried to seek support from fellow students to urge the government to allow freedom of speech on the NTU campus. Chen's push came while Taiwan was still under marshall law and behavior like hers was prohibited.
"I have been a defender of freedom of speech since I was a college student and my belief has never changed," Chen said.
Chen's behavior caught the attention of fellow student Hung San-hsiung (
When they met, Hung was a student leader on campus. He was also a classmate of China Development Industrial Asset Man-agement Corp chairman Benny Hu (
After Hung graduated, Chen replaced him to become the chairwoman of NTU's Law School Students' Association.
The two were married after Chen graduated and Hung finished his military service.
As a senior lawyer with expertise in business law, Chen charges nearly NT$10,000 an hour. Chen defends the fee.
"Some other lawyers may charge you only NT$7,000 an hour but it will take them two hours to finish the job while I can accomplish it within an hour. Which one is more expensive?" she said.
Chen believes in the importance of the learning process, saying only those who can concentrate and stick to one subject for a long time will succeed.
"I kept notes of all the cases that I have reviewed or handled. I always learned a lot through the process. I know it is my job do things perfectly and I want to be the best of the best, which is also my faith," she said.
Several Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) officials including Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) are to be summoned for questioning and then transferred to prosecutors for holding an illegal assembly in Taipei last night, the Taipei Police said today. Chu and two others hosted an illegal assembly and are to be requested to explain their actions, the Taipei City Police Department's Zhongzheng (中正) First Precinct said, referring to a protest held after Huang Lu Chin-ju (黃呂錦茹), KMT Taipei's chapter director, and several other KMT staffers were questioned for alleged signature forgery in recall petitions against Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators. Taipei prosecutors had filed
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
NEW WORLD: Taiwan is pursuing innovative approaches to international relations through economics, trade and values-based diplomacy, the foreign minister said Taiwan would implement a “three-chain strategy” that promotes democratic values in response to US tariffs, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said. Taiwan would aim to create a “global democratic value chain,” seek to capitalize on its position within the first island chain and promote a “non-red supply chain,” Lin was quoted as saying in the ministry’s written report to the Legislative Yuan submitted ahead of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee meeting slated for today. The Ministry would also uphold a spirit of mutual beneficial collaboration, maintaining close communication and consultations with Washington to show that Taiwan-US cooperation
Taiwan and the US have begun trade negotiations over tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump earlier this month, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said in an interview this morning before reporting to the Legislative Yuan’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee. The Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO), Taiwan’s de facto embassy in the US, has already established communication channels with the US Department of State and the US Trade Representative (USTR), and is engaging in intensive consultations, he said. Points of negotiation include tariffs, non-tariff trade barriers and issues related to investment, procurement and export controls, he