Yong Hon Cheong

Hon Cheong was called to the Bar in 1995 and currently heads the Human Capital Services practice in Zaid Ibrahim & Co.

From the advisory and transactional perspective, he has advised on employment issues in some of the largest merger and acquisition projects in the country. He also works closely on a regular basis with international law firms and multinational organisations, dealing with employment issues for Malaysia in global or regional corporate exercises.

His clients include multinationals insectors such as automotive, hospitality, services, manufacturing, consulting and financial services. Hon Cheong also represents a wide variety of corporate clients in industrial relations and employment disputes at the Industrial Court and appellate courts. More recently, he has been engaged in providing advice on social issues arising from ESG compliance such as modern slavery and anti-harassment.

From the litigation perspective, Hon Cheong is a well-regarded and regular personality at the Industrial Court conducting cases for a wide range of corporate clients. He also has extensive experience in handling judicial review proceedings and appeals at the Court of Appeal and the Federal Court. His litigation experience cuts across a wide range of employment matters that include unjust dismissal claims, trade disputes and collective bargaining.

After being called to the Bar in 1995, Hon Cheong commenced practice as an Advocate and Solicitor with a well-known senior employment law practitioner. He joined Zaid Ibrahim & Co. in 2003 and became a partner of the firm in 2006.

Whilst his initial years of practice involved general litigation, Hon Cheong made a decision early on in his career to specialise in employment and industrial relations matters. Since then, he has gained extensive experience in his preferred area of work advising and representing a wide range of clients.

Hon Cheong is also often sought to participate in speaking engagements on employment laws, including at conferences organised by local and regional conference organisers. He also regularly contributes articles to international and regional publications working in tandem with foreign law firms. Since 2011, Hon Cheong has been named as a ranked individual under “Employment & Industrial Relations” in Chambers Asia Pacific.

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