The six firms - Allen & Overy, Clifford Chance, Herbert Smith, Latham & Watkins, Norton Rose and White & Case - are expected to begin operating by June next year and their licences will run for five years.

Announcing the list yesterday, Law and Second Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam said four of the six firms are ranked in the world's top 10 firms.

The firms were chosen based on their track records, the value of the work they would bring to Singapore and the opportunities they would provide for local lawyers.

'These are not firms that make statements lightly... nor are they firms that you would expect to see today and be gone tomorrow,' said Mr Shanmugam. 'These are serious world class players.'

Twenty foreign firms applied to operate in Singapore and the six were chosen via a stringent selection process with two different committees and the Attorney-General involved in the selection.

Read the full story in Saturday's edition of The Straits Times.