We didn’t deliberately co-ordinate the publication of our China Elite report (click here for an executive preview) with George Osborne’s visit to the PRC, but it’s happy timing.
On one level, you might imagine that international law firms should put the brake on any investment in China. Its manufacturing sector is shrinking, the country is in slowdown and the region is looking ever more problematic; indeed, managing partners routinely grumble at how difficult it is to make a decent margin over there. But the Chancellor’s overtures to Chinese businesses could see a fresh influx of infrastructure investors from the PRC. In that case we will surely see a much more visible Chinese presence on the global legal scene.
A handful are still vowing to remain independent; foremost among them Jun He and Fangda, the former best-known here for its relationship with Slaughter and May. However, apart from these two, most other firms interviewed by The Lawyer are now freely admitting they are open to mergers, international tie-ups and joint ventures. As Asia editor Yun Kriegler observes, this is a distinct shift in attitudes since we first started tracking the market four years ago. However, Chinese firms’ most common complaint is that it is difficult to find the right deal; their perception is that foreign firms want full control and everything their way, but they’re not willing to pay a price or invest actual money. The mistrust goes both ways; Western firms are largely still wary of link-ups with PRC practices, mainly for cultural reasons. And for culture, read attitudes to transparency.
But here’s the thing. Transparency – the prerequisite for a functioning market economy – is coming to the Chinese legal sector. Our China Elite report reveals the top 30 firms in the country not just by headcount but by revenue – the first time these figures have ever been published. The Lawyer China 30 is unparalleled market intelligence, and underlines the extent to which Chinese firms are recalibrating, reforming their management structures and profit distribution, and instituting a cross-selling culture. Whether or not Osborne’s great new Anglo-Sino project comes off, the top Chinese practices are already looking outwards. Now, for the first time, you can see the firms that are really performing.
Get the full China Elite report by emailing Richard Edwards at richard.edwards@thelawyer.com.
