The seminar focused on the effects of China's accession into WTO on the existing legal services of China. China did not commit to the opening up of her local legal services to foreign and Hong Kong law firms during the negotiations on WTO accession. At the moment, around 100 international, foreign and Hong Kong law firms have obtained licences and can practice foreign laws in China.

Speakers agreed that there would be phenomenal changes to come and some appeared genuinely concerned with the readiness and competitiveness of local lawyers when challenged by the more sophisticated foreign lawyers when they turn up in droves in China while others were less worried. Many took this as the opportunity for Chinese lawyers to improve on their standard. There was a consensus that the opening up of the legal services in China will be beneficial to China in the long run.

Peter Sit introduced the Hong Kong experience to those attending. According to him, Hong Kong has the most open and liberal statutory framework on governing legal service providers in the whole of Asia, Singapore, Japan and Australia included. A foreign lawyer can be registered to practise foreign law in a local Hong Kong law firm. A foreign law firm can register a branch in Hong Kong. A foreign lawyer can take the oversea lawyers' exams organized by the Law Society of Hong Kong to become a Hong Kong lawyer on passing the exams, a foreign law firm can after a period of time, with the necessary local partners in the Hong Kong branch, become a local branch of the foreign firm in Hong Kong practicing Hong Kong law.

Conference in Shenzhen

On 12th April 2002 a team of 7 members of the firm led by 2 partners took part in the Hong Kong Legal Services Promotion Conference in Shenzhen, China. The conference was jointly organized by the Trade Development Council and the Law Society of Hong Kong. Nearly 500 mainland companies attended the conference and showed deep interest in setting up companies and seeking floatation in Hong Kong. Quite some of those who made inquiries with the firm were impressed by our experience in corporate finance.

'GO WEST' marches on!

The firm has successfully obtained a licence in April this year to practice foreign laws inside mainland China. The new office will be located in Xi'an, Shaanxi.

Xi'an was the capital of several glorious Chinese dynasties, it is rich in culture and prosperous in tourism. The Terracotta site has earned the international fame as the Eighth Wonder of the World. What is less well known is Shaanxi province's important achievements in agriculture and heavy industries. Xi'an is also one of China's high-tech R&D centres. There are several technology parks in Xi'an which are highly ranked inside China, their success is owed to the continual supply of young talents, scientists and researchers produced by many excellent universities located in Xi'an. The State Council has just announced its policy to make Xi'an a software development centre.

As this is the first licence being granted by China's Ministry of Justice to a non-PRC law firm to set up a branch office in the north-western part of China, the firm is in a unique position to tap into the enormous opportunities and resources of China's great West. As China has at the turn of the 21st century solemnly declared her intention to focus on the development of the West, it is expected that infra-structural projects will enjoy tremendous preference and priorities in the years to come.

The firm would wish to join hands with all interested ILN members to explore this exciting development and opportunity. The firm's corporate and commercial team is already working on two "H" shares IPO projects, one is on pharmaceuticals and the other on natural gas, the intended issuers are both joint-stock Chinese companies in Xi'an. Our IP Department has also begun filing trade mark applications for Xi'an entities.