International law firm Bird & Bird has further cemented its presence in Greater China with the establishment of an office in Shenzhen, complementing its existing operations in Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong SAR.
Shenzhen is headquarters to many of China’s largest and most innovative technology and life sciences companies as well as being home to numerous startups, incubators, and accelerators across a range of sectors. An office in the region is a natural next step for the firm as part of its Greater China growth strategy.
Bird & Bird works with clients with innovation at the heart of their businesses. The firm’s legal experts are advisors to clients headquartered in Greater China from across the globe, many of whom are headquartered in China’s Greater Bay Area (“GBA”). Adding another office in the GBA to complement Hong Kong will allow the firm to continue to achieve its overarching vision to advise global clients being changed by technology or the digital world and those leading that change.
The office will be led by the co-head of Greater China’s Intellectual Property practice, Hank Leung, with the full support of all the China partners across its three other Greater China offices, many of whom will spend significant amounts of time in the Shenzhen office. With an enhanced presence there, the firm’s Greater China partners will strengthen the firm’s ability to support clients based in the GBA with their legal needs across the globe, working closely with Bird & Bird partners across the firm’s international network.
Ted Chwu, head of Greater China and co-head of Global Tech & Comms sector group at Bird & Bird says: “It has been clear for a while that there was a need for the firm to have a presence in Shenzhen. Our clients were telling us that they wanted us there, and we found ourselves increasingly being pulled to the city due to Shenzhen’s mix of technology-focused companies. The pandemic delayed our execution, but we are now incredibly excited to be able to start delivering on that promise.”
