Aug 18 2008
dechert is coming to town september 1
More people are coming to China looking for gold… and no, I don’t mean the Olympics or gold medals. (though I am sure Michael Phelps is quite happy with the “Great Haul of China” as I’ve seen it termed) Nope. Instead, Philadelphia based lawfirm Dechert LLP is going to start a Beijing office as early as September 1… in a few weeks basically. From the Legal Intelligencer:
The Olympic Games aren’t the only thing going on in Beijing.
Just a few months after Dechert opened a Hong Kong office in January, the firm received a license to practice in Beijing and will officially open up shop in the city Sept. 1.
Firm Chairman Barton J. Winokur said the firm received the license to open in Beijing in the first quarter of 2008. A U.S. partner was designated, under the local rules in China, as the managing partner of the office and had made a few trips there.
The partner, who Winokur didn’t name, was serving in an interim capacity while Dechert looked for attorneys on the ground in Beijing.
Winokur said the office would open Sept. 1 with one new partner, whom he said he couldn’t name until that time. He said he anticipates one or two associates joining shortly thereafter.
The Hong Kong office has been adding attorneys pretty much every month since it opened, with the expectation that it will bring a few more on in September.
Unnamed partner. Very interesting. It means that Dechert is probably poaching someone from another firm, and its likely that the poaching isn’t quite public yet. I guess we’ll know in a week or so who that might be. Of course, he will have to be practicing in the following (rather broad) practices:
According to a statement Dechert issued, the Beijing office will represent domestic and international companies, financial institutions and private investors in corporate and transactional matters. Those might include domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions or joint ventures, private financings, licensing agreements and contracts and corporate governance issues.
Another interesting part:
Winokur admitted, however, that the Asian markets are tough places to find top talent as so many Western firms are looking to make a name for themselves in the region. There are only so many people who are high-level attorneys, fluent in Chinese but have Western training and able to meld the Eastern and Western cultures, he said.
Sounds like Dechert wants domestic work. High level attorneys fluent in Chinese? And with Western training? And is a culture bridger? Hmm… frankly, there aren’t too many of those such people out there. Dechert is going to have to settle for less or pay a whole lot more than it should for the top local talent.
Anyways, I just had to take a break from the Olympics.
