Comments on: saul ewing makes its entry into china http://www.chinalawandbusiness.com/2009/08/saul-ewing-makes-its-entry-into-china/ China law blog covering Chinese law, business, and non-profits by Thomas Chow Wed, 24 Feb 2010 02:38:33 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Carolyn Elefant http://www.chinalawandbusiness.com/2009/08/saul-ewing-makes-its-entry-into-china/comment-page-1/#comment-10445 Carolyn Elefant Wed, 19 Aug 2009 03:09:21 +0000 http://www.chinalawandbusiness.com/?p=398#comment-10445 This article caught my eye because I've been tracking the increasing trend of collaborative arrangements between law firms and lawyers over the past few years. This arrangements strikes me as very different from US Law Network and other groups of that genre which are not much more than glorified bar associations. What Saul Ewing and Concord are doing is more akin to an of counsel or outsourcing relationship, and the benefit that SE receives is the ability to service clients in China while holding on to them at the same time. As the firms work together, the relationship will build. Here in DC, I have similar relationships with a lobbying firm that does appropriations work in the energy industry. I routinely refer my clients to that firm because (a) it is successful and (b) I know that it will keep me in the loop so that I can continue to maintain an ongoing relationship with my clients even as their needs are being served by another group. Of course, the risk to SE is that if Concord isn't the right firm for a particular client, SE will lose that client as well. Carolyn Elefant This article caught my eye because I’ve been tracking the increasing trend of collaborative arrangements between law firms and lawyers over the past few years. This arrangements strikes me as very different from US Law Network and other groups of that genre which are not much more than glorified bar associations. What Saul Ewing and Concord are doing is more akin to an of counsel or outsourcing relationship, and the benefit that SE receives is the ability to service clients in China while holding on to them at the same time. As the firms work together, the relationship will build.

Here in DC, I have similar relationships with a lobbying firm that does appropriations work in the energy industry. I routinely refer my clients to that firm because (a) it is successful and (b) I know that it will keep me in the loop so that I can continue to maintain an ongoing relationship with my clients even as their needs are being served by another group.

Of course, the risk to SE is that if Concord isn’t the right firm for a particular client, SE will lose that client as well.

Carolyn Elefant

]]> By: Thomas Chow http://www.chinalawandbusiness.com/2009/08/saul-ewing-makes-its-entry-into-china/comment-page-1/#comment-10372 Thomas Chow Thu, 13 Aug 2009 18:28:01 +0000 http://www.chinalawandbusiness.com/?p=398#comment-10372 Dan, Thanks for dropping by. My thought is also this: if a client can actually afford Saul Ewing, they can definitely afford to shop around for Chinese counsel. Since the China legal market is no longer the black box that clients once thought it was, I would think that information is easy enough to come by about who is (and isn't) a quality lawyer in the major cities of China. I agree that the strong relationships, which are informal, and based upon relationships between partners at various firms, really is the way to go. (and what is already done in 90% of the legal world) Dan,

Thanks for dropping by. My thought is also this: if a client can actually afford Saul Ewing, they can definitely afford to shop around for Chinese counsel. Since the China legal market is no longer the black box that clients once thought it was, I would think that information is easy enough to come by about who is (and isn’t) a quality lawyer in the major cities of China. I agree that the strong relationships, which are informal, and based upon relationships between partners at various firms, really is the way to go. (and what is already done in 90% of the legal world)

]]> By: Dan http://www.chinalawandbusiness.com/2009/08/saul-ewing-makes-its-entry-into-china/comment-page-1/#comment-10369 Dan Thu, 13 Aug 2009 05:53:48 +0000 http://www.chinalawandbusiness.com/?p=398#comment-10369 I completely agree with you. Clients of Saul Ewing who are referred to Concord should wonder if it is because Concord is THE firm that makes sense for that matter or simply because of the alliance. Concord is an excellent firm but they cannot be the best for every matter in every corner of China.... Why not just have "strong relationships" with various firms, not a formal alliance such as this? I completely agree with you. Clients of Saul Ewing who are referred to Concord should wonder if it is because Concord is THE firm that makes sense for that matter or simply because of the alliance. Concord is an excellent firm but they cannot be the best for every matter in every corner of China….

Why not just have “strong relationships” with various firms, not a formal alliance such as this?

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