The 1,500-lawyer firm is among the largest in China and has 16 offices across the country. According to partner Yu Bingguang it is keen to increase its international coverage and is considering the possibility of joining forces with an existing UK firm, though it is not yet known exactly what form the new office will take.

The firm had a team of nine lawyers in the UK earlier this month exploring potential locations with a view to setting up an office before the end of the year.

Brexit an ‘opportunity’

Mr Yu told the Law Society Gazette that the firm wants to consolidate its strong position in China, ‘as clients are increasingly demanding cross-border legal services’. He added that the decision to establish a London office had been in the pipeline since before the EU referendum, but that the vote to leave presented an ‘opportunity’.