King & Wood Mallesons (KWM), the Sino-Australian international law firm formed through a high-profile 2012 merger, is set to split into two successor law firms next year.
Australian and other legal media reported staff at KWM received an internal notice yesterday confirming that KWM’s Chinese and Australian partnerships had “jointly agreed to terminate cooperation”.
The news was shared by the firm’s Australia chair, David Friedlander, and chief executive partner, Renae Lattey, whose second term of office was confirmed in September.
KWM subsequently confirmed the demerger in a joint statement, saying from 31 March 2026 the Chinese and Australian partnerships would operate respectively as King & Wood and Mallesons under independent brands, with the Hong Kong partnership operating as King & Wood.
KWM operates as a verein, whose main parts are its market-leading China business and its Australian branch, formerly the leading Australian firm Mallesons Stephen Jaques, which combined with China’s King & Wood to form KWM in 2012.
GLP understands that the firm’s verein structure, with separate profit pools and independent partnerships, would be dissolved, and that the two firms would work together on a non-exclusive basis following the separation.
KWM’s other offices in Japan and the US would remain with the Chinese firm. KWM’s European operations were transferred to Eversheds Sutherland in 2023, following an earlier referral agreement. They were founded as a successor practice by the Chinese firm following the collapse in 2017 of KWM’s European arm, which had been formed through a merger with London-headquartered SJ Berwin four years earlier.
KWM said the decision “reflects the evolution of both firms and their respective strategic priorities and future aspirations”. Both firms expect all client work to continue on a business-as-usual basis until the demerger, to “ensure a smooth transition with no disruption to clients or impact on local leadership, governance or operations”.
Wang Junfeng, King & Wood’s global chairman, said: “This development reflects the different strategic horizons of our firms. We thank the Australian firm for the years of teamwork and partnership.”
He added: “We remain committed to our international strategy and will continue to expand our geographic coverage through both organic growth and collaboration with other leading firms globally. King & Wood’s Hong Kong office, the largest law firm in Hong Kong by number of lawyers, will continue to take on a strategic role in this effort.”
Lattey said: “We thank the partners and colleagues of KWM China for their professionalism, collegiality and friendship over the past 14 years. Mallesons is a trusted and respected brand with nearly two centuries of legal excellence and 50 years of international experience and relationships.
“We will continue to build on this proud legacy as we become the only top-tier independent firm operating from Australia with the flexibility to collaborate more broadly with global elite firms to meet the needs of our clients and our people here, across the region and around the globe.”
KWM’s separation comes as many large international law firms rethink their China strategies amid simmering geopolitical tensions between China and the West, tightening regulation and business drying up as the country’s economy cools.
Dentons formally split from its Chinese member firm, Dacheng Law Offices, in 2023, ending their 2015 alliance due to China’s tightening cybersecurity, data protection and national security regulations.
A spate of US and UK law firms have also closed offices in mainland China, where the headcount of Am Law 100 firms has fallen by 25% over the last two years, according to publicly available data tracked by Pirical. Cleary, Milbank, Paul Weiss, Skadden, Morrison & Foerster, Sidley Austin and Weil are among the firms to have closed offices there since the start of last year, while Mayer Brown and Taylor Wessing split from their Hong Kong partnerships.
Going the other way, CMS has been investing in Hong Kong, merging with its local alliance firm and hiring from BCLP, while Mishcon de Reya also plans to open in Hong Kong. Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer also remains committed to its offices in China and Hong Kong following its recent US merger.
Email your news and story ideas to: [email protected]
