Paul Weiss is set to shutter its Beijing office by the end of the year, becoming the latest in a slew of Big Law firms to scale back their China presence. 

Paul Weiss first opened in Beijing in 1981, in a move it said made it one of the first foreign firms to establish a presence in mainland China. Its closure will leave the firm with bases in Asia in Hong Kong and Tokyo. 

"We will close our Beijing office at the end of the year," a spokesperson for Paul Weiss said in a statement. "We remain committed to having a strong presence across Asia, including in Hong Kong and Tokyo, and will continue to provide the highest-quality service to our clients in all of our global offices." 

The firm, which has more than 1,000 lawyers globally, currently has four lawyers based in Beijing according to its website – M&A and private equity partner Xiaoyu Greg Liu, one counsel and two associates. 

Meantime, the firm has eight lawyers based in Hong Kong, including partners Judie Ng-Shortell, its China practice managing partner, and Bosco Yiu. Its website also lists ten lawyers for its Tokyo office, including one partner, Tong Yu. 

Paul Weiss' practice areas in China have included M&A, private equity and venture capital, outbound investments, foreign direct investments, capital markets, corporate and project finance, joint ventures, restructuring and internal investigations. 

The firm's Beijing closure continues a large-scale retreat from China by international law firms, amid political tensions between China and the US that look set to continue with Donald Trump's presidency, increased regulatory scrutiny and a muted deals market. 

It follows Mayer Brown announcing on Monday that it had completed the planned reorganisation of its Hong Kong operations, after saying earlier this year it would split from the bulk of its greater China arm. 

The firm has launched Mayer Brown Hong Kong, which has around 20 lawyers working across areas including capital markets, M&A, finance and energy, while Johnson Stokes & Master – the name of the prestigious Hong Kong firm that merged with Mayer Brown in 2008 – has been re-established as an independent firm.

Meantime in October Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr said it would close its Beijing office, leaving it without a physical base in Asia. The same month Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom announced it would close its Shanghai base, citing "shifting market dynamics".

Other major firms to announce closures in Shanghai, Beijing or Hong Kong this year include Reed Smith, Dechert, Morrison & Foerster, Perkins Coie, Sidley Austin, Weil, Orrick and Winston & Strawn.