Zhong Lun () is a Chinese multinational

law firm A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise consumer, clients (individuals or corporations) about their legal rights and Obligation, respon ...

headquartered in

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

, China. It was founded in 1993 as one of the first private law firms in China. Zhong Lun is one of China's most prominent law firms and is a member of the " Red Circle" of elite Chinese practices that increasingly compete with London’s

Magic Circle A magic circle is a circle of space marked out by practitioners of some branches of ritual magic, which they generally believe will contain energy and form a sacred space, or will provide them a form of magical protection, or both. It may be mar ...

and New York’s white-shoe partnerships. Zhong Lun currently has domestic offices in

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

Shenzhen Shenzhen is a prefecture-level city in the province of Guangdong, China. A Special economic zones of China, special economic zone, it is located on the east bank of the Pearl River (China), Pearl River estuary on the central coast of Guangdong ...

Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...

Chengdu Chengdu; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ; Chinese postal romanization, previously Romanization of Chinese, romanized as Chengtu. is the capital city of the Chinese province of Sichuan. With a ...

Wuhan Wuhan; is the capital of Hubei, China. With a population of over eleven million, it is the most populous city in Hubei and the List of cities in China by population, eighth-most-populous city in China. It is also one of the nine National cent ...

Chongqing ChongqingPostal Romanization, Previously romanized as Chungking ();. is a direct-administered municipality in Southwestern China. Chongqing is one of the four direct-administered municipalities under the State Council of the People's Republi ...

Qingdao Qingdao, Mandarin: , (Qingdao Mandarin: t͡ɕʰiŋ˧˩ tɒ˥) is a prefecture-level city in the eastern Shandong Province of China. Located on China's Yellow Sea coast, Qingdao was long an important fortress. In 1897, the city was ceded to G ...

Hangzhou Hangzhou, , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly romanized as Hangchow is a sub-provincial city in East China and the capital of Zhejiang province. With a population of 13 million, the municipality comprises ten districts, two counti ...

Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...

and

Haikou Haikou; Chinese postal romanization, formerly romanized as Hoihow is the capital city, capital and most populous city of the Chinese province of Hainan. Haikou city is situated on the northern coast of Hainan, by the mouth of the Nandu River. ...

, and international offices in

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Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

and

Almaty Almaty, formerly Alma-Ata, is the List of most populous cities in Kazakhstan, largest city in Kazakhstan, with a population exceeding two million residents within its metropolitan area. Located in the foothills of the Trans-Ili Alatau mountains ...

Name

In Chinese Zhong Lun (中伦) means compliance with ethical principles. The term first appeared in the ''

Analects of Confucius The ''Analects'', also known as the ''Sayings of Confucius'', is an ancient Chinese philosophical text composed of sayings and ideas attributed to Confucius and his contemporaries, traditionally believed to have been compiled by his followers. ...

''.

History

Zhong Lun was founded in Beijing in 1993 as a private partnership. In 1996, it merged with the Beijing-based law firm Jintong and changed its name to Zhonglun Jintong. In 2003, a group of Zhonglun Jintong partners left to set up a new firm named Zhonglun W&D. Zhonglun Jintong rebranded itself as Zhong Lun in 2008. Zhong Lun's office in Wuhan was opened in January 2010. Zhong Lun's office in Hong Kong was opened in February 2010, in an association with the Hong Kong–based law firm Roger Ho & Co. In 2011 Zhong Lun's Hong Kong office merged with the Hong Kong–based law firm Boughton Peterson Yang Anderson. Zhong Lun's opened an office in London in February 2012 following the recruitment of the entire London staff of Zhonglun W&D. In April 2013, Zhong Lun opened a New York Office in Midtown Manhattan, with Ta-kuang (T.K.) Chang and Philip Xuan Zhang as founding partners.

Rankings and recognition

Zhong Lun has been regularly recognized by Chambers & Partners as a leading law firm in China, awarding it Dispute Resolution Law Firm of the Year (2017, 2019, 2023); Corporate & Finance Law Firm of the Year (2015, 2022); and China Law Firm of the Year (2013, 2014, 2016). In 2024, Chambers & Partners Asia Pacific ranked Zhong Lun as top tier in 27 areas of practice while Chambers & Partners Global ranked Zhong Lun as top tier in 13 areas of practice, including capital markets, mergers and acquisitions, dispute resolution, energy and natural resources, and projects and infrastructure. In July 2024, Zhong Lun Law Firm was recognized in Law.asia's China Business Law Awards 2024. The firm achieved distinction in multiple categories, including the Golden League, Capital Markets (Domestic), Competition and Antitrust, Corporate and Compliance, Dispute Resolution (Domestic), IP (Patent), Mergers and Acquisitions (Inbound, Domestic, and Outbound), Private Equity and Venture Capital, Restructuring and Insolvency, and Taxation.

Main practice areas

Zhong Lun's main practice areas include:{{cite web, url=http://www.zhonglun.com/en/practices.aspx, title=Practice Areas, access-date=8 March 2014, publisher=Zhong Lun *Real Estate; *Capital Markets/Securities; *Private Equity & Investment Funds *Corporate/Foreign Direct Investment *Mergers & Acquisitions *Banking and Finance *Dispute Resolution *Intellectual Property *Construction & Infrastructure *Antitrust/Competition *WTO/International Trade *Overseas Investments *Labor and Employment *Taxation & Wealth Management *Securitization & Financial Products *Bankruptcy & Reorganization *Hospitality *Technology, Media and Telecoms and Entertainment *Regulatory/Anti-bribery *Environmental, Energy and Natural Resources *Shipping

References

External links