Hogan Lovells is closing its office in Ulaanbaatar after seven years in the Mongolian capital. 

“Following a review of the market and our investment priorities, we have taken the decision to close our Ulaanbaatar office,” said Steve Immelt, the firm’s global CEO, in a statement.

He continued, “The office managing partner in Ulaanbaatar, Chris Melville, has been closely involved in the decision, and together with other colleagues in Mongolia, is proposing to set up a new independent law firm in Ulaanbaatar, with a co-operation relationship with Hogan Lovells. We are all very grateful to our team of 15 people in Ulaanbaatar for their hard work over the years." 

Melville added, “I strongly believe that we have a good practice, an excellent team, and that there are opportunities that we can take advantage of operating from a different platform, including working with Hogan Lovells in the future. We are excited about the next chapter.” 

Hogan Lovells was the first international firm with a meaningful presence in the emerging market, entering into an alliance with local firm GTs Advocates in 2010. At the time, then-managing partner Michael Aldrich and GTs executive director Byamba Batbayar said the timing of the alliance was opportune given the robustness of the country’s economy, which was becoming one of the world’s fastest-growing economies. 

In 2011, Mongolia grew 17 percent, thanks to strong demand for its minerals from China, which buys about 90 percent of Mongolia’s exports. But this boom petered out to a 1 percent growth in 2016 as China started to slow down, and commodities – Mongolia’s main export – dropped to their lowest level since the 2008 financial crisis, bringing the country on the brink of recession.  

A few international firms continue to have a presence in Mongolia, including DLA Piper, Clyde & Co and Shearman & Sterling.