33 ASIAN LEGAL BUSINESS – NOVEMBER 2023 WWW.LEGALBUSINESSONLINE.COM ASIA TOP 50 sion fears have dampened some companies’ appetites for dealmaking. This is reflected in the deals that law firms have been able to advise on. Faced with a decline in global deals and faltering client demand, law firms are confronted with the difficult decision of having to cut staff. Closer to home, China’s economy, intended to drive a third of global economic growth this year, has dramatically slowed down. This has led to a reassessment of growth strategies for international law firms. A recent Reuters review of data from Leopard Solutions, which tracks law firm hiring, found that out of the 73 largest U.S. law firms with a presence in China, 32 shrank their attorney presence in the last decade. In Beijing, 26 of the 48 largest U.S. law firms drew down their presence since 2018, Reuters added. Magic Circle firms Linklaters and Clifford Chance also trimmed associate headcounts in China and Hong Kong. At Linklaters, at least 20 junior attorneys were cut, branded as a “modest reduction” in response to the “prolonged downturn in the China market.” Clifford Chance was said to have let go of around four associates, citing their failure to meet billing requirements. In one of the biggest announcements this year, global law firm Dentons said that it has split with its China branch, Beijing Dacheng Law Offices. The 2015 combination between China’s Dacheng and U.S.-based Dentons created a 6,600-lawyer mega-firm, with Dacheng accounting for more than 4,000 of its attorneys. How this will impact domestic Chinese firms is yet to be seen. The Asia Top 50 domestic list finds Chinese law firms taking the first 25 slots, with Yingke Law Firm boasting a staggering 14,000 attorneys, about twice the size of the firm in second place – Dacheng. Korean giant Kim & Chang, as in other years, becomes the first non-China firm on that list. Two Indian firms are not far behind, with both Khaitan & Co and Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas recently joining the 1000-lawyer club. After that, the list features a smattering of non-China firms that are TOP 50 FIRMS (DOMESTIC) 2023 Rank Firm Headquarters Total Partners Total Associates Total Lawyers 1 Yingke Law Firm China 1288 10482 14935 2 Dentons China China 1939 5029 7113 3 DeHeng Law Offices China 906 3287 4312 4 AllBright Law Offices China 914 3029 3994 5 Tahota Law Firm China 933 2557 3714 6 W&H Law Firm China 1041 2611 3669 7 Grandall Law Firm China 1270 2242 3512 8 Beijing DHH Law Firm China 211 2653 2864 9 Zhonglun W&D Law Firm China 685 1731 2628 10 China Commercial Law Firm China 251 2319 2570 11 King & Wood Mallesons China 488 1979 2555 12 Zhong Yin Law Firm China 104 2229 2339 13 Hui Ye Law Firm China 532 1699 2306 14 Jincheng Tongda & Neal Law Firm China 521 1040 1791 15 Zhong Lun Law Firm China 394 1326 1766 16 Zhong Wen Law Firm China 465 1300 1765 17 Hylands Law Firm China 483 1265 1748 18 Hiways Law Firm China 445 1128 1701 19 Guanghe Law Firm China 219 1470 1689 20 Hansheng Law Offices China 265 1178 1608 21 TianTai Law Firm China 489 1038 1552 22 SGLA Law Firm China 352 1112 1508 23 Shanghai City Development Law Firm China 317 1063 1408 24 Guantao Law Firm China 409 941 1350 25 Mingju Law Firm China 124 1179 1320 26 Kim & Chang Korea 225 1055 1280 27 Leaqual Law Firm China 168 563 1123 28 Khaitan & Co India 205 817 1030 29 Jingtian & Gongcheng China 278 745 1029 30 Tian Yuan Law Firm China 257 748 1005 31 Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas India 180 820 1000 32 Trilegal India 114 850 970 33 JunHe LLP China 273 666 961 34 ETR Law Firm China 187 760 947 35 Guangdong Kingbridge Law Firm China 113 761 926 36 JOINTIDE Law Firm China 299 479 817 37 Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas India 163 648 811 38 Nishimura & Asahi Japan 240 476 798 39 Han Kun Law Offices China 170 608 778 40 Capital Equity Legal Group China 94 684 778 41 Rajah & Tann Singapore 277 484 776 42 Lantai Partners China 168 603 771 43 Guangdong Sun Law Firm China 65 758 758 44 Mori Hamada & Matsumoto Japan 182 435 709 45 Yulchon Korea 274 407 681 46 Shin & Kim Korea 292 375 667 47 Lee & Ko Korea 322 342 664 48 JunZeJun Law Offices China 181 451 646 49 Anderson Mori & Tomotsune Japan 194 372 627 50 AZB & Partners India 132 481 613
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