37 ASIAN LEGAL BUSINESS CHINA • 亚洲法律杂志-中国版 WWW.LEGALBUSINESSONLINE.COM/CHINA BROUGHT TO YOU BY CO-EFFORT LAW FIRM LLP 郑蕾 Grace Zheng 高级合伙人 Senior Partner zhenglei@co-effort.com Grace Zheng, Senior Partner of Co-Effort Law Firm, has been recognized for her commitment to continuing professional development and the ability to understand industry trends in the 24 years of practice. A senior expert in foreign-related commercial and maritime affairs, Grace was listed among the 2023 ALB China Top 15 Female Lawyers for her years of quality services and client recognition. She graciously shared her expertise, industry experience, and professional insights. A SOLID FOUNDATION Since 1999, Grace has specialized in shipping logistics, ship trade & financing, and foreign-related arbitration. Over the past two decades, she has advised a number of well-known import and export trading companies, financial institutions, financial leasing companies, shipping logistics enterprises, and ship repairing and building enterprises at home and abroad, and provided legal services for major non-litigation, litigation, and arbitration cases concerning international trade, ship sale and financing, and maritime logistics. She emphasizes that a solid professional foundation is necessary for the profession. Faced with intense competition, lawyers need to keep improving their professional skills to satisfy clients’ needs and stand out in the industry. PROFOUND THEORY Grace, having its PhD degree, also attaches great importance to theoretical and legislative research on maritime commercial law. She is a senior researcher of the Maritime Arbitration Research Center of the China Academy of Arbitration Law, an executive director of the China Maritime Law Association, as well as an arbitrator of several institutions such as the China Maritime Arbitration Commission and the Shanghai International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission. She is also a visiting professor and tutor at the Shanghai Maritime University and East China University of Political Science and Law. Grace has been invited to provide expert input to the formulation of laws and regulations and research projects and has published more than 50 papers and co-edited works in various professional journals and WeChat platforms. “When combining theory and practice, I can better familiarize myself with and explore the latest legislation, judicial and industry dynamics, and broaden my horizons and mind. In this way, I can provide my clients with more effective and pragmatic legal advice and dispute solutions, thus building my reputation among clients and in the industry,” Grace adds. As an expert in maritime commercial affairs, Grace points out that ship financing is a major challenge facing shipping enterprises. In addressing the challenge, Grace was commissioned by the China Maritime Arbitration Commission, helping draft, publishing, and updating the Standard Ship Finance Lease Contract, which provides a standard form contract generally accepted by the industry for practitioners to follow in maritime finance. RESPOND TO CHALLENGES She observes that the epidemic has presented new challenges to the global economy and shipping industry. “In the post-epidemic era, it takes some time and conditions for China’s economy to recover. In the grim situation, we should adapt to our role in the new era, forging ahead in an innovative spirit and integrating advantageous resources, to provide more professional legal support for China’s economic revival and shipping development, so that the world can see China’s influence in global shipping.” Another challenge lies in more and more stringent requirements from clients: First, faced with more specific and professional requirements from clients on legal services in shipping and international trade, lawyers need to follow a more pragmatic, rigorous, and up-to-date manner; Second, lawyers need to analyze customer needs and provide targeted legal services from more cutting-edge perspectives concerning market and macro-economic developments. Grace believes that a purpose of law is to promote business development, and this dictates visionary lawyers with a strong legal and business mindset. At the same time, lawyers should engage in the absorption of new external knowledge, embrace different thoughts and views, and keep up with the times, to gain client trust and win market opportunities. LOOK AHEAD Grace also shares her goal of nurturing a bigger professional team for maritime and international trade business by leveraging the strengths of professionalism and expansion. This means to branch out into new areas, address new challenges in the new industries, and explore new areas of growth and strength. 理论结合实务，提供全方位、多维度的优质法律服务 ——专访2023 ALB China十五佳女律师：协力律师事务所高级合伙人郑蕾 COMBINING THEORY WITH PRACTICE TO PROVIDE ALL-ROUND AND MULTI-DIMENSIONAL QUALITY SERVICES —Interview with 2023 ALB China Top 15 Female Lawyers: Grace Zheng, Senior Partner of Co-Effort Law Firm 协力律师事务所高级合伙人郑蕾律师拥有24年的执业经验，具有不断 钻研业务的精神和准确把握行业发展趋势的能力。作为涉外商事、海商领域 的资深专家，今年，郑律师凭借着多年来的优质法律服务与客户的认可上榜 2023 ALB China十五佳女律师榜单。她与ALB聊了聊她职业生涯中的专业 素养、行业经验与服务心得。 扎实基础 1999年以来，郑律师一直从事涉外律师工作，深耕航运物流、船舶贸易 融资、涉外仲裁等领域。她告诉ALB，在过去二十余年的执业生涯中，她曾担 任多家国内外知名进出口贸易公司、金融机构、融资租赁公司、航运物流企 业、船舶修造企业的法律顾问，为重大国际贸易、船舶买卖融资、海事物流非 讼项目及诉讼和仲裁业务提供大量法律服务。 在郑律师看来，首先，律师作为一名专业人士，扎实的专业基础则成为了 该职业的必备技能。伴随着法律服务市场的激烈竞争，律师也需要不断提高 自身的专业能力，才能满足客户的需求，在行业里脱颖而出。 精深理论 其次，郑律师作为法学博士非常重视在海事商事法律领域的理论和立 法研究工作，她是中国仲裁法学会海事仲裁研究中心高级研究员、中国海商 法协会常务理事，以及中国海事仲裁委员会、上海国际经济贸易仲裁委员会 等多家机构仲裁员，同时也是上海海事大学的客座教授和硕士生导师、华东 政法大学硕士生导师。在理论研究和立法建议方面，郑律师被邀请作为专家 参与多部法规政策的制定和课题研究，也在各类专业期刊、微信公众号公开 发表论文并参编著作50余篇。 “在这种理论结合实务，全方位、多维度的工作中，我能更好地熟悉和 研究最新的立法、司法和行业动态，拓宽视野和思路，实现良性互动，有助于 我在处理法律实务工作时为客户提供更加有效和务实地法律建议和纠纷解 决方案，从而获得客户认可和行业口碑。”郑律师补充道。 作为海事商事领域的专家，郑律师指出，船舶融资是航运企业面临的 重大问题。为解决这一难题，郑律师受中国海事仲裁委员会委托，负责起草、 发布并更新了《船舶融资租赁合同标准文本》，填补了我国海商法界在海事 金融领域缺乏行业普遍接受的格式合同的空白。 迎接挑战 而就她观察，新冠疫情也使得全球经济和航运业面临着新的挑战。郑 律师坦言：“后疫情时代，中国经济的复苏需要一定的时间和条件。在当前严 峻的形势下，作为新时代的法律人和航运人，我们更应当积极地开拓创新、 整合优势资源、适应当前形势的发展，为我国经济的复兴和航运业的发展提 供更多的专业法律支持，让世界看到中国在全球航运领域的影响力。” 此外，就郑律师看来，另一个挑战则来源于客户对律师的法律服务提 出了愈发严苛的要求：第一，客户对于航运和国际贸易领域的法律服务分工 更为精细，专业化要求更高，要求律师以更务实、严谨、与时俱进的态度为客 户提供高质量的法律服务；第二，客户要求律师以更前沿的视角更多地从市 场和经济大环境的角度，结合客户实际情况，分析客户需求，为客户定制法 律服务方案。 而郑律师认为，法律的目的之一在于促进商业的发展，加强法商思维 是每位优秀法律人的必修课。与此同时，法律人也需要不断向外汲取新的知 识、与不同思维进行碰撞并与时俱进，方能获得客户信任，赢得市场机会。 展望未来 谈及未来目标，郑律师表示，她将逐步做大协力的海事海商和国际贸 易律师团队，将专业化和规模化的优势相结合。进一步扩大业务领域，研究 新行业中的新问题，在现有业务基础上，拓展新的业务增长点和优势领域。
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