OUR HISTORY
As one of prestigious and first-generation law firms established by riding on the wave of China government’s ‘Open Door’ and ‘Economic Reform’ policies, Shanghai International Economic & Trade Law Office (“SIETLO”) traces its origins to 1982, when, under the name of Legal Counselor Office of China Council for The Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), Shanghai Subcommittee. In 1984 the office was transferred to an independent law firm under the name of SIETLO. Since then SIETLO has grown to a true and full service international practice firm with strong presences in both Shanghai, China and New York City, the United States, particularly with the strong emphasis on intellectual property practice.
SIETLO, as a pioneer among China’s law firms involving international practice, made the records of being the first China’s law firm representing clients in the following areas:
Formerly the Shanghai Office of CCPIT Patent Agency, the firm was the earliest IP firm to handle trademark and patent prosecutions.
Issuing China’s company bond in foreign country
Seizing and foreclosing foreign vessel in China
Insolvency and liquidation of foreign-owned company in China
Enforcement of the arbitral award by Hong Kong arbitration institution in Mainland China;
Trial of the first foreign L/C fraud case involving amount over US$ 10 millions in China;
Proceeding before leading international arbitral bodies;
Trial of anti-dumping case in the United States.
Being one of well-established law firms in Shanghai licensed to provide comprehensive legal services to foreign investors and public listing corporations, SIETLO acts as principal outside counsel to, or provides significant legal representation for, most public listing companies in Shanghai and more than a dozen of the Fortune 500 companies, as well as to a wide variety of other entities, including privately held companies, stated-owned entities, financial institutions, investment firms, non-profit organizations and government agencies. Over the years, SIETLO has had the fortune of developing an impressive list of representative clients as follows:
OUR QUALITY FOCUS
SIETLO is one of the oldest international IP firms in China. Its predecessor was CCPIT Patent Agency, Shanghai Office. It has wide connections with IP firms in the world, and has served numerous leading multinational corporations in rendering trademark and patent service for them. In addition to the international practice,SIETLO handled about one third of famous and well-known marks in Shanghai. According to the 2010 official trademark agency's statistics, SIETLO (aka FORTUNE IP) has been one of the top 10 filers for trademark applications in Shanghai.
SIETLO is distinguished not only by the depth and scope of its legal advisory services, but also by unmatched experience in the international arena, particularly in providing legal advisory services to foreign investors in China. The firm’s lawyers have decades of experience in IP practice,transnational business development and international transactions. As a result, we are known for unusual effectiveness in assisting clients to accomplish their objectives.
At SIETLO, our commitment to client service and our clients’ satisfaction are what to tie us together. We have entered an era in which preferred services is defined in terms that go beyond price and efficiency. Our foreign clients are increasingly looking for demonstrated legal skill that are accomplished by thorough knowledge and understanding of their culture, legal systems, businesses, industries, and related academic, technical, and commercial disciplines. Our objective is to develop an unparalleled sensitivity to our clients’ objectives and a through understanding of the economic issues and clients’ concerns implicated by the problems, transactions, and controversies brought to our attention. We believe that such an awareness contributes to more creative solutions to our clients’ problems and, when applied to project planning, provides a measurable value-added dimension to our services.
OUR TEAM
SIETLO is an integrated partnership that operates as one firm cross the Pacific Ocean. The firm is consisted of six divisions --- Intellectual Property, Corporate, Finance, Real Estate, International Trade and New York Office. The six divisions are supplemented by multidisciplinary terms as well as by specialized industry practice.
Most of our team members are highly regarded in their fields. Eight current or former merbers of the firm currently serve as members of China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission or legal counsels to Shanghai government agencies. Five lawyers at SIETLO were admitted to practice law in both the United States and China. Most of our team members have solid science, technology, business, accounting, management, governmental and academic service backgrounds. In addition, the firm has an of-counsel network that provides substantial accesses to and expertise of government agencies and a variety of business and professional organizations.
This professional mix and depth enable us to bridge the cultural linguistic and legal system gaps which can stand in the way of success in international business, to serve the needs of foreign clients for on-the-spot China-related legal advice, to offer special advice in areas outside the traditional ambit of legal services, and to represent our clients’ interest while achieving successful resolution of difficult issues in an efficient manner.
OUR PROFESSIONAL RELATIONSHIP WITH GOVERNMENT
Relationships are critical in today’s business world. SIETLO maintains close professional relationship with regulatory branches in Chinese government as well as a variety of government agencies. Some of our lawyers are the members of legislation regulatory branches. SIETLO also serves as outside legal counsels to a number of government agencies. These relationships signify that we can make available to our clients the best possible assistance and the most reliable resources in the China’s complicated political and business environment. We understand how the political and business systems work. We enjoy being part of the system.
Understanding of national, provincial and local regulations and government decision-making processes and extensive experience in dealing with governmental authorities and commercial bodies make the firm a unique resource for foreign business and projects in China. We rely on the depth of experience and relationship to help our clients in archiving their business objectives in results-oriented manners.
Founded in 1982
50 people in their team
To take advantage of lower labor and land cost and to explore China’s huge market with a population 1.3 billion, the last two decades has seen an extensive investment and relocation of foreign business to China. SIETLO is dedicated to assist clients in structuring all types of investment activities in China. Particularly, with our strong local roots and extensive business contracts, we have experience in assisting clients to decide on investment structures best suited for specific types of projects, and in providing advises on China law, taxation, industrial regulations, licenses and trading restrictions. Many aspects of business operations in China are subject to various Chinese government approvals. We regularly assist clients in such matters.
SIETLO provides a broad range of corporate and business services to public held corporations and private business. In many cases, we serve as general counsel for corporation and represent them in all aspects of their corporate life. Within the umbrella of the Corporate, Securities and Commercial, we generally provide the following services:
We are involved in corporate governance including fiduciary duties, officer and director liability, derivative actions and inside trading.
We represent corporation in structuring their initial and in ongoing corporate financing transaction utilizing a wide range of public debt and private debt and equity instruments.
We represent clients, including issuers, underwriters, and investors, in public offering such as stock A and B, debt securities, and provide advices on compliance with securities law. Our experience in capital markets also include private placement of securities, and medium-term note program. With our strong presence in New York, USA, we provide advices on overseas listing of Chinese companies.
We are active in domestic and cross-boarder corporate transaction such as mergers and acquisition, joint ventures and change of control transactions. We advise industrial and service business and commercial banks in government policies and regulatory approval and in structuring and completing mergers and acquisition and leveraged buyouts;
We provide advices on financial restructuring and insolvency. We represent troubled company and their major constituents including banks and creditors and equityholders in their efforts to restructure and rehabilitate distressed business in a fashion that maximize values.
We provide representation to private sectors and state-owned enterprises involved in privatization, including equity sales, the transfer of title or managerial and operational control by contract.
We also assist our clients in their ongoing contractual relationships with venture partners, suppliers, distributors，franchisees, and customers.
We offer extensive expertise in all areas of tax law with our CPA-background lawyers. Our most significant tax practice areas consist of tax planning for form of business organization and business transactions. We represent clients in tax controversies, particular cases involving intercompany transfer pricing, dispute regarding the tax structuring of domestic and international corporate and financial transaction, issues involving unrelated business income and other issues that arise in audits and governmental tax agency controversies.
Since the late 1980’s China has been experiencing a property development boom with its successive two-figure growth in the past two decade. Our involvement with development of property investment and construction project is long-standing.
SIETLO has a full-service real estate and construction practices. We represent developers, owners, private and institutional investors, sovereigns, contractors, architecture and engineering firms and lenders in development, acquisition, construction, operation, leasing and financing. Our real estate and construction practices encompasses not only real property and construction law but joint venture, banking, tax, structured finance and dispute resolution. We counsel clients in connection with investments in and financing of a broad spectrum of real estate asset classes, including office and residential properties, hotel and resorts, retail properties and industrial properties.
Our attorneys with Real Estate & Construction Division combine high profession experience, practical business-oriented approach with a creative structuring mentality. Some of our attorneys in this area have degrees in architecture or civil engineering. We strive to meet the objectives of our clients in this area through the application of our experiences and skills in dealing with governmental agencies and local regulations, business analysis and coordination of efforts by other professionals.
Typical transactions we handle include:
Handling application with China government authorities for leasing and biding large tracts of land for industrial, residential and commercial developments. Participating in governmental incentive real estate developments and transactions;
Formation and operation of real estate joint ventures, including investment funds, corporations, partnerships and other equity participation arrangements;
All aspects of engineering, procurement and construction projects from bid documents to financing, construction contracts, subcontracts, project management agreements, dispute for all types of real estate projects, transportation, utility facilities projects;
Project finances involving construction of infrastructure, energy and other industrial facilities including BOT and BOOT;
Acquisition of land, building with respect to all type of real estate assets;
Finance of real estate development including secured and unsecured loans; mortgage originations, mortgage securitization and structured finance;
Leasing, operating and managing diverse real estate holdings;
Counseling on the real estate issues that arise in the context of corporate mergers and acquisitions;
SIETLO is dedicated to protect clients’ interests, rights and privileges. We provide the breath and depth of experience in handling virtually all areas of litigation. Our trial teams regularly deal with court trials, arbitrations, administrative proceedings for all manner of sophisticated business dispute. The members of the trial terms have expertise in active litigation as well as in advising client how to avoid litigation and to resolve dispute without resort to litigation. Our experience combined with our case management, technology and attention to cost-effective litigation translates to favorable and prompt results for our clients.
We provide a complete range of litigation, arbitration and dispute resolution capabilities. We handle a wide range of disputes, including commercial, banking, finance, construction, insurance, international trade, maritime, real estate, tax controversies and product liability. Some of them are highlighted below:
Commercial Litigation: We handle complex commercial lawsuits in a wide range of areas, typically including breach of contract, collection actions, UCC matters and fraud. We have the capacity to try commercial cases before U.S. courts.
Banking: We represent banking clients investigations and lender liability, We handle cases arising in foreclosures actions, disputer with borrowers, debt restructuring, letters of credit, fund transfers and debt guarantees;
International Trade: We represent commercial business and governments in all forms of trade proceedings and disputes, including antidumping and countervailing duty proceedings. We practice before relevant bodies in the United States;
Real Estate: We represent clients in dispute over joint venture dispute, real estate sales, fraud or breach of fiduciary duty, secured and unsecured real estate loans, foreclosures, construction contracts, commercial leases, brokerage agreements, land use and permitting issues.
Securities: We handle a wide range of securities litigation, including fraud, mergers and acquisitions, takeover actions, trust arrangements, international security transactions;
Intellectual Property: We handle all types of infringement actions, trade secret, unfair competition.
Insurance: We represent and advise clients on insurance coverage issues and insurance industry practice, including life, commercial, casualty, professional liability and general liability.
Arbitration: We have substantial practice representing client in China and foreign counties before China and international leading arbitral institutions in matter of investments commercial transactions, international investments, joint ventures and public law issues.
