ALB China singles out the top 10 performers by percentage revenue growth in its annual Fast 10 list

2008 was a challenging time for many businesses - and a less than exceptional year for law firms. The global economic downturn occurring in the latter part of the year resulted in less legal work and a marked decline in the number of big deals that came through. For the first time in five years, quite a few firms have experienced a stall I fee income, or a slight drop.

But it was not all doom and gloom - as this year's Fast 10 survey results show, many firms still enjoyed an increase in revenue, albeit at a slower growth rate than last financial year. Dacheng, for example, last year's fastest-growing firm in China with a growth rate of over 100%, dropped to the number three spot in this year's list. But the firm's 72% increase in revenue for the 2007/08 financial year is regarded as extraordinary. During the period, however, the firm also expanded its geographical reach even further by opening offices in Zhengzhou Tianjin, Shenzhen, Xining, Xiamen, Yinchuan, Haikou and Hangzhou. It now boasts a massive 17 offices across the country - plenty more than its nearest rival.

Among the 10 fastest-growing firms, some have used mergers to bulk up, such as V&T; some adopted aggressive recruitment strategies to explode into new practice areas or regions, such as Dacheng, Grandall and Broad & Bright; and some achieved stellar performances by pursuing organic growth.

In the ninth spot in this year's list, Qingdao-headquartered Deheng, is a standout example of the last category. In the 2007/08 financial year, Deheng's fee-earner headcount decreased by 12%, while its turnover rose by 25% over the last financial year, precluding a solid increase in revenue per fee-earner. The statistics from the survey are also a reflection of just how dynamic and competitive this market really is, as the average growth rate of Asia's Fast 30 firms during the same period is 15%.

However, it is a clear sign that the fast-growing firms are starting to worry about the impact of the global financial crisis and the slow-down of China's economy. Several of them told ALB China that their fee income was affected by delayed payments from clients who are experiencing cash-flow problems and how, in the current economic climate, they had to offer them discount rates.

Although the 2009 economic outlook is uncertain now, the entrepreneurial partners at the 10 fastest-growing firms are still confident about their future. They are young, well qualified, dedicated, eager to expand and still hungry for growth. Most firms believe that they can keep up the performance in the next 12 months, and some are actively looking to increase in size by hiring more lawyers and partners. It is little wonder that, with their optimism, the firms on ALB China's Fast 10 have been such a success.

China 10 Fastest-growing firms (by revenue)
1.  Guangdong Guanghe (94%)
2.  V&T (77%)
3.  Dacheng (72%)
4.  Zhenghan (60%)
5.  Zhonglun (46%)
6.  Grandall Legal Group (40%)
7.  Llinks (37%)
8.  Tahota (35%)
9.  Shandong Deheng (25%)
10. Broad & Bright (21%)

Guangdong Guanghe 广东广和
Managing partners: Multiple
Revenue growth in 2007/08: 93.8%
Fee-earner growth in 2007/08: 28%
Number of partners: 21
Number of lawyers: 145
Head office: Shenzhen
Branch office: Zhuhai

Summary:
Headquartered in Shenzhen, this south-east heavyweight has seen a meteoric rise. Under the guidance of a young but astute management team, including the highly regarded Peter Tong and Frank Shi, the firm has grown solidly across the board. And it hasn't just been growth for growth's sake - Guanghe has opted for organic growth rather than the standard growth through acquisition. In the 2007/08 financial year, the firm elevated 22 of its own to the partnership while reinforcing its junior ranks with a number of new fee earners and associates.  But it is the firm's revenue figures that are most impressive. Guanghe claims to have increased revenue over the same period the year before by almost 94% - racking up total fees of RMB164m in 2007 - making it one of the top performers in the region. The firm, which figured prominently in ALB China's feature on China's largest firms, is ideally placed in the booming Special Economic Zone to continue its strong growth in 2009.

V&T 万商天勤
Managing partner: Xu Meng
Revenue growth in 2007/08: 84%
Fee-earner growth in 2007/08: 77%
Number of partners: 48
Number of lawyers: 114
Head office: Beijing
Branch offices: Shanghai, Shenzhen

Summary:
The year 2007 was a remarkable one for V&T, as it saw the firm boost its size, its geographical presence and its business scope exponentially.  A strategic decision to merge with Guangdong Wanshang law firm (which has offices in Shenzhen and Shanghai) at the end of 2007 created a full-service firm with over 200 legal professionals and supporting staff across three major commercial centres. In early 2008, a team of lawyers led by senior partner Wang Jihong joined the firm from a well-established construction and infrastructure practice in Beijing. The addition has assured V&T a solid performance with an 84% increase in revenue during the period of the survey. The firm has set itself an ambitious goal for further integration and expansion of its multinational client base.

Dacheng 大成
Managing partner: Wang Zhongde
Revenue growth in 2007/08: 72%
Fee-earner growth in 2007/08: 76%
Number of lawyers: 598
Head office: Beijing
Branch offices: Shanghai, Wuhan, Sichuan, Jinan, Chongqing,
Hainan, Harbin, Tianjin, Yinchuan, Zhengzhou, Shenzhen,
Xining, Xiamen, Haikou, Hangzhou

Summary:
It's not every financial year that a law firm can claim to having opened eight offices. Nor is it every financial year that the same one can say it has added 80 partners to its roster, increased its fee-earner headcount by 76% and its revenue by 72%. However, these are all achievements of which Beijing-headquartered mega-firm Dacheng can justifiably boast. The firm opened offices in Zhengzhou, Tianjin, Shenzhen, Xining, Xiamen, Yinchuan, Haikou and Hangzhou during this period and now numbers a massive 17 offices across the country - considerably more than its nearest rival.

Zhenghan 虹桥正瀚
Managing partner: Ni Wei
Revenue growth in 2007/08: 60%
Fee-earner growth in 2007/08: 25%
Number of partners: 15
Number of lawyers: 38
Head office: Shanghai

Summary:
Generally when the economy is down, litigation and insolvency work tends to pick up, and that's why business at Zhenghan is robust and the firm is well placed in this market. Its practices range across a number of sectors, including corporate, real estate, IP and banking and finance, and its dispute resolution team is among the leaders in the field of commercial litigation. It has represented a number of large financial institutions in some of the most high-profile litigation in Shanghai. The litigation team's strong performance holds up the firm's business well, with income between July 2007 and June 2008 up by 60%. Several partners and senior counsel newly arrived -including corporate finance veteran Wang Liqing and Gao Jingmei, a judge of Shanghai Higher People's Court - have also contributed to its solid revenue growth.

Zhong Lun 中伦
Managing partner: Zhang Xuebing
Revenue growth in 2007/2008: 46%
Fee-earner growth in 2007/2008: 36.23%
Number of partners: 96
Head office: Beijing
Branch offices: Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Tokyo

Summary:
Despite losing a number of key personnel to rival firms this year, Zhonglun posted impressive growth figures for the 2007-08 financial year. It welcomed 25 new recruits at partner level but also lost 13 partners. According to the firm, however, the loss wasn't enough to stop it posting revenues of RMB436m, a 46% increase over the previous year. A joint winner of the Real Estate and Construction Deal of the Year at the ALB China Law Awards in 2008 for its role in the record-breaking IPO of Soho China, the firm will no doubt look to more lateral hires in the year ahead to maintain its strong growth. A plan to open offices in Wuhan and Hong Kong is on the firm's agenda for 2009.

Grandall Legal Group 国浩
Managing partners: Multiple
Revenue growth in 2007/08: 40%
Fee-earner growth in 2007/08: 30%
Number of partners: 93
Number of lawyers: 450
Offices: Beijing, Chengdu, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Hong Kong,
Kunming, Shanghai, Shenzhen

Summary:
What started out in 1998 as the union of Beijing-based Michael Zhang & Associates, WanGuo Law Firm in Shanghai and TangRen Law Firm in Shenzhen, Grandall has grown into a legal leviathan. It not only celebrated its 10th anniversary this year, but ventured forth into Hong Kong by opening a dedicated office there. These activities bespeak impressive growth. In the 2007-08 financial year, the firm added 12 partners to its roster - an increase of nearly 9%. The number of fee-earners increased by 30% allowing the firm to reap a revenue increase of 40%. And while It already boasts an impressive network of domestic offices, it has made no secret of its desire for further expansion, with sources close to ALB China noting that the openings of branch offices in Ningbo and Fuzhou are believed to be imminent.  The firm's capital markets and M&A expertise could be the key to further expansion - Grandall was the top legal adviser to successful A-share listings in this period. Look for this firm to consolidate its strong position organically in the year ahead.

Llinks 通力
Managing partners: Multiple
Revenue growth in 2007/08: 37.4%
Fee-earner growth in 2007/08: 10.7%
Number of partners: 9
Number of lawyers: 45
Head office: Shanghai
Branch offices: Beijing

Summary:
Llinks has executed its lightning-fast growth in a different way. Partner numbers at the firm remained stable throughout the 2007/08 financial year, but it was extremely acquisitive at the lower levels, increasing the number of fee earners by almost 11% over this period. It now boasts a dedicated corpus of 45 lawyers, all of whom were responsible for increasing revenue by almost 38% - to a figure that bespeaks the firm's high-calibre business acumen. The period also saw it achieve a number of 'firsts'. Llinks was instrumental in sealing the first deal involving a partial tender offer for the shares of a PRC-listed company and the first announced takeover of a PRC-listed company using comprehensive approaches, including share transfer by agreement, targeted placement and a tender offer: SE B Internationale's strategic investment in Shenzhen-listed Zhejiang Supor. In addition the firm also acted on the first authorised actively managed listed Chinese equity fund with a close-ended structure in the Hong Kong-HS BC China Dragon Fund's global offering and HKEx listing.

Tahota 泰和泰
Managing partner: Cheng Shoutai
Revenue growth in 2007/2008: 35%
Fee-earner growth in 2007/2008: 20%
Number of partners: 26
Number of lawyers: 139
Head office: Chengdu
Branch offices: Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Hong Kong (representative office)

Summary:
Once referred to as the 'new kid on the block,' Tahota has now well and truly established itself as one of the premier firms in China's west - and was recognised as such when it was named Western Law Firm of the Year at the ALB China Law Awards in 2008. Recording a 50% spike in the number of partners in this period, the firm has experienced similarly strong growth on the fee-earner front, bolstering ranks with a 20% increase in the number of lawyers.  Revenue figures tell a similar story with it realising a record year and a 35% increase in that area. Furthermore, the firm not only kicked off its southern ambitions by opening the allied Guangdong Shen Tahota law firm, but its longstanding agreement with Hong Kong firm Woo Kwan Lee & Lo, and entry into the Sino-Global Legal Alliance earlier this year, give it unprecedented access to the international firms vital to consolidate growth in the years ahead.

Shandong Deheng Law Firm 德衡律师集团
Managing partner: Luan Shaohu
Revenue growth in 2007/08: 25%
Fee-earner growth in 2007/08: -12.1%
Number of partners: 37
Number of lawyers: 89
Head office: Qingdao
Branch office: Shanghai, Beijing

Summary:
For the seventh consecutive year, Deheng is ranked number one by revenue in Shandong province, and this is the second time the firm has made it into ALB China's Fast 10 list. Despite a 12% decrease in the number of fee earners, its turnover rose by 25% over the last financial year, precluding a solid increase in revenue per fee earner.  After founding the Sino-Global Legal Alliance with eight other leading local firms and Lovells in September 2007, the firm's international business group has experienced fast expansion of its multinational client base and practice areas. Its strong performance has cemented its position as the Northeast China Firm of the Year at the 2008 ALB China Law Awards and shows promise as an emerging market leader in the north.

Broad & Bright 世泽　
Managing partners: Multiple
Revenue growth in 2007/08: 21%
Fee-earner growth in 2007/08: 35%
Number of partners: 10
Number of lawyers: 24
Head office: Beijing
Branch office: Shanghai

Summary:
Whichever way you look at it, it's been an impressive year for Broad & Bright. Not only did the Beijing-based firm branch out with the opening of a Shanghai office, but its partner headcount also increased by 30%. It brought seven new lawyers on board - a major factor behind revenue growth of 21% in this period. But the quality of deals coming through the door has also contributed to its strong showing in this year's ALB China Fast 10. Broad & Bright successfully represented Yamaha Motor of Japan against companies including Zhejiang Huatian Industrial Co. for trademark infringement. The appeal for  compensation was upheld by the Supreme People's Court and RMB8.3m was awarded. The firm also represented Singapore New Media Corp in acquiring its state-owned equity and increasing its registered capital - the first transaction of its kind in China. In addition, it represented Keenward in acquiring an equity stake in the owner of the Shanghai World Financial Center - the world's tallest
building - inspiration perhaps, as the firm seeks to climb to new heights in 2009.

Next: Last year's Fast 10 and ALB's fastest-growing firms in the rest of Asia

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