今年，15位杰出的女律师因其在法律服务行业的卓越成就入选“ALB China十五佳女律师”榜单。我们与她们进行了访谈，了解了她们获得成功的关键是什么，以及当今女律师所面临的挑战。
陈子若是君合律师事务所的合伙人，她是一位专注于并购和竞争法业务的公司律师。陈律师毕业于中国和美国的顶尖法学院，迄今已经在法律行业工作了26年。
2008年，矿业巨头必和必拓收购力拓，并创建了一家全球矿业巨头，这是有史以来规模最大的一次收购，因为两家公司之间的交易量占全球海运铁矿石贸易的70%。陈律师因其在这宗收购案中的出色表现而声名鹊起，获得了业界的广泛赞誉。
陈律师是一位成功的女性合伙人，这在当今的法律界并不多见。陈律师表示，坚持和勇气是她获得成功的秘诀。她说：“你需要坚持和持续不断地努力，永不放弃。”谈到对工作的要求时，她希望自己“设身处地为客户着想，寻求最佳解决方案”。
尹月是竞天公诚律师事务所合伙人。多年来，尹律师始终保持着对工作的热情。在她看来，成功就是“活成自己希望的样子”，她也一直在朝这个方向努力。
她认为，要想成为一名顶级的专业律师，工作能力仅仅是基本的要求。
“首先，我要求自己拥有广泛的知识。作为商业律师，应该能够理解商业领域中除法律事务以外的关键问题，这样才能更好地理解客户的诉求。所以我也鼓励我的同事们更多地了解经济、财务、心理学等范畴的知识。”尹律师说。
“其次，要深层次地学习。律师应该在其执业的法律领域内深入挖掘和学习。”尹律师补充道。
锦天城律师事务所高级合伙人杨晓的工作业绩给人留下了深刻的印象。她带领她的团队为被誉为“东方曼哈顿” 的陆家嘴金融城和上海新外滩国际商业区提供全方位的法律服务，后者现已被开发成为上海的新地标。
杨律师说，她个人的工作理念是在工作中追求卓越和完美，从而服务社会，促进发展。“我要求自己在工作中做到专精。把准方向，关注细节，兼顾法律和商业，维护客户的正当权益。”她说。
杨律师还分享了她认为哪些特质有助于获得成功。“成功的秘诀首先是热爱。律师工作本身完全符合我的兴趣爱好，是我热爱的职业，我愿为之付出努力并且乐在其中；其次是坚持。就我个人性格而言，我愿意接受挑战，而且不轻言放弃；第三是专业化。法律业务离不开扎实的知识支撑。律师需要保持谦逊的心态，并时刻汲取最新的知识，以适应当今经济和监管环境的快速变化。”她解释道。
在通商律师事务所合伙人孙溦看来，下定决心并努力追求做到更好，是获得成功至关重要的因素。
谈到自己的工作座右铭时，她说：“我在工作中对自己的要求很简单，如果满分是100分，就用120分作为标准来要求自己。”
孙律师在教育领域具有很高声誉，她代表的客户包括：中国教育集团控股有限公司、中国新高等教育集团和中国科培教育集团有限公司等。她非常了解客户所在行业的政策和法规，帮助他们解决法律问题，同时满足他们的业务需求。
“成功的关键在于有决心成为一名成功的律师，然后不断为此努力。就像大浪淘沙，很多人没有坚持下来，而那些最终在律师行业中坚持下来的人就会成为成功的律师。”孙律师说。
除了决心，对法务工作性质和奉献精神的良好理解也同样重要。孙律师表示：“我总是告诉新入行的律师，在从事这个职业之前，他们需要明白律师是服务业者，而我们所能做的就是提供最优质高效的服务。”
“而与其他服务行业不同的是，当客户找到律师时，他们一定已经遇到了比较棘手的麻烦。所以从事这个行业，要有7x24小时随时待命去解决麻烦的觉悟。”她补充道。
除了明确的职业抱负以外，大成律师事务所高级合伙人脱薇对于如何更好地工作有独特的见解。
她说：“我认为一定要结合自身经验、兴趣和个性特长，最大化地发挥自己的长处，扬长避短，而不必强求补好每一处短板。就我个人而言，我会考虑利用我过去近20年积累的实务经验，发展成为一名‘专家型’律师。”
脱律师形容自己在工作中是一个“ 完美主义者”。“以发给客户的法律建议书为例，不仅推理分析要到位，标点符号和排版也不能出一点问题，每份意见书都要体现出我们的专业素养。” 从她举的例子可以看出，脱律师在工作中一丝不苟。
脱律师于1999年进入法律行业，并在外国直接投资、并购、海外直接投资和公司事务方面展现出自己的实力。她为国内外众多客户提供过法律服务，其中包括欧博诺集团、道达尔、奥索、中国物流和中煤集团等。
“我特别重视从客户的角度看待问题，我们修改文件和提供建议时，既要考虑法律风险，又要符合商业实践，从客户角度协助他们解决问题，既实现发展又合理控制风险，才是真正对客户有‘价值’的律师。”
女律师面临的挑战
成为大家公认的顶级律师非常不容易，对于女性而言尤其如此。尹律师表示，女性视角给律师的工作带来很多益处，但作为女律师也面临各种挑战。
“我们注意到，女性在法学院以及新入职律师中的占比较高，但是随着工作年限的增长，女律师逐渐减少，女性合伙人的比例就更少了。这其中的原因很多，但家庭的因素是非常重要的一个。”尹律师解释道。
尹律师从业已有14年，在投资、融资、并购、重组和上市方面拥有丰富的专业知识。尹律师于2005年加入竞天公诚，其在法律、经济和金融方面接受的训练让她展现出过人的才能，帮助她晋升为合伙人。
陈律师说，发展和维护客户关系，以及培养和管理团队是她在工作中遇到的一些挑战。她认为，试图平衡家庭和工作之间的关系是许多职业女性面临的一大问题。
“很多年前就有人对我说，你需要把家人当作你最重要的客户。但到现在，我还是做得不够好。”陈律师承认道。
尹律师也承认，她在平衡家庭和事业方面做得不够好。她的处理方式是：承认必须要放弃一些东西，这是不可避免的。
“当你追求某些东西时，你必须做好准备放弃其他一些东西。一个人的时间和精力非常有限，要出色地工作和照顾家人都需要大量投入。无论你选择了哪个，遵从自己的选择，然后降低对其他事情的及格线。”她说。
脱律师还强调，在这个过程中要保持良好的心态，懂得放弃也很重要。
“当你把家庭放在首位时，就不能对选择放弃的工作机会不断追悔。而确定必须工作的时候，也不能一边工作一边后悔没有花时间陪伴家人。这种纠结心理会非常影响工作和生活状态。”她解释说。
作为一位广受尊敬的成功女律师，孙律师表示，女律师面临的最大挑战在不同的阶段可能会有所不同。
“在职业生涯的最初阶段，女律师遇到的挑战可能跟男律师没有分别，尤其是作为商业律师，比较难找准自己的定位，需要通过一定时间的磨练，才能娴熟地掌握一个商业律师需要的基本技能。”她说。
“在稍后的阶段，女性律师可能面临更多来自家庭方面的取舍难题。律师行业需要投入大量的时间和精力，家庭与事业的平衡更多是在理想与现实之间做选择题吧。”她继续说道。
但正如陈律师所言，女性如今所面临的挑战并不总是那么令人胆怯。
“现代社会趋于多元化和更加包容，女性在规划自己的职业道路时无需过多地考虑外部因素。选择自己热爱的工作或事业，并愿意为此做出不懈的努力就好。”陈律师说。
寄语年轻一代的女律师
虽然许多人认为，由于承担的义务不同，女性很难发展自己的事业，但脱律师认为，凡是愿意加入法律行业的年轻女性都会获得发展的空间。
对于年轻的女性同行，脱律师给出了两条建议。她说：“首先，获得并发展专业能力最为重要，不要轻信那些所谓能够吸引客户或拓展市场的各种招数。第二，懂得选择和放弃。如果选择了当律师并成长为律所合伙人，就需要放弃朝九晚五规律的工作模式，并要做好加班工作的准备，以满足客户的需求。”
脱律师认为，辛勤的工作一定会有回报。她说：“带领你的团队完成一个项目所带来极大满足感，也是一般的办公室工作所不能给予的。”
她从长达20年的律师生涯中学到的另一件事是，“坚持”和“时间管理”是与专业精神同等重要的品质。
“‘坚持’可以帮助你在遇到困难或低谷的时候熬过去，‘时间管理’可以让你在家庭和事业之间做到兼顾。拥有这两种品质，你既能够享受工作带来的成就感，又有机会感受家庭的温馨幸福。”她说。这也为许多因此而感到困扰的专业人士提出了一个解决方案。
陈律师建议年轻的同行们在为工作做好准备的同时，也要注重自身的提高。“永远不放弃财务自由和人格自由。在培养专业能力的同时，提高自己的综合素质，成为一个有趣且热爱生活的人。”她说。
“谈到职业规划，我的目标是专精于自己的专业领域，树立社会责任感，追求公平正义，为法治建设和经济发展作出贡献，在奋斗中实现自己的人生价值。”杨律师与我们分享了作为一个女性商业律师的职业愿景。
杨律师很有社会责任感，十分关心女性的权益。她创建了锦天城律师事务所女律师协会，以帮助女性法律专业人士的发展。作为一名女律师，杨律师最了解同行面临的挑战。
“律师职业并不容易，需要付出大量的时间和努力。最大的挑战是如何平衡工作和家庭生活。每个人的时间都是同等的，在工作中投入多了，在生活中投入就少了。”她说。杨律师有一位非常善解人意的丈夫和一个很独立的儿子，让她有更多的时间可以专注于工作；对此杨律师在感到庆幸的同时也非常感谢家人的充分支持。
杨律师给年轻的女律师提出了一条建议。她说：“永远不忘初心，热情投入，坚持不懈，最终一定能取得成功。”
孙律师提醒年轻的同行们，作为律师需要明白，真正的决策者是客户而不是律师。“律师如何适当及适度地帮助决策者提供合法建议，并助其达成商业上的意图，这是真正的难点所在。”
ALB China Top 15 Female Lawyers 2019
This year, 15 outstanding female lawyers are being recognised by ALB China for their exceptional achievement in the legal service industry. We speak to them to find out the keys to their success, and the challenges female lawyers still face these days.
A partner at Junhe and a corporate lawyer specialising in M&A and competition, Audrey Chen has been in the legal industry for 26 years, since receiving her legal training at top institutions in China and the U.S.
Chen is best known for her out-standing efforts in mining company BHP Billiton’s takeover of Rio Tinto in 2008, which marked one of the largest takeovers in history and created a global mining giant, as between them the two companies handled 70 percent of the world’s seaborne trade in iron ore.
As a successful female partner, uncommon in today’s legal world, Chen says that persistence and grit is her recipe for success. “You need to always work harder and never give up,” she says. As for her work, she always looks at issues from the clients’ perspective in order to find the best solution.
Over the years, Yin Yue partner at Jingtian & Gongcheng, has remained committed to the job that she loves. To her, success is when a person can live a life of her choice, and she strives to keep the life she wishes for.
She believes that to be a top professional lawyer, there are more requirements than the fundamentals of being a capable worker.
“Firstly, I require myself to have a wide breadth of knowledge. A commercial lawyer should be able to under-stand key issues in the business world other than the legal matters. This way, you can understand better what your clients need. I therefore encourage my colleagues to learn more about economics, finance, psychology and so forth,” Yin says.
“Secondly, there needs to be in-depth learning. Lawyers should study a subject in depth within the legal area that they practice in,” Yin adds.
Yang Xiao, senior partner at Allbright Law Offices, has an impressive track record. She led her team to offer comprehensive legal services to Lujiazui Financial City, which is dubbed as “Oriental Manhattan”, and to Shanghai New Bund International Commercial Zone, which is developed to be a new landmark of the city.
Yang says her personal philosophy at work is to pursue excellence and perfection at work in order to serve the society and foster development. “I require myself to be precise and meticulous at work. I need to balance legal and commercial considerations for my clients’ interests,” she says.
Yang also shares what attributes she believes can lead to success. “The first key to success is passion. This job is exactly what I love and I’m willing to work hard for it and I enjoy every second of it. The second key is persistence. I’m willing to accept challenges and I don’t easily give up. The third is specialization. The legal business is supported by a solid knowledge base. Lawyers need to stay humble and hungry for new knowledge to brace themselves for rapid changes in today’s economic and regulatory environment,” she explains.
For Sun Wei partner at Commerce & Finance Law Offices, the desire to always strive for better is crucial to her success.
She describes her motto for her work in the following way: “What I require from myself is simple: if the maximum score is 100, I try to achieve 120.”
Sun has gained herself a reputa-tion across the education industry, representing clients such as China Education Group Holdings Limited, China New Higher Education Group and China Kepei Education Group Limited. She understands very well the policies and regulations of the indus-tries that her clients are in to help them navigate through legal issues while meeting their business needs.
“The key to success lies in a strong determination to be a successful law-yer and continuous efforts to advance further. Many fail to stay the course due to different reasons, but those who eventually become successful in this industry are the strong-willed people,” she says.
Besides determination, a good understanding of the job nature and dedication are equally important. “I always tell the newcomers that before they pursue this career path, they need to understand that lawyers are service providers and the best we can do is to provide the best quality service,” Sun says.
“How we are different from others is that when the clients reach out to us, they must be in some trouble already. To stay in this industry, you must be prepared to be responsive around the clock,” she adds.
Apart from her clear career ambi-tion, Beijing Dentons Law Offices’ Senior Partner Vivien Tuo also has a unique view on how to work better.
“I believe you must combine your own experience, interest and personal-ity to maximize your strength instead of trying to work on your weaknesses,” she says. “For me, I will leverage the experience I’ve gained during the past two decades with my pragmatism to develop myself as a specialized lawyer.”
Tuo describes herself as a per-fectionist at work. “For legal advice letters, I aim for perfection in punc-tuation and layout other than just pro-fessional analysis, as each letter must reflect our professionalism,” she talks of an example that demonstrates her meticulousness.
Since she embarked on the legal journey in 1999, Tuo has shown her strength in foreign direct investment, M&A, overseas direct investment and corporate affairs. Tuo has represented numerous clients at home and abroad, including Uponor Group, Total, Össur, China Logistics and China Coal.
“I focus on looking at the issues from our clients’ perspective,” Tuo says. “When we amend documents and offer advice, we must consider the legal risks and feasibility in the business world to help our clients resolve their issues. Only when a lawyer helps her clients grow their business and control risks can she unleash her value.”
CHALLENGES FOR A FEMALE LAWYER
Being recognised as a top lawyer is hard, and that is particularly true for a woman. Yin says there are many perks in bringing a female perspective to a lawyer’s job, but there are also challenges as a female lawyer.
“We notice that there are more girls in law schools and female new-comers in law firms. But over time, there are fewer female lawyers, especially female partners. Family is one of the many reasons behind this,” she explains.
Yin has been a lawyer for 14 years, and has much expertise in investment, financing, M&A, restructuring and listing. With training in law, economics and finance, Yin has shown great capabilities that have helped her get to the position of partner, after joining the law firm in 2005.
Chen says building and maintaining relationships with clients as well as cultivating and managing a team are some of the challenges she has encountered at work. But on a personal level, trying to balance family and work is another issue for many career women.
“I was told many years ago that you need to see your family as your most important client. So far, I haven’t been doing my best,” Chen admits.
Yin also admits that she is still working on that balance. Her strategy to deal with the issue that is faced by many career women like her is to recognise the inevitable compromises.“
When you pursue something, you have to be prepared to lose something else,” she says. “One has very limited time and energy but excelling at your job and taking care of your family both require a lot of them. Whatever you choose, believe in your choice and lower your expectations in other areas.”
Tuo also stresses that it is important to maintain a good mindset and know what to let go during this process.
“When you prioritize your family, you should not feel remorse for the lost opportunities at work. And when you choose your work over your family, you cannot regret not spending enough time with them. This mentality could affect your work and life,” she explains.
Speaking as a successful female lawyer who is widely respected, Sun says the biggest challenges faced by female lawyers can vary at different stages.
“When you first start your career, the challenges might seem no different than those faced by your male counter-parts. As a commercial lawyer, it’s difficult to find your position and it takes time to acquire all the basic skills you need,” she says.
“At a later stage, female lawyers may come to a point when they need to consider more about their families. The legal profession requires a huge amount of time and energy, so the balance between family and work is more of a choice between reality and your dream,” she continues.
But challenges for women, as Chen says, are not as intimidating today.
“Thanks to the diversity and inclusiveness in today’s society, women do not need to think too much about external factors when planning their career path,” Chen says. “They will be fine as long as they choose a career that they love and stay committed to it.”
THE NEXT GENERATION
While many argue that it is harder for women to advance their career due to different obligations, Tuo believes any girls who are willing to join the legal industry will be given room for development.
She has two pieces of advice for her young female peers. “First, it is of utmost importance to acquire professional skills and don’t believe in tricks such as inducing clients or market development,” she says. “Second, know how to make compromises. Once you decide to be a lawyer and some-day take up the role as a partner, you will need to say goodbye to the 9-to-5 schedule and be prepared for overtime work to meet your clients’ needs.”
But Tuo believes that the hard work pays off. “Leading your team to finish a project offers satisfaction so great that a regular office job cannot offer,” she says.
Another thing she has learned from her two-decade-long legal career is that persistence and time management are equally important as professionalism.
“Persistence helps you overcome challenges and survive during the hard times, while time management helps you balance your work and family life. With these two qualities, you may feel satisfied with your work while enjoying quality time with your loved ones,” she says, offering a solution to a dilemma faced by many professionals.
Chen advises her young peers to focus on improving themselves while readying themselves for work. “Never give up your financial freedom and spirit of independence. While you’re training yourself to be a professional, improve your inner self to be a fun and life-loving person,” she says.
“When planning for my career, I will consider developing my expertise, establishing my social responsibility and seeking fairness and justice in order to contribute to the legal and economic development of China. This way, I can realize my value,” Yang speaks of her vision for her career as a female commercial lawyer.
As a person who deeply cares about the society and women’s rights, Yang founded Allbright’s first women lawyer association to foster development for female legal professionals. As a female lawyer herself, Yang understands best what kind of challenges her peers face.
“It is not easy to become a lawyer as it requires a great deal of time and effort. The biggest challenge is how to balance your work and family life. Everyone has the same amount of time. Once you devote more time to your work, there is less time for your family,” she says.
Fortunately, Yang has a very under-standing husband and an independent son who can spare her from many family obligations to let her focus more on her work.
Yang offers one piece of advice to young female lawyers. “Always remember why you want to be a lawyer and devote yourself to this profession,” she says. “Persistence leads to success.”
Sun reminds her peers that they need to understand that it is the client who makes the final decision, not the lawyer. “The real challenge lies in how a lawyer provides the decision maker with legal advice and helps him achieve his business goals appropriately and moderately,” she says.
To contact the editorial team, please email ALBEditor@thomsonreuters.com.