过去一年，山东经济增速平稳，2021年前三季度GDP突破六万亿大关，同比增速达9.9%。在“新旧动能转换”的大主题下，山东经济发展呈现出颇多亮点。来自济南、青岛的律师，与ALB分享了经济转型为律所带来的业务机遇，以及山东法律市场的发展和挑战。
自2018年《山东新旧动能转换综合试验区建设总体方案》发布已过去三年，2021和2022年之交的山东，正处于经济转型“三年初见成效、五年取得突破”的关键时刻。
过去几年，山东经济在“淘汰落后产能、培育新兴产业、提升传统产业” 三方面已初现成效。2021年《山东省区域经济发展报告》显示，“淘汰”方面，以钢铁、煤炭、水泥、电解铝、平板玻璃五大行业为重点依法加速关停退出；“培育”方面，新一代信息技术、高端装备、新能源新材料、现代海洋、医养健康五大新兴产业规模突破4.7万亿，新技术、新产业、新业态和新模式经济2020年占GDP比重达30.2%；此外，五大传统产业也加速提升，规模以上工业企业智能化技术改造覆盖率已达70%。
“十四五”期间，新旧转化将继续成为山东经济发展的关键词。到2022年，“新十强”产业增加值占山东GDP的比重将达60%。
“新旧动能转化首先是观念的转变，从传统产业思维转化到现代产业思维，而思维方式的转化最终落地为科技成果的转化。”大成律师事务所青岛办公室主任牟云春律师如此总结过去几年山东发生的深刻变化。
未来，新旧转换的果效将更深刻、更快速地释放，大成律师事务所济南办公室主任项浩律师告诉ALB，济南市已经建立了新旧动能转换起步区，未来将依托《黄河流域生态保护和高质量发展规划纲要》，“全面加快传统产业改造升级和高新技术产业发展，推动济南乃至山东总体经济实现更有效率、更可持续的发展”。
转型带来新机遇
经济的快步转型，自然给法律服务行业带来了深刻改变。两位律师告诉ALB，这首先体现在了政府法律服务的深度上。
“（经济转型中）政府要立新法、促进新兴产业发展，同时保持政策的连续性。”牟云春律师指出，“大成青岛担任了青岛市政府及多个职能部门的法律顾问，在政策制定、科技成果转化、资金融通、人才引进等方面提供全方位法律服务。”
项浩律师赞同道：“政府实施了一系列优化营商环境的措施，随着新旧动能转换起步区的建立，大成济南不仅积极服务企业，还以专家身份投入到政府相关工作中。”例如高级合伙人魏士荣律师担任了济南市委法律顾问，同时获聘“济南市新旧动能转换起步区投融资模式创新机制及对策”课题组牵头人，就依法治区、环保能源、乡村振兴一系列主题，贡献了大成济南的力量。
经济转型需要政府提高依法治理能力，企业的创新主体作用也更充分地发挥出来。根据《山东省区域经济发展报告》，山东高新技术企业数量年均增长30%以上，科技型中小企业入库数量居全国第3位，高新技术产业产值占比已达到46%。新类型企业的增加也为律所带来新机会。
过去一年，“大成律师为企业研发、引进高科技产业项目、助力企业成长提供全程的合规法律服务”，牟云春律师说，“我们帮助企业把控引进的高科技项目符合国家产业政策，引进的人才、技术合规，并帮助企业避免传统产业员工和新型产业员工在去留、使用过程中可能产生的劳动纠纷和不正当竞争法律风险。”
此外，企业也十分需要专业人士协助提升在“新旧制度体系及监管模式间的衔接能力”，项浩律师坦言。过去一年，大成济南以高级合伙人白乐平律师为代表的团队还参与到了新旧动能转换股权投资基金交易中，为企业转型投资的交易方案设计、交易文件起草、监管部门申报与审批等提供了全流程服务。
新蓝海领域
过去两年，作为山东最为发达的两座城市，青岛、济南的发展呈现诸多亮点。在2020年疫情背景下，两座城市实现逆势增长，纷纷踏入GDP“万亿级俱乐部”行列。
在普华永道发布的《机遇之城2021》报告中，济南、青岛位列中国最具潜力的城市行列，其中济南在智力资本、创新能力和宜商环境上表现出色，青岛则在技术成熟度层面领先。
新旧动能转换在两座城市体现为一系列战略性新兴产业集群的产生。如今，济南已拥有生物医药、智能制造装备、信息技术服务几大集群，青岛则建立起轨道交通装备、节能环保两大集群，同时推动打造全球最大的新能源汽车生产基地。
在项浩律师看来，2021“是济南深入落实黄河流域生态保护和高质量发展重大国家战略”的一年，因此新蓝海区域，主要围绕“此重大战略，出现在高新技术企业培育、高成长型企业助力、生态治理研究、跨境贸易发展和重点人才引进工程等多个领域”。
具体到项目，过去一年，围绕新产业发展，大成济南为济南产发基金对跨境电商、科技创新公司等多项投资提供了专项法律服务；担任了包括国家电投集团山东新能源有限公司在内的诸多新能源开发领域企业的常年法律顾问；并在人工智能、外商引进、供给侧改革领域取得不错成绩。“值得一提的是，在这些领域有着突出表现的都是优秀的青年律师，他们已经成为大成济南的中坚力量。”项律师感慨道。
而在青岛，牟云春律师观察到，伴随新产业发展，金融支持实体经济效果明显，“青岛作为全球新型金融中心城市，资本市场领域法律需求逐渐增多”，他说。
实际上，自2016年以来，青岛便被纳入全球金融中心指数（GFCI）排名。2021年青岛在该指数中排名全球第38位，在国内紧随北上广深及成都之后。2021年上半年，青岛金融业增加值占GDP比重达6.9%，目前青岛正在积极推进财富管理金融综合改革试验区建设，同时努力建设全球性创投风投中心、金融科技应用试点城市等。
牟律师告诉ALB，伴随金融产业持续活跃，“大成青岛在资本市场领域为企业提供上市、并购、重组、发债、独立董事、常年法律顾问等专业化、一条龙服务，在上市公司及非上市公众公司里，都活跃着大成青岛律师的身影”。
涉外服务活跃
山东经济发展中另外不可忽视的则是其涉外底色。根据《山东省区域经济发展报告》，山东“以开放助推动能转换，深度参与共建‘一带一路’。全省累计新设外商投资企业超过1万家，世界500强投资企业812家，山东已成为海内外客商投资兴业的热土”。
“青岛作为一座开放的国际化城市，走出去和请进来发展并重。”牟云春律师告诉ALB。在“走出去”方面，“大成青岛在基建、外贸、基础设施、家电、金融等领域帮助中国企业展开合规指导，为企业在海外布局提前扫清法律障碍”；而伴随“总部经济成为外资企业到青岛投资的一道靓丽新风景，大成青岛也为外资落地青岛或境外投资，从前期咨询、工商注册，到常年法律顾问、产业化等各方面，提供全程的贴心服务”。
提高对外开放水平也是济南经济发展的重点之一。项浩律师告诉ALB，尤其是2021年下半年以来，济南多次提出了“以中央商务区为平台，大力吸引外资银行等金融机构集聚，打造外资金融服务枢纽”，和“高水平建设国际招商产业园，培育具有引领性、标杆性的国际一流产业集聚区”等政策性举措。
根据《经济参考报》，以济南中央商务区为例，目前已引进高端总部企业500余家，其中包括微软、甲骨文等14家世界500强企业，未来这里将继续强化“金融+”和总部经济，打造辐射黄河中下游的金融总部产业高地。
项律师说，多年来，大成济南一直服务于外资及合资企业。“随着济南对于外资引进的重视，2021年下半年，大成济南获聘为济南市投资促进局的常年法律顾问，为其在政策制定、招商引资、投资服务、内部管理制度等工作中涉及的各类法律问题提供服务，切实为济南市引进外资、深化投资便利化、优化营商环境、加快新旧动能转换做出了贡献。”他说。
法律行业快速发展
经济转型对法律行业的影响体现在机会的增长中，也反映在切实的数字里。山东是律师大省，2020年全省共有律师事务所2290家，律师31468人。值得注意的是，根据律协数字，2020年山东律师行业业务收费达100.03亿元，创收同比增长21.97%，律师人均创收也增长了16%。
“服务大局，自然水涨船高。”牟云春律师如此总结高速增长背后的原因，“践行建立良好的法治环境就是建立良好的营商环境理念……法律行业真正实现了与经济社会共同成长。”
项浩律师对此表示赞同。“这与不断发展前进的时代大背景分不开。”他说，“过去几年，济南的城市建设、人文环境进入了新发展阶段，对法律服务的需求量不断上升，也对服务质量和专业化提出了新要求……律师制度在中国建立四十余年来见证了每一步的社会进步与建设，这种时代变迁在每一位律师身上，就体现为业务范围的拓展、合作模式的创新和创收业绩的增长。”
谈到未来的行业趋势，项律师指出，观察济南目前的发展状况，“贯彻绿色发展、促进经济社会发展全面绿色转型将是一个主要的前进方向……这就要求实现科技赋能，低碳发展”，这将在绿色生态健康农业、新能源产业、高新科技企业等领域，为法律服务带来新机会。
面对新领域不断涌现，项律师表示大成济南的律师已经做好准备。“大成济南正在进行更为包容、更加细致的专业化团队建设，在此前基础上，对律师业务部门划归进行充分研究，使其更具指导性、规范性和可操作性，以应对未来不断变化发展带来的挑战。”他说。
快速发展的市场自然会孕育更为激烈的竞争，牟云春律师认为这既是挑战，也是机会。“山东省司法厅、青岛市司法局和律协大力引进国内优秀品牌律所，对本土律所进行优化升级，然而也引发了品牌、人才、市场、服务等方面巨大的竞争挑战。”牟律师坦言，“这都激励我们不断加强基础建设……从组织建设、科学决策、团队优化、合作协作、分配改革，到价值导向、文化传承，未来大成青岛都将经历改革与提升。”
ALB CHINA REGIONAL REPORT: SHANDONG
Shandong Province enjoyed steady economic growth in the past year, with its GDP exceeding 6 trillion yuan in the first three quarters of 2021, up 9.9 percent year-on-year. The province has had a number of growth highlights as it transitions from old growth drivers into new ones. Lawyers from Jinan and Qingdao share with ALB their observations on upcoming opportunities brought about by economic transformation, as well as the developments and challenges in Shandong's legal market.
It has been three years since China released the Overall Plan for Constructing a Comprehensive Experimental Zone in Shandong against the Transition from Old Growth Drivers into New Ones in 2018. As 2022 dawns, it marks a crucial point for Shandong as the province is expected to "make preliminary progress in three years and significant breakthroughs in five years" in terms of economic transformation.
In the past few years, the province has made progress with its endeavours to "phase out outdated capacity, incubate emerging industries, and upgrade traditional industries.” New technologies, new industries, new business models and new economic models contributed 30.2 percent of total GDP in 2020. Top five traditional industries have also accelerated the pace of upgrading, with intelligent technologies being adopted among 70 percent of industrial enterprises above the designated size.
"The transition of old growth drivers into new ones is, first of all, a change in mindset, and such shift will ultimately lead to the commercialization of technological achievements," summarizes Mou Yunchun, director of Dentons Qingdao Office, when talking about the profound changes that have taken place in Shandong over the past years.
According to Xiang Hao, director of Dentons Jinan Office, the effects of this transition will be more extensively and rapidly perceived in the future. Xiang tells ALB that Jinan has constructed a start-up area for such transition, and going forward, the city will "promote more efficient and sustainable development in Jinan and Shandong more broadly.”
TRANSFORMATION BRINGS NEW OPPORTUNITIES
Fast-paced economic transformation has indeed brought profound changes to the legal industry. These changes, according to both lawyers, are reflected, first and foremost, in the depth of legal services for governmental authorities.
As Mou puts it, to facilitate economic transformation, “the government has to enact new regulations to boost growth in emerging industries, whilst at the same time maintaining policy consistency. Dentons Qingdao is legal advisor to the Qingdao municipal government and many functional government departments, providing a full range of legal services that covers policy formulation, commercialization of technological achievements, capital financing and talent attraction."
Xiang concurs: "The government has taken a series of measures to optimize the business environment. With the start-up area in Jinan, Dentons Jinan has, in addition to serving corporate clients, acted as expert advisor to government agencies and contributed to government-related projects in areas of governance, environmental protection and rural area revitalization."
Further, corporates have been increasingly involved in innovative initiatives. In 2020, Shandong reported more than 30 percent annual average growth in the number of high-tech enterprises, ranking the third in the country in terms of the number of small and medium-sized technology enterprises being registered in national database. High-tech enterprises contributed 46 percent of its total industrial output.
Mou adds that in the past year "Dentons provided full legal compliance services for enterprises in their R&D and high-tech projects to facilitate their growth. We helped them ensure the high-tech projects introduced comply with national industrial policies and the talents attracted and technologies introduced comply with applicable regulations, and avoid labor disputes and legal risks of unfair competition that may arise during the recruitment, departure and employment of employees in both traditional and emerging industries."
Xiang tells ALB that in the past year, a Dentons Jinan team led by senior partner Bai Leping was involved in an equity fund deal relating to growth driver transition, supporting the entire process spanning the structuring of transaction plans, drafting of transaction documents and filing applications to regulatory authorities for review and approval.
BLUE OCEAN AREAS
In the past couple of years, Qingdao and Jinan, as the two most developed cities in Shandong, have showed many economic development highlights. Bucking the trend amid the pandemic in 2020, the two cities continued to grow their economy, joining the GDP "trillion club" in China.
The Chinese Cities of Opportunity 2021 report published by PwC ranks Jinan and Qingdao among the most promising cities in China, with Jinan excelling in human capital, innovation capability and ease of doing business, and Qingdao leading in technical sophistication.
To Xiang, 2021 "was the year when Jinan extensively implemented the key national strategy of promoting ecological protection and high-quality growth in the Yellow River Basin.” Therefore, law firms’ new practice centers around "multiple areas such as incubation of and support for the growth of high-tech enterprises, research on ecological governance, cross-border trade and attraction of top talents.”
Specifically, in the past year, Dentons Jinan provided legal services for Jinan Industry Development Fund in a number of investment projects involving cross-border e-commerce and technology innovation companies, was appointed perennial legal advisor to many enterprises in the new energy development field, and achieved outstanding performance in the fields of artificial intelligence, attraction of foreign investment and supply-side reform.
As for Qingdao, Mou observes that the effects of financial support for the real economy were increasingly evident as the development of new industries evolves. "Qingdao, as a new global financial center, has seen an increase in demand for capital market legal services," he says.
In fact, Qingdao has been included in the Global Financial Center Index (GFCI) ranking since 2016, and it ranks 38th globally in 2021, closely following Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Chengdu among Chinese cities. Mou says that as financial activities continued to prosper, "Dentons Qingdao has been providing one-stop, specialized capital market services for enterprises, including those for listing, mergers and acquisitions, restructuring and bond issuance, as well as acting as independent director and perennial legal advisor."
A BOOM IN FOREIGN-RELATED SERVICES
The contribution of cross-border activities to Shandong's economic development cannot be ignored. According to the Report on Regional Economic Development in Shandong, the province has "pushed forward the transition of old growth drivers to new ones with its opening-up efforts, and has been actively involved in the Belt and Road Initiative. The total number of newly established foreign-invested enterprises in Shandong has exceeded 10,000, among which 812 are funded by Fortune 500 firms. Shandong has become a hotbed for investors at home and abroad to invest and start business."
"Qingdao, as a global city open to foreign investment, places equal emphasis on going global and foreign investment attraction," says Mou. He tells ALB that as to "go global, Dentons Qingdao has been delivering compliance guidance to Chinese firms in the fields of infrastructure construction, foreign trade, home appliances and finance. It also provides full services for foreign companies investing in Qingdao and Chinese firms investing abroad, including early-stage consultation, registration with industry and commerce authorities, perennial legal advisory and industrialization."
To open up even wider is also one of the priorities for Jinan to boost its economic development. Take Jinan's central business district as an example. According to local media Economic Information, this district has now become headquarters to more than 500 top firms, 14 of which are Fortune 500 firms such as Microsoft and Oracle. This district will continue to strengthen its positioning to grow the "finance+" mode of business and headquarters economy to build itself into a financial hub along the Yellow River.
According to Xiang, Dentons Jinan has been serving foreign-invested enterprises and joint ventures for many years. "As Jinan puts more focus on the attraction of foreign investment, Dentons Jinan was appointed perennial legal advisor to the Jinan Investment Promotion Bureau in the second half of 2021 to advise on various issues relating to policy formulation, foreign investment attraction, investment services and internal management systems."
RAPID GROWTH OF THE LEGAL SECTOR
The effects of economic transformation on the legal sector are reflected not only as growing opportunities, but also in terms of numbers. Shandong boasts a large lawyer population. In 2020, it had 31,468 lawyers practicing in 2,290 law firms. It is worth noting that statistics from the lawyers' association show that Shandong lawyers booked a total earning of 10.03 billion yuan in 2020, a year-on-year growth of 21.97 percent, with per capita earning also increasing by 16 percent.
"Earnings naturally grow if you are serving the bigger picture.” Mou summarizes the reason behind such drastic growth.
Xiang concurs. "This growth is inseparable from the general background of continued evolution and growth in this era. After years of efforts, Jinan has unfolded a new chapter in city construction and cultural landscape, and this has led to an increase in demand for high-quality and specialized legal services."
Speaking of the future trends in the sector, Xiang comments that "advocating green and sustainable development and promoting economic and social development to be more environmentally-conscious will be a key theme forward…This requires technology-empowered, low-carbon development," and will bring new opportunities to legal services in areas such as green and ecological agriculture, renewable energy and high-tech enterprises.
Faced up with these changes, Dentons Jinan has been well prepared. "Our office is building a more inclusive and more specialized professional team. Based on our existing strength, we will fully explore how to structure lawyers' practice groups better to tackle the challenges posed by constant changes and developments in the future." says Xiang.
The rapidly developing market will naturally breed more intense competition, which Mou sees both a challenge and an opportunity. "The Shandong Provincial Department of Justice, the Qingdao Municipal Bureau of Justice and the lawyers' association have aggressively incentivized top domestic firms to set up offices here, and made efforts to optimize and upgrade local firms. Such initiatives have triggered tremendous challenges in terms of branding, talent, market share and service," admits Mou.
"However, all of these inspire us to constantly strengthen our infrastructure, and Dentons Qingdao is expected to embrace changes and improvements in a wide range of areas from organizational set-up, scientific decision-making, team optimization, earnings distribution reform to value orientation and cultural succession." he adds.
