成都市国资委近日取消了包括律所中介在内的中介机构备选库。这意味着成都市的国有企业可以根据自己的需求挑选最合适的律所，而许多不在备选库之内的律所也有机会为国有企业提供法律服务。
成都律所中介备选库在五年前成立，主要为国资委属下的国有企业提供各种法律服务。中介备选库挑选律所的条件非常苛刻，比如说只有注册三年以上的律所才能有资格参加评选。这也限制了许多有能力为国有企业提供服务的新兴律所。
据了解，目前中介备选库的律所大概有五十家。一些知名的成都律所像泰和泰律所、四方达律所等都在备选库之中。
中银成都分所也在备选库之列，其管理合伙人李新卫表示此次取消中介备选库暂时没有给律所带来任何影响。他认为当初进入备选库的律所都是经过严格挑选的，只有那些有能力为国有企业服务的律所才有资格进入备选库。因此，即便取消了中介备选机构，国有企业的法律服务还会由这些律所来提供。
不过，泰和泰的管理合伙人程守太认为成都市国资委取消备选库不仅仅让成都市的国有企业有机会选择更优秀的律师，也给许多没有进入备选库的律所一个平等的竞争机会。他说尽管泰和泰有不少国有企业客户，但是已经有些紧迫感了。
来自大成成都分所的管理合伙人冷云松也持有同样观点。他认为取消备选库后成都的国有企业可以通过公开招标或其它形式，来选择合适的法律顾问。比如，一些复杂的高端的法律服务可交给大型或比较专业的律所来做，但一些不太复杂的法律服务便可以选择中小型律所。 这也相应的为国有企业节约了法律经费。
冷云松同时也是成都国资委的法律顾问。他指出这次取消备选库也说明了目前成都法律服务已经到达一定的水平。过去建立中介备选库的原因之一，是当初成都律所的服务质量参差不齐，国资委不得不限制国有企业只能从律所中介备选库挑选律所。
据介绍，这次成都市国资委共取消了包括律师事务所、会计审计、资产评估、土地评估、房地产评估、工程造价、拍卖机构等共七类中介机构 ，是全国最早取消备选库的国资委。
Chengdu’s supervisor and administrator of state-owned enterprises recently abolished the requirement for SOEs to engage the authority’s pool of designated agents and external law firms when they seek services from outside contractors.
The abolishment of the so-called “agent system” in Sichuan province allows government-owned companies to freely engage with outside vendors and law firms. Law offices in China have, understandably, welcomed the move since winning mandates from the city’s burgeoning state-owned entities will be much easier.
The now defunct database of designated law firms was set up five years ago by the State-owned Asset Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council in Chengdu.
Industry experts said about 50 firms were included in the register, but they were subject to strict selection criteria: only law offices in operation for at least three years were eligible for the selection process.
Lin Xinwei, managing partner of Zhong Yin’s Chengdu branch, said although his firm was listed on the preferred list, the abolishment of the database has not impacted them. He said only firms that are competent enough to serve the big SOEs were selected in the first place — the SOEs would still seek legal advice from these firms even though the list no longer exists.
Nonetheless, Cheng Shoutai, managing partner of Tahota in Chengdu, said dispensing with the register not only gives SOEs free rein to choose the best lawyers, it also creates a level-playing field for firms that didn’t make it on the list. Leng Yunsong, managing partner of Dacheng's Chengdu branch, concurs. Abolishing the register allows SOEs to select the most appropriate outside counsels through public bidding or other mechanisms. “For instance, SOEs can engage mega law firms or boutique firms for high-end legal service or complex transactions. For less complicated matters, they can engage small to medium-sized firms. SOEs can lower their legal fees and make more efficient use of their legal budget that way,” he said.
The termination of the preferred law firm system signified the increased sophistication of Chengdu’s legal market, said Leng, who is also a legal advisor to SASAC. The register was set up because of the irregularities of the city’s legal market which prompted the authority to pre-select law firms for its state-owned entities, he explained.
Apart from law firms, Chengdu’s SASAC dispensed lists of preferred accounting firms, asset assessors, and evaluators of land, property, engineering contracts, and auction houses.
