From being involved in an anti-missile dispute with China to renegotiating a free trade deal with U.S. President Trump, it’s been an eventful period for South Korea on the trade front. Lawyers in the country talk about how this has been affecting the way their clients do business, and what trends to look forward to in the future.

China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is spurring a construction boom, not just in Asia, but in parts of Europe as well. And lawyers in the PRC and beyond are poised to reap the benefits from the increased flow of work.

The European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which comes into effect on May 25, is a stringent new legislation aimed at protecting the privacy of EU residents.

Thanks to ever-improving technology, legal networks don’t just connect law firms across the world with each other, but are also able to share information and resources with thousands of lawyers and their clients.

Since being overtaken by New York and even Shanghai as the world’s top IPO markets, Hong Kong is drastically revamping its stock exchange’s listing rules to attract the hottest – and highest valued – tech companies in China.

China’s campaign against “irrational deals” may have dampened domestic companies’ enthusiasm when it comes to outbound investment, but as the new year dawns, overseas M&A is set to pick up again, and offshore lawyers are ready to assist their clients as they hunt targets abroad.

Online shopping is really taking off in Malaysia, and Chinese investment is helping drive it.

Nowadays, law firm networks are helping clients obtain legal advice and services across the world. The question is: as the traditional paradigm comes under threat, can they provide a new model for the delivery of legal services globally?

Recent restrictions may have put a dampener on the overseas expansion plans of Chinese companies, but lawyers feel these will lead to healthier, more rational outbound investment in the long term.

Erica Wang, 3M’s general counsel for Greater China, talks about how multinational companies operating in the country must adapt quickly and be flexible in order to prosper.