Han Kun Law Offices has officially opened its Hangzhou branch in an opening ceremony on 10 August at the International Financial Center, cementing the firm’s presence in the capital of Zhejiang province and in an area it has long been servicing clients.
David Li, the lead partner responsible for establishing Han Kun’s Hangzhou office recalled a moment before the branch existed.
“There was one time when one of our colleagues was travelling to Hangzhou on business. After taking his seat, he realised that the person next to him was also a partner from our firm. They had not arranged to travel together and only discovered after chatting that they were both on their way to Hangzhou to meet clients,” Li told China Business Law Journal.
Li said Han Kun had long had both the business density and team foundation in Hangzhou to support a local office. Even before its establishment, several partners had been travelling frequently to Hangzhou to serve local clients.
“The Hangzhou office was not a top-down plan created out of nowhere; it was a natural next step,” he said.
The official launch was held following the formal establishment and commencement of operations on 10 April 2026 at the International Financial Center. Li said the launch of the Hangzhou office was “a key move by Han Kun to address current challenges in the legal market and seize opportunities in new quality productive locations”.
The Hangzhou office focuses on four main sectors: AI and embodied intelligence, semiconductors, biomedicine and new energy. It provides technology and innovation companies with “full lifecycle legal services”, covering financing, M&A and restructuring, capital markets, data compliance, intellectual property strategy, cross-border compliance and dispute resolution.
Discussing the current state of China’s legal market, Li said that “the legal services market is by no means easy at present”, facing multiple pressures including intensifying homogeneous competition, pricing pressure, heightened compliance scrutiny and the impact of AI.
“We do not see the Hangzhou office as a race for market share,” he said. “Chinese companies are going global, and professional services providers should also move beyond low-price competition towards higher-quality value creation.”
“Lawyers should understand technology trends, business logic and policy directions, helping companies find viable paths in complex and uncertain environments, and becoming truly trusted long-term partners to entrepreneurs,” he added.
In 2025, AI software and smart hardware together accounted for 40.1% of Han Kun’s private equity and venture capital projects, making them the firm’s largest investment and financing sector. Life sciences and semiconductor technology ranked second and third, accounting for 17.5% and 8.5%, respectively.
Looking ahead, Li expects the Hangzhou office to deepen its sector-specific expertise while drawing on the firm’s integrated operating model. It will co-ordinate with other domestic and overseas offices to provide full-cycle legal services.
“Only by becoming deeply rooted in specific industries and building a comprehensive service network can a law firm develop irreplaceable professional advantages,” he said.
Li is a member of Han Kun’s management committee and lead partner of its transactions department. His main practice areas include private equity and venture capital, capital markets, M&A and foreign direct investment.
Resident partners at the Hangzhou office include Huang Peng and Mao Hanglin, both new additions to the team having joined earlier this year.
Huang focuses on cross-border investment, private equity financing and cross-border dispute resolution. He was previously managing partner of the Hangzhou office for East & Concord Partners.
Mao focuses on domestic and overseas capital markets, private equity and venture capital, and M&A. He was previously a partner at Commerce & Finance Law Offices’ Hangzhou office.
Li also said Han Kun had relocated lawyers from other offices to the Hangzhou branch, covering transactions, compliance and family wealth practices.
The Hangzhou office is the Beijing-headquartered firm’s 10th office globally. Han Kun already has offices in Shanghai, Shenzhen, Hong Kong, New York, Silicon Valley and Singapore, among other locations. Shortly after the establishment of the Hangzhou office, the firm opened its London office on 22 April this year.
