An exclusive interview with Wang Qingyou, Director of Anli Partners
1) What do you see as the main points that differentiate Anli Partners from your competitors? The most fundamental differentiation lies in our organizational model. Like the majority of Chinese law firms, Anli Partners started with a commission-based ("eat-what-you-kill") system — a model that greatly energized lawyers in the industry's early days and remains the basic compensation structure at most firms nationwide. We understand its strengths and value well. However, as client demands become increasingly complex and specialization deepens, the commission model — where teams keep client relationships to themselves and operate in silos — has revealed clear limitations in cross-practice collaboration and resource integration. Based on this assessment, Anli began piloting integrated management in 2016 and launched an integrated reform in 2020. This is a road less traveled in China's law firm ecosystem, because it touches the most sensitive nerve of all — profit distribution. But we believe that only by breaking down internal barriers can specialization truly take root. Today, Anli operates over 20 practice centers, covering traditional strengths such as dispute resolution, capital markets, and intellectual property, while also building a presence in emerging sectors including new energy, automotive, data compliance, ESG, and AI legal affairs. In 2024, inter-partner collaborative revenue accounted for 65% of total firm revenue. This means clients are no longer retaining an individual lawyer — they are retaining the firm's entire professional system, something a traditional commission model simply cannot deliver. Beyond this, we define a great firm by three standards: quality service to clients, a true partnership for partners, and promising future for young lawyers. Service standards are uniform across the firm, so clients receive consistently high-quality work regardless of which lawyer they engage. Client relationships reside on the platform rather than with individuals, enabling cross-generational continuity. This might be a common practice for law firms’ management in many jurisdictions but still under internal discussion among 95% of Chinese law firms. We are also advancing internationalization through our networks in Tokyo, North America, and Hong Kong — including the establishment of our Hong Kong associated office in 2026 — to serve Chinese companies going global and foreign investment entering China. 2) Which practices do you see growing in the next 12 months? What are the drivers behind that? I see six directions gaining momentum. First, AI-powered legal tools — legal research, contract review, document generation, and case assessment are being reshaped by AI; human-AI collaboration is becoming the norm, and AI is moving from an auxiliary role into the workflow itself. Second, alternative legal services — global market data indicate the ALSP market will reach approximately USD 24.8 billion in 2026, with a CAGR exceeding 12%, while non-hourly billing models such as subscription-based and outcome-based pricing are growing rapidly. Third, cross-border and outbound services — as Chinese companies accelerate globalization, China's newly revised Lawyers Law explicitly supports the foreign-related legal services sector, and demand for cross-border investment, foreign-related disputes, and international IP continues to expand. Fourth, compliance and ESG — intensifying technological competition has elevated compliance from risk avoidance to a prerequisite for strategic decision-making, while the national carbon market and carbon finance are generating substantial new work. Fifth, data protection and cybersecurity — demand for personal information protection, cross-border data transfer, and data element circulation are advancing on multiple fronts simultaneously. Sixth, bankruptcy and restructuring — as bankruptcy law reform progresses, rescuing distressed enterprises has become an urgent necessity. Distilled to its essence, these trends are driven by three converging forces: technology is changing how services are delivered, policy is opening institutional space, and corporate demand has evolved from "solving individual cases" to "comprehensive, multi-dimensional risk prevention" — legal protection across all jurisdictions, all relevant parties, all stages, and full-spectrum solutions. That is the fundamental pull. Clearly, whoever responds to this upgraded demand first will more easily secure a ticket for the next round of competition. 3) What's the main change you've made in the firm that will benefit clients? If I had to pick one, it would be the shift from a commission model to firm-wide integration. On the surface, this is a management reform; while at its core, it has transformed the relationship between client and firm. Previously, when a client retained a lawyer, service quality depended on that individual's capability. Today, clients engage the firm's entire professional system — from incorporation, investment and financing, compliance system development, and M&A restructuring, to crisis management, reorganization, and cross-border expansion, and etc. We match professional expertise to each stage of a company's development, delivering "one entry point, full-firm capability." Integration also brings three things that clients can directly perceive: first, consistent service quality; second, efficiency through internal knowledge sharing; and third, long-term relationship continuity — clients relationships reside on the platform rather than with individuals, so senior partners can smoothly hand over to mid-career and junior colleagues, and clients need not worry about service disruption when a lawyer leaves. The most compelling evidence comes from the market: since the integration reform (2020–2025), our integrated offices have added 4,827 new clients. Clients vote with renewals — and that is the evaluation we value most. 4) Is technology changing the way you interact with your clients, and the services you can provide them? In terms of interaction, the most visible shift is from "scheduled meetings" to "always-on access." China's public legal service platforms already operate a dual-track model of "AI lawyer first, human backup," where clients can obtain preliminary legal opinions within minutes and escalate complex matters to human lawyers. Service delivery has also moved from a lack of transparency to full-process visibility, with case management systems allowing clients to track progress in real time. Pricing models are likewise evolving — the monopoly of billable hours is being challenged by subscription and outcome-based approaches. In terms of service capability, technology's contribution is orders of magnitude: precedent research has shifted from manually flipping through paper case files to intelligent systems delivering results in seconds; document drafting and contract review efficiency has improved dramatically; and AI tools now span the entire lifecycle from case intake to closure. We have a saying internally: technology does not replace lawyers — it frees lawyers, allowing them to focus on the core work that demands professional judgment. Anli has designated "digital empowerment" as one of its three strategic pillars. While ensuring client information security, we have partnered with Feishu customized technology system to build an all-in-one intelligent management platform that uses systems to streamline workflows and data to support decision-making. That said, I must emphasize that legal services are ultimately a trust business. AI changes the delivery method, not the lawyer's responsibility for judgment. The more pervasive AI becomes, the higher the professional bar rises — and the stronger clients' demand becomes for lawyers who truly understand their business and can accompany them as long-term strategic partners. 5) Can you give us a practical example of how you have helped a client to add value to their business? Let me share a case that best illustrates the point. We once served a leading internet company whose consumer business spanned multiple regions. Under a traditional model, such work would typically be handled centrally by the headquarters team — costly and slow to respond. Leveraging our integrated mechanism, we distributed the work across our Hangzhou, Shenzhen, and Kunming offices in a coordinated fashion — capturing local cost advantages while improving service efficiency. The client received better pricing and faster response times, with quality guaranteed by firm-wide uniform standards. The more critical mechanism is cross-practice collaboration: the client's IP, labor, investment and financing, and cross-border compliance needs are precisely routed to the corresponding practice centers, where multiple specialist lawyers form an integrated team to serve the client together — truly realizing "one client, collectively served." Another example is in the automotive sector: our Automotive Legal Affairs Center, working jointly with the IP, Data Compliance, and International Practice Centers, provides cross-domain integrated legal services to several leading automakers in China and has built a network of automotive lawyers covering more than ten countries for clients. Behind these cases lies the same institutional logic: the integrated allocation system makes partners willing to refer work outside their expertise to specialized centers, while business aggregation ensures that the most qualified people handle the most specialized work, and clients are the ultimate beneficiaries. 6) Are clients looking for stability and strategic direction from their law firms - where do you see the firm in three years’ time? This is a fundamental shift underway in the industry. More and more clients are beginning to evaluate a firm's governance model as a criterion for engagement — they want not merely a lawyer who can win a case, but an organization that is institutionally stable and worthy of long-term trust. Client demand has evolved from "solving one case" to "defending an entire risk landscape," and they expect law firms to serve as comprehensive, long-term strategic partners. This is precisely the direction of our integration reform: upgrading the object of client trust from an individual to an organization. As for Anli in three years, my judgment is that integration will enter a mature harvest phase. We are advancing integration over a ten-year cycle. In 2025, we completed the transition of our management committee, with the post-1975 cohorts now forming the core leadership. By 2029, institutional self-consistency and intergenerational succession will be essentially complete — the firm will operate stably even as the founding generation steps back. Professionally, the focused development of our 20+ practice centers in new economy and new technology sectors will translate into recognized expertise and a strong reputation in niche fields. Of course, industry concentration is rising, with top firms monopolizing high-end mandates — competitive pressure is real. The more likely picture for Anli in three years is that we will be recognized among commercial full-service firms as belonging to the tier known for rock-solid organizational capability and rapid growth — rather than simply chasing scale rankings. 王清友 Qingyou Wang 安理律师事务所主任 Director of Anli Partners ·Vice-Chairman of All China Lawyers Association ·Vice-Chairman of Beijing Lawyers Association ·Member of Beijing Municipal Legal Expert Board ·Arbitrator of China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission ·Arbitrator, Beijing Arbitration Commission/Beijing International Arbitration Center ·Arbitrator of Shanghai International Arbitration Commission/Shanghai International Arbitration Center ·Arbitrator of Shanghai Arbitration Commission ·Arbitrator, Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration ·The 2nd President of Beijing Chaoyang District Lawyers Association ·Representative of the 16th People's Congress of Beijing ·Representative of the 16th and 17th People's Congresses of Beijing Chaoyang District ·Member of the Standing Committee of the 16th People's Congress of Beijing Chaoyang District ·Fourth Standing Vice-chairman of Beijing Alumni Association of China University of Political Science & Law 更多王清友律师简历请查看安理官网:https://www.anlilaw.com/100043/614