The Asia Series: Up Close & Personal - China's Legal System

-- Via Cypress Recruiting Group

We here at Cypress are very excited to launch a new, original regular feature that provides actual case studies of attorneys practicing in China. Rather than tell you over and over again about our recruiting chops, we have always felt that it’s more important to focus on our candidates’ needs, including their professional and personal lives both before and after their placements are made. While we usually provide this guidance one on one to our candidates, we thought that you may like to hear from each other as well. With this in mind, The Asia Series: Up Close & Personal will provide unique first hand accounts by attorneys practicing throughout Asia. We have lined up associates and partners at large international law firms as well as governmental and in-house attorneys. Given the lack of reliable media outlets, precedent and mentors in this niche market, we sincerely hope that this series will serve the community as an easily accessible mentorship program. We look forward to your stories and your feedback. If you would like to be profiled for the series, please contact us at Dawn@cypressrecruiting.com.

“China’s Legal System Continues To Benefit From Returning Chinese”

By: Geng Ke

Growing up in Chongqing in the 1980s, it was hard to imagine how different my life would be by 2009. After high school, I received my undergraduate education in biochemistry at Beijing University. It was far from home, but life would take me on an even longer journey. In 1994, like many of my classmates, I went to the US to pursue graduate education. After earning a Ph.D. in biochemistry at NYU, I went to law school at Northwestern and received a J.D. degree in 2003. By that time I had established a strong academic background in the US in more than one field. But I always knew that I would go back to China. For me, the question was never if, but rather how and when.

During my time at law school, I gained a better perspective on the historic transformation that China was undergoing. It became clear to me, and many others in my position, that China would soon need more corporate lawyers with both Chinese backgrounds, and western educations and work experience. It was then that I determined I would return to China once I had obtained some work experience in the US.

After law school, I joined the New York office of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, which is the biggest Wall Street law firm and a powerhouse in mergers and acquisitions . . . CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

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Geng Ke is an associate at Skadden, Arps’ Beijing office. He lived in the US for 12 years before returning in 2006 and can be reached at: ke.geng@skadden.com

Cypress Recruiting Group was launched in 2001, long before the Asian markets stepped into the world's economic spotlight and became the focus of the world's attention. Unlike other large U.S. based recruiting firms with one recruiter assigned to the Asian region, the entire Cypress team focuses exclusively on the Asian legal markets and our team consists of research associates, marketing and H.R. specialists and ex-practicing attorneys from top-tier law firms.

RELATED: Asia Hiring Trends via Cypress Legal Recruiting

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