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China’s Global Counsel Platform

Sino International professional advisory council (SIPAC)

China’s Global Counsel Platform

SINO INTERNATIONAL PROFESSIONAL ADVISORY COUNCIL
                                      (SIPAC)

About

Who we are

The Sino International Professional Advisory Council (SIPAC) is a global network of outstanding professional service providers built to service all aspects of the global expansion of Chinese business in the context of an evolving geopolitical environment.

Our mission

SIPAC’s mission is to bring the Sino-Global legal communities together by:

  1. providing Chinese lawyers engaged in cross-border legal work access to the full range of international-standard resources so that Chinese companies can conduct business overseas with confidence, supported by trusted professional advisors, and
  2. helping leading independent law firms and other professional advisors around the world to develop trusted advisor relationships with their counterparts in Chinese companies and law firms.

Our ecosystem

SIPAC is the central pillar of our comprehensive ecosystem of professional know-how, training and other resources.  All elements of our ecosystem are fully integrated and mutually reinforcing in order to help Chinese legal and compliance professionals step up to true international standard.

Our partners

SIPAC cooperates closely with leading governmental, quasi-governmental and professional organizations across China to achieve unmatched levels of market access and credibility.

Our opportunity

Professional services platforms in China have limited access to international resources.  Global professional platforms have limited understanding of China.  SIPAC is uniquely positioned to fill this gap.

Leadership

Core management team

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ROBERT LEWIS

Chairman

Mr. Lewis has practiced law for nearly 40 years, over 30 years of which have been in China, focusing primarily on cross-border M&A and other international transactions.
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Mr. Lewis has practiced law for nearly 40 years, over 30 years of which have been in China, focusing primarily on cross-border M&A and other international transactions.  He was the first senior foreign lawyer to move from a leading international law firm to a top Chinese law firm, working as Senior International Counsel with Zhong Lun Law Firm in Beijing for 10 years. He previously served as managing partner of the Beijing office of Lovells (now Hogan Lovells) for nine years and, prior to that, he was Asia General Counsel for Nortel Networks.  Earlier in his career, he worked with Sidley & Austin in Los Angeles for six years and in 1993 joined the China Practice Group of Baker & McKenzie in Hong Kong and Shanghai.

Mr. Lewis is also co-founder of SIPAC partner docQbot, the first bilingual automated contract know-how platform in China, and co-founder of the leading overseas investment information and consulting platform – the China Going Global Think-tank (CGGT).  He is currently also Senior International Consultant with Chance Bridge Law Firm in Beijing and Shanghai. His publications include The Dawn of a New Era for FDI in China: A Practical Guide to China’s New Foreign Investment Law and The Rules of the Game of Global M&A: Why so Many Chinese Outbound Investments Fail, among others.

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Liming YANG

CEO

Liming is a visionary leader in the legal technology space, currently serving as the CEO of SIPAC. His strategic vision and expertise have been instrumental in driving SIPAC’s growth in the world’s largest legal market and spearheading its international expansion.
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Liming is a visionary leader in the legal technology space, currently serving as the CEO of SIPAC. His strategic vision and expertise have been instrumental in driving SIPAC’s growth in the world’s largest legal market and spearheading its international expansion.

A former lawyer at a prestigious “Red Circle” Chinese law firm, Liming seamlessly transitioned into pioneering legal tech innovation. As one of China’s first automated template authors, he recognized technology’s potential to streamline legal processes.

Under Liming’s leadership, SIPAC orchestrated the highly successful inaugural Sino-International Law Forum in November 2023. This premier event brought together hundreds of senior in-house and compliance experts from top Chinese companies, leading cross-border lawyers from over 50 countries, and nearly 100 lawyers from China’s elite firms. The forum facilitated invaluable in-person networking and knowledge-sharing among global legal professionals.

With his unique blend of legal expertise, tech-driven mindset, and visionary leadership, Liming is propelling SIPAC to the forefront of legal industry transformation in China and worldwide.

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Sara YU

SVP & Head of Global Content

Sara is a leader in China in respect of the development of international-standard bilingual legal know-how content. 
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Sara is a leader in China in respect of the development of international-standard bilingual legal know-how content.  In addition to more than 10 years practice experience in top Chinese law firms working on inbound and outbound cross-border transactions, she is also a founding team member of SIPAC partner docQbot, where she was principally responsible for managing the production of the full range of docQbot’s comprehensive suite of bilingual legal know-how content, consisting of thousands of variations of the most common cross-border trade and investment transaction agreement templates, together with hundreds of drafting notes, sample clauses and other related resources.

In her role at SIPAC, Sara works with our SIPAC members and friends around the world to create customized localization guides and other content for each jurisdiction to be integrated into the overall ecosystem.  She also leads our cooperation with other leading international and domestic content providers and platforms in order to create curated international content specifically tailored to the unique requirements of China’s leading cross-border lawyers.

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Lin XU

Senior IT Consultant

Lin XU has nearly two decades of experience in technology development, having worked in Hexun.com, China’s largest financial intel online portal.
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Lin XU has nearly two decades of experience in technology development, having worked in Hexun.com, China’s largest financial intel online portal.  In addition to his role in SIPAC, he also serves as CTO for SIPAC’s partner platform, docQbot, where he has led the development of a full suite of tech-supported legal know-how tools as well as the localization and adaptation of world-leading legal AI tools.  At SIPAC, XU Lin will drive the development of the SIPAC back-office engine to accelerate and enhance international engagement and cooperation to ensure that SIPAC is always on the cutting edge of law and technology.

Advisory board

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Patrick Dransfield

Non-exec Director & Senior Advisor

Patrick has worked for more than three decades in the Asia-MENA legal markets and is widely recognized as a builder of communities within the international legal profession, an innovator in legal media, training, coaching, events and marketing consulting.
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Patrick has worked for more than three decades in the Asia-MENA legal markets and is widely recognized as a builder of communities within the international legal profession, an innovator in legal media, training, coaching, events and marketing consulting.  He was recognized in 2019 by Asia Law Portal as one of the top thirty people to watch in the legal profession.  He was the driving force behind the development of a highly successful in-house counsel community with chapters in London, MENA, Africa, India, ASEAN, Japan and China.  As a member of the SIPAC advisory board, Patrick will draw on his extensive experience and expertise to help guide the further development of SIPAC’s Sino-Global professional community.

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Philippe Snel

Senior Advisor

Philippe has been practicing as foreign lawyer in China for the past 20 years. Being an entrepreneur at heart, he independently started his practice in Shanghai as early as 2001 and has been working and living permanently in China since 2004.
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Philippe has been practicing as foreign lawyer in China for the past 20 years. Being an entrepreneur at heart, he independently started his practice in Shanghai as early as 2001 and has been working and living permanently in China since 2004. Prior to coming to China, he was a partner in a leading Brussels law firm.  His outstanding contributions have been recognized by the Shanghai Municipal Government, which bestowed on him the Silver Magnolia Award, one of the highest honors for foreign nationals in Shanghai.   As a SIPAC advisor, Philippe will advise on Sino-international professional services innovation.

Our Ecosystem

SIPAC is the central pillar of our comprehensive ecosystem of professional know-how, training, online/offline events and other resources.

Our Coverage

Regional

SIPAC provides global coverage across key jurisdictions, connecting China with the rest of the world. 

  • North America
  • South America
  • Western Europe
  • Central & 
Eastern Europe
  •  Eurasia
  • North Asia
  • ASEAN
  • Middle East & North Africa
  • Africa
  •  Australasia

EXPERTISE

Our ecosystem focuses on the key practice areas of most relevance to Chinese cross-border trade and investment activities.

 International M&A
International M&A
 Infrastructure Projects
Infrastructure Projects
International Trade
International Trade
Compliance Management
Compliance Management
 Intellectual Property
Intellectual Property
 International Dispute Resolution
International Dispute Resolution

Industry

We provide sectoral coverage across China’s largest industries. 

Energy & Natural Resources
Energy & Natural Resources
Construction
Construction
Technology, Media & Telecom
Technology, Media & Telecom
Industry & Manufacturing
Industry & Manufacturing
Consumer Goods
Consumer Goods
E-Commerce
E-Commerce

News

Channel Partners

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