Hybrid Virtual Firm Rimon Law Opens in China with Shenzhen Base

Shenzhen, China (Image: Shutterstock)

The fast-growing hybrid virtual law firm Rimon Law has continued its expansion, this time launching in China with an outpost in the southern technology hub of Shenzhen.

The Shenzhen base will focus on intellectual property matters with seven partners spending time in the city, including IP specialists Peng Chen, Zheng Liu, Letao Qin and David Xue. Chen joined the firm's San Diego group in March last year from Morrison Foerster, where he was a partner.

Seattle-based Fred Chang, who focuses on cross-border mergers and acquisitions, will also spend time in Shenzhen. Chang joined in February last year to help launch the Shenzhen outpost. He previously had stints as a partner in Beijing at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius (via Bingham McCutchen), legacy Lovells, White & Case and legacy King & Wood. In 2010, Chang was one of the founding partners of FenXun Partners and left a year before the firm partnered with Baker McKenzie in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone in 2015.

"With the addition of more partners who have a truly international practice, we have found a need to expand our footprint into more markets globally," said Rimon chief executive officer Michael Moradzadeh in a statement, adding that a base in Shenzhen was a natural step because the Chinese city is a market leader in technology and IP.

U.S. IP specialist firms Fish & Richardson and Brinks Gilson & Lione also opened offices in Shenzhen, earlier this month and in December 2017, respectively.

Rimon's Shenzhen base is its third abroad—after Tel Aviv and Rome—and its 20th in total. The expansion comes after rapid growth in 2018, during which the firm recruited a four-partner IP team in Silicon Valley from Duane Morris, expanded in New York with laterals from Nixon Peabody and Greenberg Traurig, and launched in Kansas City.

Besides its rapid growth, Rimon is known for being one of the few firms with no centralized offices, with about 70 percent of the work being done remotely. The firm adopted a hybrid model where it does have some office space for conferences and for lawyers who want to meet.

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