Firm Profile
Morrison & Foerster is an international firm with more than 1,000 lawyers across 15 offices in the U.S., Europe, and Asia. Founded in 1883, we remain dedicated to providing our clients, which include some of the largest financial institutions, Fortune 100 companies, and technology and life science companies, with legendary service. The firm is distinguished by its unsurpassed expertise in finance, life sciences, and technology; its legendary litigation skills; and an unrivaled reach across the Pacific Rim, particularly in Japan and China. We’ve been included on The American Lawyer’s A-List for seven straight years, and Fortune named us one of the “100 Best Companies to Work For.” Our lawyers are committed to achieving innovative and business-minded results for our clients, while preserving the differences that make us stronger.
ASIA PRACTICE
We are one of the preeminent law firms in Asia, providing integrated U.S. and local law advice. We have handled major matters in Hong Kong and greater China for more than 25 years. Our Tokyo office is now the largest Japan office of any global firm and the firm is one of the largest law firms in Japan, domestic or international. We have the only international litigation team in Asia, with litigation and arbitration specialists handling matters in China, Japan, and Greater Asia. We have the largest intellectual property team in Asia and lead the region in outsourcing, licensing, and technology transactions. Our market-leading corporate finance and capital markets practice in Asia regularly represents issuers and underwriters in debt and equity financings, as well as in domestic venture capital and private equity investments.
CHINA PRACTICE
Morrison & Foerster was among the first U.S. law firms to establish an office or become locally qualified to practice in each of China’s major business centers: Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong. Having been handling major matters in greater China for more than 28 years, we have more than 70 multilingual U.S.-, PRC- and Hong Kong-qualified legal professionals, coupled with more than 1,000 international lawyers worldwide.
Morrison & Foerster provides comprehensive coverage for investment, finance and regulatory matters to a wide spectrum of clients in China, including many of the world’s largest multinationals, the most substantial and active institutional PRC companies, and promising startups in the Internet, technology, entertainment, telecommunications, cleantech and life sciences industries.
Morrison & Foerster’s Technology Transactions Group is recognized as perhaps the preeminent technology practice in the People’s Republic of China and Hong Kong. The group advises a diverse range of Asian, European, and U.S. clients in the technology, financial services, life sciences, Internet, software, telecommunications, and media industries on a wide spectrum of TMT related matters. The technology transactions practice was recently named “2010 Telecoms, Media and Technology Firm of the Year” in Hong Kong by Asian Counsel following its annual survey of in-house counsel. The firm won the same award in 2009 for China. Asia Pacific Legal 500 recognizes our practice in the first tier for technology work in China and since 2006, has ranked us as the only law firm in tier one for technology work in Hong Kong. The 2010 edition of Chambers Asia says, “[Morrison & Foerster] is probably the premier IT firm in the world.” Asia Pacific Legal 500 also adds, “[They have] unrivalled depth of expertise in relation to technology transactions.”
Our group also has an in-depth knowledge and experience of sourcing transactions in China and Asia in a wide range of industries including banking, finance and insurance; manufacturing; media, communications and technology; and retail. The PLC Which Lawyer? and Global Counsel both highly recommend the firm for outsourcing, IT, and telecoms in Hong Kong and China.
Notable Practitioners
