De Brauw closes Shanghai office after 16 years
De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek has closed its Shanghai office, ending the Dutch law firm’s 16-year presence in China. The firm first entered the Chinese market in 2010 with a Beijing office, then opened a second location in Shanghai in 2014. It later shut the Beijing outpost to consolidate its China operations in the Shanghai office, which is now also closed.
Why the Amsterdam-based firm pulled out
The firm did not give a detailed public reason for the closure in its announcement. The move follows a pattern among some international law firms scaling back or exiting China entirely, citing regulatory hurdles, a slowing economy, and shifting client demand.
De Brauw’s exit leaves the firm with no physical presence in mainland China for the first time since 2010. The firm still has offices in Amsterdam, Brussels, London, New York, and Singapore.
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One legal industry analyst, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the decision likely reflects a broader recalibration. “International firms that entered China a decade ago are now asking hard questions about profitability and long-term growth there,” the analyst said. “For a mid-sized European firm like De Brauw, maintaining a full-service China office may no longer make financial sense.”
A 16-year arc of expansion and retreat
De Brauw’s China story began with optimism. The Beijing office opened in 2010, a time when many Western law firms were rushing to establish a foothold in the country’s booming legal market. The Shanghai office followed four years later, doubling down on the bet.
But by 2020, the firm had closed its Beijing office, merging all China work into Shanghai. That consolidation was seen at the time as a pragmatic response to rising costs and a more competitive market. Now, even that single office is gone.
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It’s not clear how many lawyers or staff were affected by the Shanghai closure. The firm’s website no longer lists a China office. The firm declined to comment beyond the official statement.
What this means for clients
De Brauw said it will continue to advise clients on China-related matters from its other international offices, particularly Singapore and Amsterdam. The firm’s corporate, M&A, and dispute resolution practices that handled China work are expected to shift to those locations.
Some of De Brauw’s longstanding clients in the region may now have to rely on referrals to local Chinese firms or to other international firms with deeper on-the-ground resources. The firm did not announce any formal referral partnerships in the statement.
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The closure comes amid a broader trend. Over the past three years, at least a half-dozen U.S. and U.K. law firms have reduced or closed their China offices, including some that had been in the market for decades. The reasons vary: some cite geopolitical tensions, others point to a drop in cross-border deals and tighter data security laws that complicate international legal work.
De Brauw’s exit is notable because the firm was one of the few major Dutch firms with a dedicated China presence. Most of its European peers had already left or never entered.
