Lewis will join the firm as a senior international legal consultant because Chinese law does not allow foreign lawyers to be partners in its country’s law firms. He will continue to work with his former colleagues at Lovells through the Sino-Global Legal Alliance (SGLA). Lewis helped establish the referral group, which includes a total of13 Chinese firms, three years ago. Lewis will take over as chief administrative officer of SGLA in conjunction with his new role at AllBright, LegalWeek reports.
Lewis commented on the move in a press release.
“I am very pleased in my new roles to have the opportunity to continue to promote the original objectives of the SGLA to develop a new model for legal practice in China, melding international and domestic legal services resources and capabilities,” he said.
“In my new position with AllBright in Beijing, I will be able to leverage the competitive efficiencies of a leading domestic Chinese law firm through the national and international network of the SGLA, providing additional value for both foreign and domestic clients, particularly in certain key market segments not served by international law firms.”