Law Firms Shift Partner Promotions from Greater China to Southeast Asia Amid Strategic Region Realignment

Recent trends highlight a significant decline in partner promotions in Greater China, accompanied by a shift toward promotions in Southeast Asia, particularly Singapore and Tokyo. This change aligns with widespread layoffs and office closures in Greater China, reducing the necessity for law firms to expand their partner networks in that region. On the contrary, international law firms like Morrison & Foerster, Stephenson Harwood, Hogan Lovells, and Pinsent Masons are increasingly concentrating their partnership expansions in other parts of Asia. Only four among the 30 largest international law firms promoted Mainland China-based lawyers in their 2025 global partnership announcements. To get more information, you can access the full article here.