Herbert Smith Freehills recently announced a joint operation with a Chinese law firm in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone, becoming the latest international firm to take advantage of a government-sanctioned program that gives foreign firms Chinese law capability.

At least a dozen global firms are now operating Chinese associations in various forms, offering one-stop-shop services that include Chinese legal opinions, court appearances and dealing with regulators. The 5-year-old Shanghai FTZ scheme, which has also benefited Linklaters, Ashurst, HFW, Hogan Lovells and Baker McKenzie, is one of several ways firms can get access to Chinese law practice.

Before launching the FTZ program for foreign law firms, the Chinese government tried a similar joint venture program for mainland Chinese and Hong Kong law firms. U.K. firms Clyde & Co and Stephenson Harwood both registered China branches under their Hong Kong offices and set up their Chinese alliances under that scheme.

The government programs require commitment to the Chinese firm and are generally restrictive in nature. Under the programs, it's more difficult to control the quality of the Chinese partner firm's work. Many global firms prefer the so-called captured firm model in a regulated market such as China. It allows foreign firms to have a local firm of their own so they can control quality and simplify administrative processes. The government programs often require the Chinese partner firm to be in existence for a certain number of years, making it much harder to find a compatible partner.

Over the years, firms have explored approaches to bypass the regulatory hurdles. The Swiss verein structure pioneered by King & Wood Mallesons has been a popular choice used by others, such as Dentons and U.K. firm Fieldfisher.

A couple of U.S. firms opted for a less conventional method: an exclusive referral relationship in China. Most global firms have regular referral partners in China, but very few are willing to settle on exclusive arrangements. In 2007, Chicago's McDermott Will & Emery struck up a strategic alliance with a group of Shanghai-based lawyers breaking away from large local firm AllBright. The lawyers formed a new Chinese law firm known in Chinese as Yuan Da and in English as MWE China Law Offices. While remaining legally independent, MWE China was able to share McDermott's brand, and give the U.S. firm direct access to Chinese law practice.

But the McDermott-MWE deal was as groundbreaking as it was unique. No firm has since replicated that model. In 2015, McGuireWoods entered similar arrangements with a group of Chinese lawyers, but the new firm, FuJae Partners, doesn't share McGuireWoods' branding.

Herbert Smith Freehills' FTZ alliance is similar. Kewei, the Chinese firm, is staffed by at least two former HSF lawyers and new recruits from other top Chinese firms. May Tai, the firm's Greater China managing partner, stresses that Kewei extends HSF's reputation as clients' trusted adviser to Chinese law practice.

One thing that's been driving firms such as Linklaters and Herbert Smith Freehills is the need to appeal to Chinese clients as domestic law firms are on the rise. Despite a turbulent U.S.-China relationship and prolonged trade war, top Chinese law firms have secured meaningful financial growth and continue to plot overseas expansion, as our annual China 45 report shows (see page 60).

Full liberalization doesn't yet seem possible, so for the time being, the search for a Chinese law solution continues.