Dentons Vacates Wuhan Office as Law Firms Restrict Travel to Mainland China
Law firms including Reed Smith and Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe have advised all staff to avoid traveling to mainland China
February 06, 2020 at 07:16 AM
4 minute read
Dentons has temporarily closed its Wuhan office, while law firms including Reed Smith and Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe have advised all staff to avoid traveling to mainland China — the epicenter of the global coronavirus outbreak.
Meanwhile, some law firms with outposts in the region are monitoring the situation while others have stepped up their efforts to ensure the safety of staff, and prevent personnel from contracting the illness.
The virus, which originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan, has been rapidly spreading across the country and around the world in recent weeks. As of February 5, the China National Health Commission had received 28,018 reports of confirmed cases of coronavirus, with 563 confirmed deaths.
Dentons has seven lawyers in its Wuhan office, according to its website.
On Tuesday, the U.K. Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) urged all British nationals with the ability to leave China to do so. And on Sunday, the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Consular Affairs issued a statement advising U.S. citizens currently in China to attempt to leave the country, alongside a Level 4 'Do Not Travel' notice instructing citizens not to travel to China.
There is increasing pressure on law firms to respond effectively to the outbreak, with many now taking steps to ensure staff safety.
Dentons is the only international law firm with an office in the quarantined city of Wuhan through its regional operating arm, Dacheng. A person at the firm told Law.com International that the office is now closed.
"Our China region leaders are continuing to closely consult with public health and government authorities, and to follow the required action steps and best practices as directed by these officials," Elliot Portnoy, global CEO of Dentons, said in a statement to Legal Week.
"Our focus continues to be on protecting the health and safety of all our people and their families while continuing to meet our obligations to clients during this global public health emergency."
Meanwhile, Reed Smith has now advised all its personnel to "avoid all travel to mainland China", a person at the firm said. They added: "With regards to helping people leave the country – we will be handling individual requests as needed."
The firm has also formed a "response group" to better monitor the situation for its staff in the region, according to the spokesperson, who added that the firm is "closely monitoring the situation and guidance issued by authorities and health organizations."
In a similar move, fellow U.S. firm Orrick has advised its Greater China team to work from home and has "barred travel to and from and within China" without its prior approval until further notice. It has also asked anyone who returned from China in the past 14 days to work from home, a person at the firm said.
HFW, which has temporarily closed its office in Shanghai, said in a statement that it had also restricted travel within the region, with travel to and from Hong Kong and Singapore now having to be cleared with the firm's respective office heads.
The firm added that it was "in discussion" over the latest guidance from the FCO, and that all its China staff are working from home.
Linklaters, meanwhile, is operating a remote working policy across its Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong offices, and is asking people who have recently traveled to mainland China, either on business or leisure, to work from home for 14 days.
Many lawyers continue to work from home during the government-recommended Chinese New Year period, which has been extended until February 10.
With reporting by Simon Lock.
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllAm Law 200 Firm to Defend PUMA in Latest Quarrel Over Patented Shoe Technology
Health Care Giants Sue FTC, Allege Lina Khan Using Loaded Process to Vilify Pharmacy Benefit Managers
3 minute readChicago Midsize Firm Will Combine With Miami Boutique To Form Antitrust Powerhouse
3 minute readLaw Firms Mentioned
Trending Stories
- 1Voir Dire Voyeur: I Find Out What Kind of Juror I’d Be
- 2When It Comes to Local Law 97 Compliance, You’ve Gotta Have (Good) Faith
- 3Legal Speak at General Counsel Conference East 2024: Virginia Griffith, Director of Business Development at OutsideGC
- 4Legal Speak at General Counsel Conference East 2024: Bill Tanenbaum, Partner & Chair, AI & Data Law Practice Group at Moses Singer
- 5Morgan & Morgan Looks to Grow Into Complex Litigation While Still Keeping its Billboards Up
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250