Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom and China's Fangda Partners were among the big winners at the 12th annual China Law & Practice Awards, which took place in Beijing yesterday (13 September).

Skadden stood out from a group that included Davis Polk & Wardwell, Clifford Chance, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Linklaters and Herbert Smith Freehills, and claimed the International Firm of the Year award.

The New York-based firm has recently taken a number of major mandates for Chinese companies on overseas listings and cross-border transactions, and in March it acted for video-streaming site iQiyi on a $2.25bn initial public offering on Nasdaq; that deal was awarded Equity Securities Deal of the Year.

In April, Skadden also represented e-commerce site Meituan Dianping on a $2.7bn acquisition of bike-sharing app operator Mobike, winner of TMT Deal of the Year. Skadden also was awarded International Capital Markets Firm of the Year, while China practice head Julie Gao was named International Dealmaker of the Year.

Meanwhile, Shanghai-based Fangda Partners took home China Firm of the Year. The finalists in that highly competitive category included King & Wood Mallesons (KWM), JunHe, Han Kun and Zhong Lun. The 485-lawyer firm also won domestic firm of the year awards in M&A, investment funds and competition law. Earlier this year, Fangda represented Ant Financial on a $14bn financing round, winner of Private Equity Deal of the Year.

Beijing-based Han Kun was named Most Innovative Firm of the Year, while partner Charles Li won China Dealmaker of the Year.

Hogan Lovells' programme to provide legal training to Chinese social enterprises received the Pro Bono Initiative of the Year award. KWM's use of artificial intelligence in business development projects won the inaugural Best Use of Technology award. Zhong Lun's Hangzhou office, opened in 2017, was the first winner for Best New Office.

Shanghai-based China Baowu Steel Group received the In-House Legal Team of the Year award.