Herbert Smith Freehills' Chinese alliance firm has hired a disputes partner.

Cathy Liu joins Shanghai-based Kewei Law Firm from King & Wood Mallesons, where she practised for 16 years and made partner in 2015. Liu advises foreign companies on commercial litigation, regulatory investigations, white-collar crime and labour disputes in China.

"As the leading disputes practice in Asia, adding expertise in this area was a priority for our joint operation," said Justin D'Agostino, Herbert Smith Freehills' Hong Kong-based global disputes executive partner, in a statement.

In August, Herbert Smith Freehills formed a joint operation with Kewei under the Shanghai Free Trade Zone programme, giving the Anglo-Australian firm access to a Chinese law practice.

Kewei has three other partners: founder Xu Wenbao, capital markets specialist Stanley Xie and transactions lawyer Gavin Guo. In addition to Liu, counsel Jean Zhu specialises in construction disputes and counsel Frances Xu focuses on competition law matters.

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