Allens Arthur Robinson

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• Seamus CorneliusPartner
  Seamus.Cornelius@aar.com.au

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Allens Arthur Robinson has one of the most experienced teams of any international law firm in China. Allens became officially licensed by the Ministry of Justice in 1996 as one of the earliest international law firms to operate in the PRC. The Shanghai office is an integral part of our Greater China practice and works closely with our offices in Beijing and Hong Kong.

Our Shanghai office has particularly strong experience in banking and financial services, corporate and commercial, energy and resources, real estate, corporate & commercial (including mergers & acquisitions, joint ventures and private equity), projects and infrastructure and trade and distribution work. Our credentials, expertise and experience in these areas have seen us consistently ranked as a leading foreign law firm in the PRC by independent surveys.

Increasingly we are working with Chinese companies interested in entering the Australian market. Our team comprises Australian and Chinese bilingual lawyers, who have hands-on experience working in both countries and are well versed in the issues facing their investors.

A leading firm in China/Hong Kong in Banking & Finance, Corporate/M&A, Investment Funds, Insurance, Real Estate and Projects, and Infrastructure & Energy
Chambers Asia 2009

A leading firm in China/Hong Kong in Banking & Finance, Corporate/M&A, Projects & Energy, Real Estate and Telecommunications, Media & Technology
Asia Pacific Legal 500 2009/10

M&A team of the year for China
Australasian Legal Business China Awards, 2009

We count among our clients several major Chinese companies looking to invest in Australia and other international markets.

Recent experience includes:

• advising on a pre-IPO investment in a major PRC resources company operating in Western China, and the subsequent sale of its shares quoted on the Shanghai stock exchange
• providing Mori Holdings with ongoing assistance with leases and general real estate advisory in relation to the new Shanghai World Financial Centre
• advising ANZ Bank on its proposed acquisition of a stake in Shanghai Country Commercial Bank Ltd., formerly Shanghai Rural Credit Co-operative Union, the largest financial services co-operative in the PRC. We also advised ANZ on its US$120 million subscription for a 20 per cent stake in Tianjin City Commercial Bank, China's fourth largest city commercial bank by assets
• acted for Tianshan Goldfields in relation to exploration and development of the Gold Mountain Project in North West China and preparations for listing on London's Alternative Investment Market. Tianshan is an Australian Stock Exchange listed company controlled by Perth-based resource investment house, Mineral Securities Ltd. This is one of the largest foreign invested gold projects in China
• advised Hunan Non-Ferrous Company Limited, a Hong Kong/PRC company, on an investment in the Australian resources sector shortly after a successful IPO in Hong Kong
• acted as legal adviser for Fresenius Kabi (China) in its acquisition of 100 per cent of the equity in Cosco Pharm the third-largest manufacturer of blood bags in China
• advised Standard Chartered Bank and Bayerische Hypo-un Vereinsbank AG on the financing for a US$95 million development of the Jinfeng gold mine in Guizhou Province, Southern China
• acting for Goodman Group one of the world’s largest listed property groups in connection with investigating proposed investments in industrial warehouse and logistics developments in Shanghai, including structuring, negotiating and preparing transaction proposals and related transaction documents. Allens is also acting for Goodman International on the acquisition of various logistics facilities and development facilities in Hong Kong for the Macquarie Goodman Logistics Fund
• advised Concord Land Limited on all aspects of a joint venture with the Carlyle Group, including negotiating and documenting acquisition documents, multiple shareholders’ agreements, step-in rights and debt documents, both on-shore and off-shore. In addition, we advised Concord Land on the sale of 'Residence 8', two 30-storey towers of luxury serviced apartments in Shanghai, to the Carlyle Investment Group, having previously acted for Concord Land when it acquired the asset from ING Real Estate
• advised Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec in connection with its bid, as part of the Société Générale consortium, to acquire an interest in Guangdong Development Bank, one of the largest commercial lenders in southern China
• advised Macquarie Group on the acquisition of City Apartments, a 92-unit serviced apartment complex in Shanghai
• acting for MGPA in connection with investigating proposed investments in Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing and Guangdong, including due diligence review, negotiation, discussion and preparation of transaction proposals and related transaction documents

Language capabilities:

English, Mandarin, Shanghainese, Japanese, Cantonese