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Sven-Michael has over 12 years of experience in practicing law in China. His extensive experience includes M&A and foreign direct investment transactions, with a strong focus on advising European clients in relation to their inbound investment into China.

Dr Sven-Michael Werner is a partner in our international Corporate group based in Shanghai.

He has been living and working in China since 1999 and based in Shanghai since 2003. During his career he was also based in both London and Munich with a remit to develop China inbound and outbound work.

In addition to his extensive experience in M&A and foreign direct investment transactions, Sven-Michael also regularly advises European and U.S. clients in the consumer goods, high end retail and services, automotive, technology, media, life sciences sectors in relation to commercial, compliance and anti-bribery matters.

Sven-Michael joined us in January 2014. He was admitted to practise law in Germany in March 2004, and is fluent in German and English, and speaks proficient Mandarin Chinese.

In October 2003 Sven-Michael obtained a Ph.D. degree (Dr. iur.) on Chinese and Hong Kong law. Prior to this, he studied law and business administration in Hamburg followed by a Master of Laws programme at the University of Hong Kong in the area of Chinese business law and international financial transactions.

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Dr. Christian Kessel is a partner in the Frankfurt/Main office of Bird & Bird LLP and advises on commercial contracts and corporate law.

He is head of the International Automotive Group and as a member of the Energy sector group heads the international Offshore Group of Bird & Bird.

Dr Kessel advises international and domestic companies in a large variety of commercial and corporate matters. His practice comprises drafting of, advising on and negotiating complex commercial contracts, EPC project contracts, any form of standard agreements required by clients for use in both B2B and B2C contexts and advising on any relevant warranty and liability issues. His practice is focused on the automotive supply industry, supply chain issues and the energy sector (in particular onshore and offshore wind projects). He advises companies also on all aspects of distribution law and is experienced in insolvency matters. In addition, he advises on corporate law, specifically reorganisations and restructurings of groups of companies or parts thereof or joint ventures.

In the automotive industry he exclusively acts for suppliers and repre-sents them with regard to the serial delivery of parts to the car manufacturers (OEMs) and their purchases from other suppliers. In addition to the drafting of contracts he is specialised in providing legal support to suppliers in case of recalls or field actions by OEMs as well as the implementation of suppliers’ rights vis-à-vis their contractual partners (customers).

In the renewable energy sector Christian Kessel is, in particular, specialised in offshore projects in the North Sea and in the Baltic Sea as well as the legal framework and the construction of electricity inter-connectors. He has been involved in some of the most significant and large-volume offshore wind transactions in Germany.

Dr Kessel is stakeholder on the EU Commission’s network of experts on the Common Frame of Reference (“CFR-net”), a project for the harmonization of European civil law.

Christian Kessel gives regularly presentations and speeches on topics related to automotive supply matters, offshore wind and standard terms. He is the author of several articles on commercial and distribution law published in books and legal magazines in Germany and England.

Admitted to the Berlin Bar in 1991 and to the Frankfurt/Main Bar in 1996, Christian Kessel has also been a solicitor in England and Wales since 1993 and practised in London from 1991 until April 1996. He studied at the Freie Universität Berlin and at the University of London, Kings College, where he earned the degree of a Master of Laws (LL.M.). From Freie Universität Berlin he earned his doctorate in 1994.

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Anne is an acknowledged competition law expert whose clients value her strong business sense and her pragmatic and results-oriented advice.

Anne, who divides her time between Brussels and Düsseldorf, is a Partner in our Competition & EU Law Group.
Anne has very substantial experience in German, EU and international merger control and has been involved in a large number of complex Phase 2 cases before the European Commission and the German Federal Cartel Office.
She regularly advises clients in cartel proceedings and internal cartel investigations. Her practice also covers abuse proceedings and advising on the competition law aspects of cooperation, distribution and license agreements.

Clients seek Anne’s strategic advice and assistance when developing and implementing competition law compliance programmes. Anne has very significant experience in this area and is known for her creative and innovative approach to designing highly customised, interactive and entertaining training programmes.

Anne's expertise spans a number of sectors, including automotive, telecommunications and media, healthcare, post and logistics, food and beverages, and energy.

Anne is regularly listed as a “frequently recommended” competition lawyer in the German directory JUVE and as a leading practitioner in The International Who's Who of Competition Lawyers & Economists. She was featured in Global Competition Review's 100 "Women in Antitrust" 2013 survey and was ranked as one of the leading female competition lawyers in Belgium in the Euromoney Guide to the World's Leading Women in Business Law.

She joined us in early 2010 after 12 years as a partner in a major international law firm in Brussels.

A member of the Düsseldorf bar since 1992, Anne studied law at the universities of Passau, Freiburg im Breisgau and Toulouse and obtained an LL.M. degree in European law from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (Belgium).
She is fluent in English and French.

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Zhaofeng has strong academic and practical experience in anti-trust issues in the Chinese market.

Dr. Zhaofeng Zhou is a partner in our Competition Group, based in Beijing. Zhaofeng started to practice antitrust law before China’s Anti-monopoly Law came into force. He regularly advises both Chinese and international clients in the aviation, aircraft manufacturing, automotive, internet industry, mining equipment, new energy and pharmaceuticals sectors in regard to PRC antitrust matters.

A specialist antitrust lawyer, Zhaofeng has antitrust experiences across the full range of PRC antitrust issues, including various merger control, antitrust compliance and training, dawn raids, antitrust due diligence, antitrust review of commercial contracts, monopoly agreements, abuse of dominance, abuse of intellectual property rights, and antitrust litigation.

He was also elected as Vice Chair of Legal & Competition Working Group of European Chamber in 2014.

He graduated with an LLB in Economic Law from Shenyang University of technology, he also holds an LLM in International Law from the University of Bristol and PhD in Competition Law from the University of Glasgow. He was admitted to the PRC Bar in 2009.

Zhaofeng is a native Mandarin speaker who is also fluent in English.

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Christine’s science background enables her to work seamlessly with technology companies in devising and implementing strategies that will maximise the return from their IP portfolio.

Christine is a partner in the Intellectual Property Group based in Shanghai. She specialises in all areas of IP, with a focus on litigation in mainland China and Hong Kong. Christine has a broad range of experience in handling patent, utility model, trade secret, trade mark, unfair competition, copyright and design infringement and invalidation disputes.

Christine has worked with clients from the semiconductor, software, consumer electronics, telecommunications, constructions equipment, pharmaceutical and medical devices industry since qualifying.

Since joining our London office in 2008 from another international law firm Christine has handled a number of high value, complex patent litigations in Europe. Since relocating back to China, she works closely with our association firm, Beijing Lawjay Partners, and has handled over 50 IP cases before courts and administrative authorities in Beijing, Shanghai and numerous other cities in mainland China. Building upon her international litigation experience, Christine has also coordinated and managed many cross-border disputes by working alongside lawyers from Europe and US.
Christine studied natural science and later electronics and information science at the University of Cambridge.

She is an active member of the European Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai and also the China Intellectual Property Society.

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Chia Ling practices mostly in IT and IP practice areas and represents major multinational companies in the TMT sector
Chia Ling is a partner in the Intellectual Property and Technology Groups of Bird & Bird ATMD LLP in Singapore.

Within the TMT sector, Chia Ling handles IT & IP (Patent and Copyright) disputes, contracts and anti-counterfeiting matters.

Chia Ling supports major telecommunications companies, global IT vendors, Internet search engines and major international airlines in their IT procurement, projects, tenders and contracts, product development in Singapore and the region.

He has also advised companies and government bodies on the commercialization of inventions and new technologies such as neural-network software technology, media, biotechnology, human-resource training systems for use in multiple jurisdictions, and satellite-based tracking systems.
Chia Ling has successfully represented clients in a number of high profile and landmark IP/IT cases, including Odex v PacNet (2008), Amanresorts (2009), and RecordTV (2010).

Chia Ling has a Master of Technology degree and a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) and is a guest lecturer in IT law at the Institute of Systems Science, National University of Singapore. He regularly contributes to publications on technology-related topics, including the chapters on “Data Protection, Digital Evidence and Computer Crimes” of the E-Commerce section of “Halsbury’s Laws of Singapore”.