On December 26th, Director Zhao Zenghai Esq. of Beijing JAVY Law Firm was invited to participate in the 16th session of "Guike Bi-monthly Talk." The event brought together numerous law firm directors and colleagues to explore the significant topic of "How can emerging law firms establish themselves in a fiercely competitive market?"
This gathering of law firm leaders delved into a thorough discussion on the theme of "How can emerging law firms establish themselves in a fiercely competitive market?" Each firm's leaders shared their experiences and insights, creating an unprecedented exchange of ideas.
Regarding the theme of the meeting, Mr. Zhao expressed the following viewpoints:
"I am very interested in today's theme of 'emerging law firms.' I believe that defining whether a law firm is considered emerging should not be based on the length of its establishment, its size, or the status of its founders. Although JAVY Law Firm was established in 1998, the recent surge began around 2020, making it still an emerging law firm.
Development History of JAVY Law Firm
JAVY Law Firm was officially registered in 1998, but its history dates back to 1993 when it was part of the Landun Law Firm affiliated with the People's Public Security University of China. Due to the Ministry of Justice's requirement that universities should not establish law firms, Landun Law Firm was dissolved around 1998, with most personnel and business transferred to JAVY Law Firm. It can be said that the establishment of JAVY Law Firm was built upon the foundation of Landun Law Firm. In 1993, ZhongyinLaw Firm was founded, and in 2003, Zhentai Law Firm was established. In 2008, Zhentai Law Firm merged into ZhongyinLaw Firm. In 2011, Taiyin Law Firm was established, and in 2018, JAVY Law Firm, Taiyin Law Firm, and ZhongyinLaw Firm underwent a merger and restructuring, renaming the firm as Beijing JAVY Tayn Law Firm. At the end of this year, we have just renamed it as JAVY Law Firm.
Currently, JAVY Law Firm has a staff of around four hundred people nationwide. Even during the pandemic, JAVY has achieved several-fold growth in personnel and business.
JAVY is not only an emerging law firm but also a developing one
Before I took over this law firm, its brand building was low-key, leading many people to be unaware of the firm. However, its development has been good, earning the title of Excellent National Law Firm. I feel fortunate that JAVY Law Firm can start from the platform of being recognized as an Excellent National Law Firm. I used to motivate myself by saying, 'As far as your thoughts go, so will your actions. As broad as your heart is, so will your achievements be.' But today, I realize that many things need to be done step by step; progress needs to be gradual.
As mentioned earlier, I believe the concept of 'emerging law firms' is quite broad. Law firms can be classified as emerging boutique firms or emerging large-scale firms. From this perspective, JAVY Law Firm can be considered an emerging large-scale law firm—a developing law firm. Broadening the view, most law firms are developing law firms. We don't necessarily have to compare ourselves with mature law firms; instead, we should face our own shortcomings and weaknesses.
I often reassure our team members that precisely because the law firm is still developing, there is room for growth and improvement in various aspects. Don't always complain about encountering too many problems in development; no law firm is perfect. Recognize the problems, propose solutions, and immediately transform individual thoughts into collective will. In this way, during the law firm's development, everyone will feel a natural sense of accomplishment.
Don't rush into too much planning, start doing first
From the beginning of JAVY's development to the present, if we were to manage several hundred people now and potentially thousands in the future using the same system that managed a dozen people in the past, it would be clearly impractical. I believe that running a law firm doesn't require too much planning. Law firms that plan excessively in advance generally do not succeed. Therefore, I hope everyone operates as a law firm without too many plans. Just focus on doing. I believe that every step you take is a correction of the previous step. If you set goals too early, thinking that you can reach success by going straight toward them, the market competition may cause changes in your expected outcomes, resulting in significant setbacks.
When I first started my first law firm, there were over a dozen partners. We sat together for three meetings to discuss development goals, and everyone had their ideas. We couldn't reach a consensus, and no documents were formed. A respected elder advised me, suggesting that instead of always deliberating, which might never lead to unanimous opinions due to different viewpoints, we should start doing things first. I remembered this advice and basically followed this approach in my future work. People in the legal industry may have a strong risk awareness, always wanting to consider everything thoroughly before acting. But often, by doing so, you can easily miss the best opportunities.
Objectively speaking, for a relatively new law firm like JAVY, from its inception to rapid development, it has only been a matter of recent years. Typically, other law firms estimate this year's income based on last year's revenue, calculate costs and expenditures, and prepare this year's budget. Some may worry: Last year's income was not ideal; how can we plan this year's budget? Faced with such a problem, I think everyone should have an investment concept and not rush into planning. Start doing first, and when problems arise, make corrections.
Today, I mainly want to communicate with other law firm directors and colleagues on this platform. I particularly enjoy being with energetic young people, especially exchanging ideas with numerous emerging law firms. All of us are developing law firms, with bright and limitless futures. Finally, welcome everyone to visit and exchange ideas at JAVY Law Firm.
Thank you all!"
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