Tiantong & Partners: Transforming Litigation in China

As a small and extremely profitable litigation boutique in Beijing, Tiantong & Partners is an unlikely setting for a firm that is seeking to disrupt the status quo. But with its “No Litigation” sign above the entrance to its offices in a traditional siheyuan, it is anything but conventional. The case describes the firm’s founding philosophy and its approach to litigation, including how it recruits and managers its small but highly talented group of litigators. But there is more to Tiantong than litigators. The firm may be the only firm in the country that employed more programmers than lawyers. Its founder, Jiang Yong, had a vision that technology could be leveraged to improve the state of litigation in all of China. Could a firm with just 23 lawyers manage both a successful litigation business as well as several internet ventures?

Tiantong is a tiny firm seeking to have a huge impact. The case invites the reader to consider the opportunities and risks of being a truly entrepreneurial and innovative law firm at the top end of the Chinese legal market.