Overview
Yiqiang "Lee" Li is one of the very few dually qualified Chinese lawyers who returned to China in the mid-1990s to help international firms build up their China practices, dealing with cross-border investment, IP licensing and compliance-related matters. Lee is also one of the few international lawyers who have started helping Chinese companies handle their global legal matters as early as 2003. In 2004, Lee successfully assisted a Chinese public company in defending trade secret misappropriation claims in the United States—the first case in which a PRC company has won a major IP infringement case outside of China. Since then, Lee has constantly represented major Chinese companies in M&A, litigation and other legal matters in the U.S., United Kingdom and other countries. In particular, Lee has a long history of supporting complex FCPA investigations for both public and private U.S. multinational companies in the industrial manufacturing, life sciences, automotive, financial services and telecommunications industries, assisting the U.S. FCPA and white collar teams and leading our Shanghai-based bilingual Chinese lawyers on FCPA investigations.
Lee provides clients with a wealth of firsthand knowledge on cross-border investment and commercial matters:
- Market entry, expansion, restructuring and exit strategy planning and execution.
- FCPA, fraud, unethical practices, and related investigations.
- Cross-border data transfer, data privacy and cybersecurity issues.
- Antitrust, unfair competition and trade practices.
- Food safety and medical devices regulatory compliance issues and related investigations.
- Structuring, negotiating and documenting international technology licensing arrangements.
- Representing top international architecture and engineering firms in structuring, negotiating and drafting over $10 billion of design agreements in the development of landmark buildings.
- Structuring, negotiating and documenting construction, real estate development, hotel management and other commercial contracts, including franchising deals.
- Mergers & acquisitions, joint ventures and establishing wholly foreign-owned enterprises.
- PRC intellectual property rights enforcement and litigation matters.
- Lobbying Chinese authorities on foreign investment approvals and other regulatory matters.
- Dispute settlement and bankruptcy proceedings.
Industry Experience
Lee works with clients in architectural and engineering, automotive, chemical, construction, finance, food and agribusiness, hospitality, insurance, manufacturing, medical devices, and pharmaceutical industries.
Past Experience
Before joining Faegre Drinker, Lee was the principal Chinese lawyer in the Shanghai office of another U.S. law firm. He previously served as editor of the largest legal dictionary in China.
Faculty Positions
- Fudan University School of Law — Assistant Professor of Law, 1990-92
Related Legal Services
Related Industries
Credentials
Bar Admissions
Minnesota
China
Languages
Chinese
Education
Washington University School of Law
J.D. (1995)
Fudan University
LL.M. (1990)
Fudan University
LL.B. (1987)
Insights & Events
Latest
Insights
News
Other Perspectives
- We Are the World – Updates from Europe and Beyond
Speaker, Faegre Baker Daniels Privacy and Cybersecurity Summit, November 2019 - Intellectual Property Strategies & Solutions
Speaker, American China Society of Indiana Business Conference, October 2019 - U.S. Investment, M&A, Litigation, Intellectual Property and Trade Secrets
Panelist, Zhejiang Lawyers Association, Shanghai, July 2018 - Doing Business in China
Panelist, 2016 Food & Agriculture National Conference, Faegre Baker Daniels, Indianapolis, May 2016