Merits & Tree Law Offices recently announced the addition of partners Iris Liao (廖佳) and Runze He (何润泽) who will be based in the Shenzhen and Shanghai offices respectively. Their arrival aims to further enrich the comprehensive professional capabilities of the firm in high-end commercial transactions and foreign-related government regulatory compliance.
Joining the Shenzhen office Ms. Liao focuses primarily on customs and global trade compliance, import and export controls, economic sanctions, trade remedies, and smuggling defense. Before transitioning to private practice Ms. Liao served as a Government Attorney at China Customs for 15 years where she deeply participated in the drafting and revision of core laws including the Customs Law and the Tariff Law. In practice she has handled hundreds of disputes concerning dual-use items, US IEEPA tariff rebates, Australian anti-dumping and countervailing proceedings, and complex rules of origin issues. She also maintains an outstanding track record in administrative penalty cases successfully securing exemptions from administrative sanctions in complex false declaration matters. Actively contributing to academic and industry advancement Ms. Liao serves as a Council Member of the Customs Law Research Committee of the China Law Society. Prior to joining Merits & Tree she practiced at Landing Law Offices. Equipped with a robust interdisciplinary background she holds a Bachelor of Engineering from Tongji University, a Master of Accounting from Tianjin University of Finance and Economics, and an LL.M. from The Chinese University of Hong Kong.
Based in the Shanghai office Mr. He focuses his primary practice on M&A, private equity investments, and venture capital. Reflecting his outstanding market reputation he was ranked as a Recommended Lawyer in Corporate and M&A by The Legal 500 Greater China 2026. He routinely represents prominent domestic and international investment institutions and industrial corporations in complex equity investments, controlling stake acquisitions, and joint venture formations. His stellar clientele encompasses Hillhouse, Ant Group, Alibaba, Baidu, Meituan, Bain Capital, PAG, Lilly Asia Ventures, and Midea spanning frontier sectors such as artificial intelligence, semiconductors, life sciences, and new energy. Furthermore he has accumulated extensive practical experience in assisting Chinese enterprises with overseas expansion leading cross-border joint venture and acquisition projects across the UAE, Morocco, Hungary, Australia, Tanzania, and Zambia. Prior to joining Merits & Tree Mr. He served as a partner at Haiwen & Partners. Earlier in his career he practiced at Cadwalader, DaHui Lawyers, and Haiwen & Partners. He holds an LL.M. from Harvard University, a Master's degree from the Hopkins-Nanjing Center jointly administered by Nanjing University and Johns Hopkins University, and an LL.B. from Nanjing University.
The addition of Mr. He and Ms. Liao continues the strong talent expansion momentum of Merits & Tree in key practice areas over recent months. The firm recently brought on former Deloitte China Vice Chair Patrick Yip (叶伟文) as Co-Head of the Global Private Wealth practice in Hong Kong, recruited former Zimmer Biomet executive Yizhong Xue (薛益中) to the Shanghai office to lead healthcare transactions and compliance, and welcomed former King & Wood lawyer Jinhui Zhang (张金辉) to the Beijing dispute resolution team. Additionally in July the firm announced the concentrated arrival of four equity partners Bing Rong (容冰), Yuru Li (李玉茹), Tong Li (李彤), and Tianxiong Hu (胡天雄).
