On December 6, 2025, following continuous tracking and in-depth research into China’s legal services market and upon approval by the Asia Pacific Media Foundation (APMF), GRCD China, a specialized media platform under APMF, officially released the 2025 GRCD China Annual Industry Lawyers Guide.

Cheng Shoutai, Chief Partner of Tahota Law Firm, together with Partners Zhou Mi, Xiang Fei and Yang Zhichao, has earned a place on the list by virtue of their profound professional expertise and outstanding service capabilities.

GRCD Annual Industry Contribution Award

Attorney Cheng Shoutai

Attorney Cheng Shoutai, Doctor of Laws, Secretary of the Party Committee and Chief Partner of Tahota Law Firm, Arbitrator of China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (CIETAC) and Arbitrator of Shanghai Arbitration Commission.

Lawyer Cheng has been honored with numerous prestigious awards, including: National Excellent Lawyer, Chambers Asia-Pacific Distinguished Commercial Lawyer, Top 10 Most Influential Lawyers in China by Asian Legal Business (ALB); he has been repeatedly shortlisted for ALB China Annual Best Managing Partner Award, Top 10 Elite Lawyers of the Year by Fangyuan Law Review, LEGALBAND "China's Top Lawyers 2020" and "Managing Partner of the Year 2022"; he is also the recipient of Outstanding Law Firm Manager 2025 by China University of Political Science and Law, Outstanding Law Firm Leader 2025 by Lvxin She, Outstanding Law Firm Management Person of the Year 2025 by Xinze; in addition, he was named Top 15 M&A Lawyers 2021 by ALB China and China Litigation Star in Commercial Dispute by Benchmark Litigation.

Banking and Financial Services

Attorney Zhou Mi

Attorney Zhou Mi, Partner at Tahota Law Firm, Arbitrator of the Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration, and Legislative Consultation Expert of the Shenzhen Municipal Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

She specializes in legal affairs relating to the banking and insurance industries, corporate governance, and commercial dispute resolution. Since commencing her legal practice, she has handled a large number of civil and commercial dispute cases, including litigation and arbitration disputes in the fields of finance, insurance, securities, funds, investment and financing, as well as corporate governance disputes and contract disputes.

She serves as a panel counsel for multiple leading insurance companies and banks, and acts as a perennial legal advisor to a wide range of enterprises. Additionally, she is a lecturer for the Public Welfare Lecturer Group of the Shenzhen Lawyers Association and a collaborative lecturer for the private banking departments of various banks. She also provides long-term customized non-litigation legal services such as legal training, legal consultation, negotiation and due diligence at the request of clients.

With sharp insight, diligence, responsibility, pragmatism and loyalty, she has won the deep trust of her clients.

Private Equity and Funds

Attorney Xiang Fei

Attorney Xiang Fei, Doctor of Laws, Partner of Tahota Law Firm. His primary practice areas focus on enterprise compliance management and private equity fund business. In the realm of private equity funds, he provides legal services to industrial capital, well-known general partners (GPs) and guidance funds, covering the entire spectrum of legal support spanning fund structure design, complex project investment, post-investment management, exit strategies, and fund dispute resolution.

Over the years, with his proficient legal expertise, innovative legal development mindset and rigorous, responsible work attitude, Attorney Xiang has earned extensive recognition and praise from clients.

Upholding the spirit of specialized in-depth research, he has authored dozens of books, including Enterprise Legal Risk Assessment, The Valuation Adjustment Mechanism Game: Legal Practice of Valuation Adjustment Mechanisms in Equity Investment and Construction of Compliance Management Systems for Hospital Procurement.

Family Wealth and Succession

Attorney Yang Zhichao

Attorney Yang Zhichao, Partner of Tahota Law Firm. Since the commencement of his legal practice, he has provided perennial and ad-hoc legal services to various entities including administrative organs, public institutions, state-owned listed companies and private listed companies. With his professional, efficient and responsible service attitude, he has gained deep trust from clients and established an excellent reputation.

His core practice focuses on government regulatory compliance, non-performing asset disposal, new energy industry legal services, and family wealth management, enabling clients to proactively implement risk prevention and control measures and resolve legal issues efficiently. Meanwhile, he has represented numerous major and complex civil and commercial cases in the field of civil and commercial litigation.

Attorney Yang was selected for the 2025 New Rules Rising Stars Lawyers List (40 Under 40).

At the award ceremony held on the same day, Attorney Zhou Mi of our firm, as the only lawyer representative, engaged in an in-depth dialogue with four legal directors. In his speech, Attorney Zhou first expressed gratitude for the profound insights gained from this event, stating frankly, "Listening directly to legal directors’ expectations for lawyers has brought me far more than I anticipated." When addressing the pain points in cooperation, he pointed out the phenomenon of "a marathon of case entrustment coupled with a sprint of case handling" — meaning that the case entrustment process is unduly lengthy while the case handling period is extremely compressed, resulting in precious time being wasted on procedural waiting. Subsequently, the attorney shared a successful case where the legal director dared to take responsibility and streamline the process. With efficient collaboration between both parties, the case achieved a satisfactory outcome. He emphasized, "An outstanding legal director and an excellent lawyer always have a mutually rewarding relationship. Truly efficient cooperation is not about staring at each other, but about working together toward the same goal."

GRCD is a professional media outlet under the Asia Pacific Media Foundation (APMF), with a dedicated focus on corporate governance, risk control and compliance. Headquartered in Singapore, it provides professional services such as ratings and consulting to clients across the Asia-Pacific region. The GRCD China Annual Industry Lawyer Guide covers 19 key industry sectors. Based on extensive market research, it profiles a number of lawyers who have earned recognition for their exceptional professional expertise and profound business acumen. It is committed to serving as an authoritative reference for enterprises in lawyer recruitment and offering insights into the pulse of synergistic development between the legal industry and industrial sectors.

Moving forward, we will continue to leverage our professional strengths and uphold the service philosophy of integrity, diligence, efficiency, quality and pursuit of excellence. We will actively provide clients with outstanding and efficient legal services, commit ourselves to building a differentiated service system, satisfy clients’ multi-level and multi-dimensional legal needs, and strive to deliver optimal solutions for them.