U.K. law firm Osborne Clarke, which launched in Hong Kong last year with the hire of Bird & Bird partners John Koh and Marcus Vass, has now set up an alliance firm there called Koh Vass & Co, with which it has entered into an association.

The association, led by another former Bird & Bird partner Guohua Zhang, will provide cross-border advisory services and specialist PRC advice. Zhang, a partner of Yaoliang Law Offices in Shanghai, is currently on secondment with Osborne Clarke as a registered foreign lawyer. He specializes in investment, cross-border mergers and acquisitions and general corporate and commercial advice in China.

“This Association ensures that we are not just meeting clients' needs across Europe but in Asia too,” said Simon Beswick, CEO of Osborne Clarke, in a statement.

Osborne Clarke formed a best-friend alliance with BTG Legal in India last year, and currently has 700 lawyers across 19 international offices.