Ross_Lester

Lester Ross

Partner

  • Partner-in-Charge, Beijing Office

As former Vice Chair of the Board of Governors, former General Counsel and current Chair of the Policy Committee and of the Insurance Forum of the American Chamber of Commerce – People's Republic of China (AmCham), Les Ross is a longstanding leader of the American business and legal communities in China and in frequent contact with government officials and other stakeholders.

Mr. Ross concentrates his practice on mergers and acquisitions and regulatory matters and has experience in a broad range of industries. He has represented both foreign and local companies and has particular experience advising foreign companies on competition law and regulatory compliance in China.

Practice

Mr. Ross represents foreign companies in their strategic expansion in China through direct investments and mergers and acquisitions in industries ranging alphabetically from agriculture to water services. He also has extensive experience representing foreign banks and corporations, including Chinese entities, in their strategic expansion in the United States, particularly focusing on M&A and regulatory clearances and compliance. He has also represented clients in trade, dispute resolution and regulatory matters in China.

Publications

Mr. Ross is the author of Environmental Policy in China (Indiana University Press 1988) and co-author of Environmental Law and Policy in the People's Republic of China (Greenwood Press 1987). He has contributed chapters to Business Law in China (ICC 2009); The Limits of the Rule of Law in China (University of Washington Press 2000), Managing the Chinese Environment (Oxford University Press 2000), China Joins the World: Progress and Prospects (Council on Foreign Relations Press 1999), Taiwan and International Trade and Investment (Oxford University Press 1994), Doing Business in China (Juris Publishing binder), Government Policies and the Misuses of Forest Resources (Cambridge University Press 1988), Policy Implementation in China (University of California Press 1987) and other books on Chinese law and business. He has written articles in such periodicals as The China Quarterly, University of British Columbia Law Review, Antitrust, China Law & Practice, International Financial Law Review, International Trade Law and Regulation, International Tax & Business Lawyer, Intellectual Property & Technology Law Journal, East Asian Executive Reports, Environment and Comparative Political Studies.

Professional Activities

As former Vice Chair of the Board of Governors, former General Counsel and current Chair of the Policy Committee and of the Insurance Forum of the American Chamber of Commerce – People's Republic of China (AmCham), Les Ross is a longstanding leader of the American business and legal communities in China and in frequent contact with government officials and other stakeholders.

Fluent in Mandarin, Mr. Ross has been a visiting scholar at the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences in Beijing and studied Chinese at Taiwan National University. He has conducted field work in China under the sponsorship of the Committee on Scholarly Communication with China of the National Academy of Sciences.

Recognition

  • Recognized in the first edition of The Best Lawyers in China for his work in Mergers and Acquisitions Law (International Firms)
  • Recognized in Chambers Asia Pacific annually since 2009 for the practice of Corporate/M&A: China-based (International Firms).
  • Listed as a leader in China for the practice of Corporate/M&A annually since 2008 in Chambers Global: The World's Leading Lawyers.
  • Selected as one of Asia's top business lawyers in each edition of AsiaLaw Leading Lawyers since 2004. He is recognized in a variety of areas including capital markets, mergers and acquisitions and project finance.
  • Recognized by his peers as one of the world's leading emerging markets practitioners for his work in environmental law in Legal Media Group's The Best of the Best.
  • Received the 2015 China Pioneer Award from the American Chamber of Commerce in the People’s Republic of China (AmCham China), which honors corporate leaders who made early and significant contributions to economic expansion and the business environment across China. 

Insights & News

Credentials

  • Education

    • JD, Harvard Law School, 1990

      cum laude
    • PhD, Political Science, University of Michigan, 1980

    • MA, University of Michigan, 1972

  • Admissions

    • Massachusetts

    • New York

  • Languages

    • Chinese (Mandarin)

Credentials

Notice

Unless you are an existing client, before communicating with WilmerHale by e-mail (or otherwise), please read the Disclaimer referenced by this link.(The Disclaimer is also accessible from the opening of this website). As noted therein, until you have received from us a written statement that we represent you in a particular manner (an "engagement letter") you should not send to us any confidential information about any such matter. After we have undertaken representation of you concerning a matter, you will be our client, and we may thereafter exchange confidential information freely.

Thank you for your interest in WilmerHale.