Dorsey & Whitney's Asian Practice Expands to Shanghai.

Business Editors & Legal Writers

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 22, 2001

Dorsey & Whitney LLP announced today that it has been advised by the Ministry of Justice of the People's Republic of China that it will be granted a license to open an office in Shanghai. The Ministry has advised that it will issue the license next month, and the office is expected to open immediately upon its issuance.

While Dorsey has been serving clients in China for more than a decade from its offices in the United States and Hong Kong, the Shanghai office will be the firm's first in mainland China and the third in its rapidly-growing presence in Asia.

"The opening of the Shanghai office will add another building block to our strong Asian capability and will enable us to provide even more comprehensive service to our clients doing business in or with China," said Peter S. Hendrixson, the New York-based managing partner of the firm. "We believe we have one of the strongest China teams of all the American law firms providing this service, and we see tremendous growth opportunities in Shanghai."

Dorsey's ten-lawyer Hong Kong office currently boasts seven lawyers who are fluent in Mandarin Chinese, all of whom have been trained and admitted to practice in the United States or Canada and two of whom are also qualified in China. They combine more than three decades of experience in advising on foreign direct investment, joint ventures, technology licensing, commercial transactions, regulatory matters, and litigation and arbitration proceedings involving China or Chinese parties. Following admission of several of its lawyers to practice as Hong Kong solicitors, the office is also qualified to advise on Hong Kong law, which frequently is used in China transactions as a bridge between Chinese and Western companies.

The Shanghai office will operate under the supervision of Dorsey partner Z. Alex Zhang, a native of Beijing and graduate of one of the best-known law faculties in China, who came to the United States on a Ford Foundation fellowship in 1986 to study law at the University of Minnesota. After being admitted to practice in Minnesota, Zhang served in Dorsey's Minneapolis office for more than six years before opening the firm's Hong Kong office in 1995. That office has expanded aggressively over the last 18 months, growing from four lawyers in the autumn of 1999 to its present size.

Former U.S. Vice President and U.S. Ambassador to Japan Walter F. Mondale is chair of Dorsey's 45-member Asian Practice Group. "We are extremely proud of what we have been able to accomplish in Asia over the last few years," Mondale said. "Our expansion in Hong Kong has given us substantial new Asian-based capabilities in such growth areas as corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and commercial arbitration. The opening of our office in Tokyo has added a presence in a part of Asia that is becoming increasingly important to American companies who are finding opportunities in Japan. And we very much appreciate the recognition by the Chinese government of our strong commitment to Asia and to China in particular."

Dorsey is a national and global leader in mergers and acquisitions, completing more deals worldwide than any other American law firm over the last five years. In addition, the firm is recognized for its expertise in corporate finance. "Dorsey's experience in mergers and acquisitions and in corporate finance -- including U.S. private placements and public offerings of securities, structured finance and securitization -- is highly relevant to the current needs of Asia's dynamic and capital-hungry economy," said Hendrixson. "The projection of this experience into Asian capital markets, including Hong Kong (where we are now qualified to advise on securities listings and other corporate finance transactions), as well as Tokyo and now Shanghai, enables us to serve both American and Asian clients more effectively than ever."

China has been the fastest-growing economy in Asia for the last several years, and that growth is expected to continue as the Chinese economy is restructured. "With the huge amount of foreign investment flowing into mainland China, the continuing growth of private activity among Chinese entrepreneurs and the development of increasingly sophisticated securities markets in China, Shanghai is poised to become a world financial center," said Mondale. "In addition, China's expected entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO) will open and liberalize its economy in ways that we expect will provide unprecedented trade and investment opportunities for American companies. We expect to play an important role in enabling our clients to take advantage of those opportunities."

About Dorsey & Whitney

Dorsey & Whitney (www.dorseylaw.com) is an international law firm with more than 700 lawyers in Minneapolis, New York, Washington, D.C., Denver, Seattle, London, Brussels, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Vancouver and ten other U.S. regional offices. One of the world's largest firms, Dorsey & Whitney has experienced strong growth worldwide--almost doubling in size during the last four years.

In recent years, Dorsey & Whitney has bolstered its traditional strength in corporate finance and commercial litigation with a strategy focused on meeting the growing needs of its clients in international business and technology. The firm has enhanced its capabilities in patent, trademark, licensing and intellectual property disputes, as well as in international business transactions and financing.

Facts on Shanghai and China

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-- Shanghai's population is approximately 13 million people.

-- Shanghai is China's main industrial center and one of the world's largest
seaports.

-- China reported $40 billion dollars in utilized foreign direct investments in
1999.

-- China's expected entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO) will require
China to permit direct foreign investment in sectors that were previously
closed and to abandon many regulations on foreign business.

-- Shanghai has nearly 40,000 industrial enterprises that employ more than 4
million people.

-- The market capitalization of China's stock markets is about $350 billion,
the second largest in Asia after Japan.

-- U.S. exports to China are estimated at $15 billion for 2000.

-- So dangerous was Shanghai's reputation before its current economic
renaissance, the "Shanghai" entry in Webster's Dictionary reads, "To compel to
do something, especially by force."

Walter F. Mondale Dorsey & Whitney LLP

Partner, International Corporate Practice Group Chair, Asia Law Practice Group ----------------------------------------------------------------------

-- Vice President of the United States (1977-1981)

-- Democratic nominee for President of the United States (1984)

-- United States Senator from Minnesota (1965-1976)

-- United States Ambassador to Japan (1993-1996) where he helped

negotiate several U.S.-Japan security agreements and forged

numerous trade pacts between the United States and Japan

-- Chairman of the National Democratic Institute for

International Affairs (1986-1993)

-- Co-chair of the independent, bipartisan Campaign Finance

Reform Project

-- Corporate board member of Northwest Airlines, UnitedHealth

Group, BlackRock Funds and CNA Financial Corporation

-- Non-profit board member of the Japan Society, Mayo Foundation,

Minnesota Public Radio and University of Minnesota Foundation

-- Member of the executive committee of the Peace Prize Forum, an

annual conference co-sponsored by the Norwegian Nobel

Institute and five Midwestern colleges of Norwegian heritage

-- Author of the book The Accountability of Power: Toward a

Responsible Presidency and many articles on domestic and

international issues

-- Received his bachelor and law degrees from the University of

Minnesota