Xiao Liu

Xiao is Quinn Emanuel’s Chair of China Practice and managing partner of the Beijing Office. A Chinese lawyer trained in the U.S., Xiao has a unique practice focusing on representing China-based companies and individuals in cross-border litigation, arbitrations, and government enforcement actions.

Xiao is battle-tested in all stages of litigation proceedings in federal and state courts in the U.S., including dispositive motions, depositions, jury and bench trials and appeals. He is particularly experienced in issues that uniquely affect cross-border litigation involving Chinese parties, such as service of process, jurisdiction, extraterritorial application of U.S. statutes, judicial assistance, and cross-border discovery.

Back in 2013, Xiao was a member of a four-person trial team that won a bench trial in the Southern District of New York for a French conglomerate, which set the first precedent in a public market purchase case where the defendant successfully rebutted the fraud-on-the-market presumption. Focusing on representing China-based businesses in recent years, Xiao has helped a number of Chinese companies achieve favorable results in major U.S. litigations, such as Bank of China Limited, China Construction Bank, UP Fintech, Anta Sports, Waterdrop, BlueCity, ChinaCache. Between 2020 and 2023, Xiao was recognized in The American Lawyer Litigation Daily’s “Litigator of the Week” reports three times for helping Chinese companies achieve victories in landmark litigations, including dismissing securities class actions in the U.S. and successfully defending five major Chinese state-owned banks in a U.S. federal court against a motion seeking sanctions of USD 130 million.

Xiao also has substantial experience in international arbitration matters, particularly those involving Asia-based parties, having represented a U.S. electric car company against a Chinese shareholder in an emergency arbitration at HKIAC, a Shanghai-based real estate company in settling a dispute against a foreign investor before HKIAC arbitration is initiated, and a major Chinese oil & gas company in two AAA arbitrations.

In 2021, LawDragon recognized Xiao in inaugural Global Litigation 500 awards, listing him as one of the only three China Mainland-based litigators recognized. Xiao has been recognized by Chambers & Partners as a leading lawyer in “Corporate Investigations” (Greater China) and “Dispute Resolution: Litigation” (International Firms – Greater China) categories, where references praised him as “one of the best litigation lawyers that I know in the market,” “sharp, skillful and efficient,” and “can give very reliable real-world advice.”

Xiao completed a half-year internship with the Chinese Supreme People’s Court (No. 4 Civil Division) and a judicial externship with the Honorable Judge Rosemary M. Collyer of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. Xiao has taught an introductory course on U.S. civil litigation at Peking University Law School and is frequently invited to lecture at universities, law societies, and industry organizations on topics relating to international arbitration, the FCPA, commercial disputes, anti-bribery, internal controls, and U.S. litigation.