The operation of Taiwanese firms in China has been a well-known anomaly for some time. Not falling into the categories of a "foreign firm" or a domestic firm, these firms need to use innovative means to establish a presence in the mainland. Thus the Taiwanese legal consultancy is born.

Several Taiwanese firms have gone down this route, providing consultancy services to international clients, a key part of which is the introduction of overseas clients to domestic firms and individual lawyers.

Pamir Law Group, a member of TerraLex, is a Taipei-based law firm with consulting businesses in Shanghai and Beijing. "In the past, we mainly helped foreign clients to establish in China, but in future we are expanding our support for leading PRC groups to expand overseas," said Nicholas Chen, founder and managing partner of Pamir, who has split his time between the Taiwan and the mainland over the past 20 years.

Chen, who called himself "a seeing eye dog for clients to find their way in the China market", believes that law firms like Pamir do have a big role to play in bridging the gap between PRC lawyers and overseas clients. He says that, at present, the firm cooperates with more than 10 PRC law firms. Other Taiwan firms with a similar business mode in the mainland include Lee & Li and Lee, Tsai & Partners. Both have consulting offices in Beijing and Shanghai, and each plans to expand its business in Greater China.