ZOU, Xiwen

Senior Attorney, AllBright Law Offices, Shanghai

Handled over 800 family, inheritance, and wealth management cases, primarily complex and challenging matters.

Published personal monograph Judicial Practice on Divorce Property Division and Shared Debt Liability with Law Press, included in major national libraries and law school collections, selected for the 2022 Shanghai Bar Association Legal Series.

Published 40+ articles across platforms, including the Supreme People’s Court Judicial Case Institute, Legal Practice Journal, the High People’s Court of Shandong Province, Jinan Intermediate People’s Court of Shandong Province, China Lawyer, GaoShan Legal, iCourt, Shanghai Lawyers, Legal Vision, Wolters Kluwer, XinZe, Chinese Women, etc.

Forbes Global Alliance International Leader; Founder of "Seabird Legal Education Project."

Adjunct Mentor at East China University of Political Science and Law and Shanghai University of Political Science and Law; Expert in Cailianpress Think Tank.

Listed expert on "Heritage Management" at Shanghai New Hongqiao Notary Office, Shanghai Dongfang Notary Office, and Shanghai Xuhui Notary Office.

In the field of litigation, Lawyer Zou has expertise in the settlement of sophisticated disputes such as divorce property division, custody dispute, and heritage and succession. She excels at summarizing negotiation, litigation, and other experiences from numerous complex cases, enabling her to protect her clients' core interests to the greatest extent. In the non-litigation field, Attorney Zou excels in providing private clients with comprehensive, personalized, and one-stop legal service solutions. She leverages a range of wealth management tools, including prenuptial and marital property agreements, corporate capital structuring, family agreements, voluntary guardianship, family trusts, and offshore structures, across various sectors such as finance, insurance, trust, real estate, immigration, tax, and wealth management.

Lawyer Zou's expertise in the field of family law and wealth inheritance covers the following four areas:
1. Marriage and Family Non-litigation
Lawyer Zou provides private clients with specialized legal services tailored to potential needs in family law. These services include but are not limited to (1) pre-marital and marital property review and planning, (2) consultation on non-marital relationships and matters concerning children born out of wedlock, (3) transnational marriage consultation and planning, and (4) personal attorney. The team excels at drawing on a wealth of complex cases to summarize negotiation and litigation strategies, ensuring that the core interests of clients are safeguarded to the greatest extent.
2. Resolution of Family Disputes
Lawyer Zou's professional team has extensive practical experience and deep insights in handling and resolving complex cases, including(1) division of marital property and child custody disputes; (2) property division and child custody disputes in cohabitating couples; (3) disputes related to guardianship, child support, spousal support, support for elderly parents, and adoption disputes; (4) o other disputes arising from the division of family assets (such as transfer of stock rights and real estates; (5) disputes concerning wills and heritance.The team excels at drawing on a wealth of complex cases to summarize negotiation and litigation strategies, ensuring that the core interests of clients are safeguarded to the greatest extent.
3. Family Wealth Management and Inheritance
Lawyer Zou's professional team is dedicated to providing in-depth, comprehensive, personalized, and one-stop legal service solutions for private clients. These services include but are not limited to: (1) planning and design of family trusts, will trusts, retirement trusts, insurance trusts, and guardianship support trusts in and out of China; (2) planning and design of family wealth investment and global asset allocation in and out of China; (3) planning and design of wills (including transnational wills and will executors), legacy support agreements, and voluntary guardianship; (4) planning and design of family insurance and funds in and out of China; (5) consultation and handling of inheritance matters in and out of China; and (6) services related to family agreements and family charters.
4. Family Bussiness Management
Family business management legal services are a core part of Lawyer Zou's expertise in family matters and private wealth management. Lawyer Zou and her team provide a full range of legal services to family businesses including but not limited to (1) the design of family business models involving the design of equity structures and corporate incentive mechanisms; (2) Investment and financing, mergers and acquisitions, and other related matters concerning family businesses; (3) legal consultant for family businesses; (4) legal consultant for family affairs; (5) family office.

Education

• Lawyer Zou obtained an LLM degree from both the East China University of Politics & Law and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Professional Works

• Writings：Property Division and Debt Undertaking in Divorce
• Supported by nearly 3,000 judgments on divorce property disputes since the implementation of the Civil Code, the book focuses on the divorce division of traditional and new types of property such as real estate, shareholdings, intellectual property rights, digital currencies, gaming virtual properties, artworks, etc. Employing data analysis and case interpretations, this book also provides objective litigation strategy analysis and advice from the perspective of practicing lawyers.
• Articles：
• ‘Highlights of the New Revision in the Inheritance Chapter of the Civil Code and Big Data Analysis of Judicial Practice’ (Part I and Part II)
• ‘Partnership Shares in Divorce Property Disputes — Big Data Analysis and Case Studies of Judicial Practice’ (Part I and Part II)
• ‘Company Equity in Divorce Property Disputes - Big Data Analysis and Case Studies of Judicial Practice’ (Part I, Part II, and Part III)
• ‘Determination and Handling of Marital Joint Debts’ (Part I and Part II)
• ‘Case Studies and Key Points on the Division of Sole Proprietor Company Equity in Divorce Disputes’
• ‘Research on Legal Remedies for Unauthorized Disposal and Transfer of Equity Interests by One Party in Divorce Disputes’
• ‘Exploring Legal Remedies for Unauthorized Disposal or Transfer of Equity in Divorce Disputes’
• ‘Strategic Choices in Equity Division Litigation for Divorce Property Disputes: Big Data Analysis of Judicial Practice’
• ‘Overview of Equity Division and Valuation in Divorce (Including Listed Companies)’
• ‘Analysis of Daily Family Affairs Agency in the Study of Marital Joint Debts’
• ‘How to Establish Residential Rights in Divorce?’
• ‘Divorce Property Disputes: Big Data Analysis and Key Issues in Judicial Practice’
• ‘The Most Detailed Explanation of Real Estate Division Methods in Divorce Disputes’
• ‘Detailed Explanation of 29 Scenarios in the Division of Marital Property’ (The article has been reprinted by various courts, including the Judicial Case Research Institute of the Supreme People's Court, Shandong High Court, and Jinan Intermediate Court.)
• ‘Family Law Case FAQs: Exploring Issues of Property Division for Unregistered Real Estate’
• ‘Case Analysis and Practical Suggestions for the Purchase and Sale of Small Property Rights Housing’
• ‘Research on Divorce Division of Small Property Rights Housings’
• ‘Analysis and Practical Suggestions of Small Property Rights Housing Succession’
• ‘Review: Legal Issues and Judicial Opinions in the Sale and Inheritance of Economically Affordable Housing’
• ‘Judicial Opinions and Legal Advice on Economically Affordable Housing in Divorce Property Division’
• ‘How to Divide Land Acquisition Compensation in Divorce’
• ‘Legal Issues Related to Divorce Division and Inheritance of Military Properties’
• ‘Overview: Major Risks and Preventive Measures in the Sale of Military Housing’
• ‘Nine trials in one case: How to handle the situation where the cheating party finances the purchase of a house for a third party’
• ‘Big Data Analysis of Judicial Practice in the Division of Artworks in Divorce Property Disputes’
• ‘Restrictions and Exclusions on Shareholder Qualification Inheritance in the Articles of Association of Limited Liability Companies’
• ‘Research on and Practical Recommendations for the Division of Relocation Benefits’
• ‘Improving the Visitation Rights System in China from a Comparative Law Perspective’
• ‘How to Divide a House Registered in the Names of Three Family Members During Divorce?’
• ‘Can the Share of Property Certificate Be Used as a Basis for Dividing Property in Divorce?’
• ‘The Legislative Reflection on the System of Estate Administrators in China’
• ‘Practical Guide: 6 Processes for Establishing Intended Guardianship and Operational Advice’
• ‘13 Tables That Explain How Divorce Insurance Benefits Are Divided’

Classic Cases

• Classic cases in the field of family affairs represented by Lawyer Zou include the following:
• [Marriage and Relationships]
• 1. Lawyer Zou handled a divorce litigation case that involved the division of common property in and out of China between Mr. Z (a senior executive of a famous brokerage firm) and Mrs. X. Difficulties in handling this case: Mr. Z’s property was preserved before the lawsuit, which made the litigation process more difficult; the couple both had assets in and out of China and the types of assets they possessed were very sophisticated; Mr. Z had large financial transactions with his close relatives with a possibility of him intending to transfer common property elsewhere; and Mr. Z’s will to divorce was uncertain. The value of the assets involved in this divorce case was about 700 million yuan.
• 2. Lawyer Zou represented Mr. C(the president of a real estate development company) in his divorce case with Mrs. Z. Difficulties in handling this case: the subject matter of this dispute is the company's equities and their real estate in many provinces across China; Mr. C and his mistress have purchased several properties and had a child born out of wedlock, involving the unauthorized disposition of common property. The value of the assets involved in this divorce case was about 300 million yuan.
• 3. Lawyer Zou represented a transnational divorce case between Mr. L(from a wealthy family) and Mrs. L. Difficulties in handling this case: the couple have been separated for a long time, and there was only very limited information on their financial status; Mr. L has received equity transfers from his parents in several companies, with these companies owning real estate valued over 1 billion yuan; there are multiple unresolved litigation cases between Mr. L and his half-sisters regarding the assets, leading to significant disputes. The value of the assets involved was about 1.5 billion yuan.
• 4. Lawyer Zou provided prenuptial asset arrangements for Ms. L(the daughter of the chairman of a listed company in Shandong) and her same-sex partner. Difficulties in handling this case: the prenuptial arrangements involve same-sex marriage registration abroad, requiring a legality review; sorting out domestic and foreign asset lists; involving domestic and foreign identity planning; drafting a prenuptial agreement in both Chinese and English for same-sex marriage. The value of the assets involved was about 500 million yuan.
• 5. Lawyer Zou represented Ms. H from Shanghai in handling her divorce case with Mr. G, a well-known Chinese entrepreneur. The primary property disputes include 5 real estate properties in Shanghai involving both parties' parents and foreign children; equity in 4 domestic enterprises acquired before and after marriage; foreign factories and real estate, with an amount involved of approximately 2 billion yuan.
• 6. Lawyer Zou handled a series of litigation and non-litigation cases for Mr. H, the executive president of a well-known securities firm, concerning disputes with his spouse and third-party creditors. Difficulties in the case include: some real estate involved in the case was related to some financial criminal offenses; the identification of joint marital debts is complex and widespread, involving multiple local courts. Effective case execution and balancing require extensive professional support from lawyers on both theoretical and practical levels. The amount involved was approximately 800 million yuan.
• 7. Laywer Zou provided legal services for the divorce case between Mr. N (one of the founders of a domestic unicorn company) and Mrs.N, including facilitating a peaceful acceptance of a package of divorce settlement by both parties, as well as providing Mr. N with a full range of legal risk tips and practical advice for the future liquidation of his equity interest in a listed company. The amount involved was about 600 million yuan.
• 8. Lawyer Zou handled the division of property shares in an employee stock ownership platform for a company planning to go public, as part of a divorce settlement. Difficulties in handling this case: the husband enjoys property division in the employee shareholding platform and indirectly holds the equity interest of the proposed listed company; the company has gone through several twists and turns of being listed and delisted on the New Three Board; the husband has transferred and concealed the common property. The amount involved was about 50 million yuan.
• 9. Lawyer Zou handled a custody dispute between an eighty-year-old of unknown whereabouts and two ten-year-old out-of-wedlock children, seeking child support for the two out-of-wedlock sons. Difficulties in handling this case: the father was seriously ill, mentally incapacitated, and considered a person with limited civil capacity; the father’s whereabouts were unknown due to him being moved by his statutory heirs; the mother urgently needed child support for the out-of-wedlock children, with statutory heirs obstructing the process, and the out-of-wedlock children being difficult to be included as statutory heirs in the inheritance distribution. The amount involved is approximately 80 million yuan.
• 10. Lawyer Zou represented Miss. X in a divorce case involving the division of SERS equity compensation for a senior vice president at a leading high-tech company planning to go public. Difficulties in handling this case: the sensitivity of dividing equity incentives for senior executives of a company planning to go public; the pioneering and innovative nature of SERS share economic benefits in China; and the practical challenges of maximizing value through a divorce agreement post-listing. The amount involved is approximately 1 billion yuan.
• 11. Lawyer Zou represented Mr. K in handling the organization and protection of family assets. Case Challenges: Mr. K, a doyen in his academic field, has focused primarily on his scholarly pursuits and has accumulated wealth amounting to hundreds of millions of yuan over the years but lacks the expertise to manage it effectively. Additionally, his wife has had multiple extramarital affairs and has executed several commitments to forgo her claims on the family assets. The family is on the brink of dissolution, and asset division is imminent. Actions Taken: Upon intervention, Lawyer Zou meticulously organized Mr. K's assets, including but not limited to dozens of properties both domestic and overseas, equity interests in tens of companies, stocks, funds, bank deposits, insurance policies, and wealth management products. Lawyer Zou also analyzed the legal validity and risks associated with his wife's commitments and drafted a more enforceable postnuptial agreement, thereby helping Mr. K preserve the fruits of his lifelong efforts.
• 12. Lawyer Zou represented Ms. Huang in handling the organization, accumulation of family wealth, and succession planning for the next generation. Case Challenges: Ms. Huang's family owns equity interests in dozens of companies and numerous properties both domestic and overseas. The family is the second-largest taxpayer in City S, Province J, making the organization of family assets highly complex. Additionally, her husband's chronic infidelity and the oppressive family environment have created additional challenges. Detailed planning is also needed for the education and career development of the next generation, as well as for Ms. Huang's personal growth. Actions Taken: Lawyer Zou conducted a comprehensive review of the family's assets, including equity interests in dozens of companies, properties, and financial assets. Customized consulting services were provided for the education and career planning of the next generation, assisting in the development of a cultivation plan that aligns with the family's values and future development. In terms of business, Lawyer Zou conducted an in-depth analysis of the operational risks, equity structure, and external opportunities of several industrial companies operated by Ms. Huang's husband, helping to accumulate family wealth. In the family context, Lawyer Zou helped Ms. Huang adjust her mindset, enhance her sense of self-worth, and drafted postnuptial and family agreements to secure her personal assets.
• [Inheritance and Wealth Passing]
• 1.Lawyer Zou represented Ms. Y, the widow of Mr. L., in a will inheritance dispute. Difficulties in handling this case: dispute over the validity of a printed will, the recognition of the adopted children's inheritance rights, handling of equity in a publicly listed company, and determining the nature of substantial corporate group insurance and company benefits. The amount involved is about 70 million yuan.
• 2.Lawyer Zou represented Ms. L in a series of disputes involving her father's will inheritance, her mother's statutory inheritance, family property division, and the appointment of guardianship. Difficulties in handling this case: one deceased with a highly questionable handwritten will, while the other elderly person is bedridden and has been deemed a person with limited capacity. One of the couple's children, who was a statutory heir, passed away early, requiring the handling of guardianship and substitutional inheritance. Additionally, several properties lack certificates and are not yet eligible for certification. The amount involved is approximately 30 million yuan.
• 3.Lawyer Zou represented Ms Z in handling family agreements and estate arrangements. Difficulties in handling this case: resolving a marital dispute triggered by infidelity, and protecting the client's interests through multiple negotiations with the spouse. The parties involved possess significant domestic and overseas assets, spread across numerous accounts, as well as a substantial collection of artworks and expensive jewelry. The case involved drafting a series of agreements and wills concerning marital assets and the inheritance under their parents' names. The amount involved is approximately 500 million yuan.
• 4.Lawyer Zou represented Ms. L for over five years, handling her marriage disputes and inheritance disputes and involving in the process of gaining the family company's control and management rights. Difficulties in handling this case include: dealing with a second-marriage family where the husband is a second-generation heir of a family business, with the first generation being nearly 90 years old. The family has many siblings residing in different countries, each holding control over different aspects of the company. Lawyer Zou successfully helped Ms. L manage the inheritance and distribution of company equity after her husband's passing and secured nearly 100 million yuan in assets for her two minor children. The total amount involved was approximately 4 billion yuan.
• 5.Lawyer Zou represented Ms. Z in handling her marital disputes and intergenerational wealth inheritance cases. Difficulties in handling this case include inheritance issues involving the spouse's extramarital affair and her illegitimate child. Lawyer Zou assisted the client in negotiations, drafting negotiation strategies, and managing marital assets and the second-generation inheritance and equity arrangements for their family businesses. The total amount involved was approximately 500 million yuan.
• 6. Lawyer Zou represented Ms. W in handling domestic and overseas equity and intergenerational wealth transfer cases. Difficulties in handling this case include: managing a family business focused on commercial complexes, designing wealth transfer plans involving equity gifts, and holding arrangements across dozens of domestic, overseas, and offshore companies within the family. Additionally, Lawyer Zou provided comprehensive legal services for structuring and isolating risks between the family and the business for the entrepreneur couple. The total amount involved is approximately 3 billion yuan.
• 7. Lawyer Zou represented Ms. Wang in establishing a family trust and drafting corresponding wills and postnuptial agreements. Case Challenges: Ms. Wang's family structure is complex, as her mother remarried after a divorce. The trust funds were provided by Ms. Wang, but the trust was ultimately established in her mother's name, raising complex issues regarding the identification of trust beneficiaries and the source of funds. Actions Taken: After multiple rounds of discussions with Ms. Wang and her family, Lawyer Zou actively coordinated with the relevant bank to set up the trust. Comprehensive legal documents, including a full set of gift agreements, wills, and postnuptial agreements for Ms. Wang's mother, were prepared to clarify the sources and ownership of the funds involved.
• 8. Lawyer Zou represented Ms. Zhang in conducting family wealth risk assessment and management. Case Challenges: Ms. Zhang is transitioning from a career to becoming a full-time homemaker, making the family's wealth accumulation entirely dependent on her spouse. Ms. Zhang wishes to participate in her spouse's business, which is related to futures trading. The business has high income potential but also significant opacity and operates in a workshop-style model relying on internal team support, posing considerable operational risks. Actions Taken: Through multiple meetings, Lawyer Zou helped Ms. Zhang understand the current situation and analyzed the various risks associated with the family's income sources. A timeline-based approach was adopted to set short-term, medium-term, and long-term goals for Ms. Zhang and her family. Risks were deconstructed in phases, and a detailed roadmap was developed for Ms. Zhang to participate in her spouse's business. Comprehensive family agreements and various risk control agreements were also drafted to safeguard the family's interests.

Lectures

• In professional research, Lawyer Zou has served numerous domestic and international individuals and high-net-worth clients. Utilizing her extensive experience, she provides litigation and non-litigation services related to marital family law, inheritance, and wealth management to clients and various financial institutions. Additionally, she has delivered over forty legal education seminars. The professional topic lectures provided by Lawyer Zou to fellow lawyers and clients include:
• ‘Gaodun Finance Thematic Lecture: Highlights, Misconceptions, and Big Data Analysis of Judicial Practice in the Marriage and Family Chapter of the Civil Code in Shanghai’
• ‘Analysis of the New Real Estate Policy in Shanghai and its Impact on Matrimonial and Family Cases in 2021’
• ‘Legal analysis of whether lover's demand for breakup fee constitutes extortion’
• ‘Judicial Practice and Recommendations for Handling Commercial Housing in Divorce Litigation’
• ‘Shanghai Waigaoqiao Group: Judicial Practice and Recommendations for Handling Various Types of Real Estate in Marriage and Family Cases and Divorce Litigation’
• ‘How to Handle Various Shareholder Issues in Marriage and Family Cases?’
• ‘2022 Second Annual Family Law Forum: Strategic Choices in Share Division Litigation for Divorce Property Disputes’
• ‘Industrial Securities Family Wealth Thematic Lecture: Legal and Business Wisdom for Protecting and Transferring Property for High-Net-Worth Individuals’
• ‘Shanghai University of Political Science and Law Family Law Thematic Lecture: Big Data Analysis of Marriage and Family Cases After the Implementation of the Civil Code’
• ‘Shanghai First People's Hospital Thematic Lecture: Insurance Protection and Inheritance in Family Disputes’
• ‘Shanghai Corporate Legal Advisors Association Thematic Lecture: Highlights and Case Analysis of the Revised Inheritance Chapter of the Civil Code’
• ‘Shanghai International Trust: ‘Lost in the Stars’ The Unsolved Mystery of Wealth Management’
• ‘Shanghai Jiao Tong University:Matrimonial and Family Law Practice Course’
• ‘Xuhui District Education Bureau, Shanghai: How Should Students and Faculty Respond to Online Public Opinion Starting from the 'Female Teacher Incident'?’
• ‘Headquarters of Bank of Communications Shanghai: Safeguarding 'Her' Rights’
• ‘Shanghai Jiangqiao Hospital:How to Manage Family Inheritance in an Aging Society’
• ‘China Foreign Trade Trust Company: Hot Issues in the 2023 Revised Company Law’
• ‘Nanyang Middle School, Shanghai: Building Teacher Conduct and Ethics in Primary and Secondary Schools—Analyzing Teacher Professional Misconduct’
• ‘Wei Yu Middle School, Shanghai: Building Teacher Conduct and Ethics in Primary and Secondary Schools—Understanding and Responding to Online Public Opinion’

Social Activities

• In the social activities realm, Lawyer Zou founded the 'Seabird Law Popularization' in 2019. She organized a team of over ten lecturers and gathered a group of experts from the legal and education fields. The organization has conducted hundreds of legal education lectures in over forty streets and schools across Xuhui, Hongkou, and Songjiang districts in Shanghai. Seabird Law Popularization serves a broad audience, including elite individuals, people with disabilities, elderly individuals, and school children. The initiative aims to make legal knowledge accessible and engaging, enabling people to solve everyday problems through scientific legal thinking, even without consulting a lawyer or searching online. The goal is to transform the perception of law from "irrelevant and uninteresting" to "interesting and useful," making legal education fashionable, enhancing legal literacy, spreading the rule of law concept, and promoting the spirit of the rule of law in building a lawful China.