Haiyan Duan

Practice Areas

Labor & Employment, Investment/M&A & Corporate Governance, Litigation & Arbitration

Professional Memberships

Vice Chairman, Employment and Social Security Law Committee, All China Lawyers Association

Committee Member, Employment and Social Security Law Committee, Beijing Municipal Lawyers Association

Member and Director, Beijing Employment and Social Security Law Society

Personal

Ms. Duan specializes in labor and employment law for over 20 years and has accumulated a wealth of experience in litigation, arbitration, and non-contentious employment matters. Her practice focuses on representing clients in arbitration and litigation of employment disputes, reviewing employment compliance and developing risk mitigation systems, handling employee placement and economic layoff in the case of restructuring, listing, reorganization, merger & acquisition, and other special circumstances, formulating employment plans and standardizing employment methods, resolving disputes arising from employees' equity incentives, examining and refining equity incentive plans and agreements, assisting in the establishment of the employee representative congress and labor union, participating in collective negotiation, participating in investigation of disciplinary violations of employees, and formulating plans for investigation and disposal.

Ms. Duan has provided employment law services to many central enterprises, state organs, public institutions, companies funded by foreign Fortune Global 500 companies in China, and well-known domestic private-sector companies in internet and other industries. She has been widely recognized and praised by clients for her extensive experience, top-notch professionalism, and pragmatic and meticulous approach to work in the field of employment law.

Work Highlights

Consulting Services

• Provided consulting services regarding employment law to several state-owned oil and petrochemical group companies and their subsidiaries

• Provided consulting services regarding employment law to a state-owned group company engaged in the investment, construction, and operation of oil and gas trunk pipeline network and its subsidiaries

• Provided consulting services regarding employment law to several commercial banks and policy banks

• Provided consulting services regarding employment law to a state-owned group company in the steel industry and its subsidiaries

• Provided consulting services regarding employment law to a leading state-owned group company in the construction industry

• Provided consulting services regarding employment law to Asset Management Association of China

• Provided consulting services regarding employment law to several China-based companies funded by foreign Fortune Global 500 carmakers

• Provided consulting services regarding employment law to several China-based companies funded by foreign Fortune Global 500 high-tech companies

• Provided consulting services regarding employment law to the embassy of a country in China

• Provided consulting services regarding employment law to a well-known accounting firm

• Provided consulting services regarding employment law to a national fund management company

• Provided consulting services regarding employment law to multiple well-known internet companies

Legal Services for Employment

• Provided services regarding employment law to the personnel reform involved in the reform of mixed ownership of a central enterprise (one of the first batch of pilot reform of central enterprises), and settled disputes arising therefrom

• Acted as counsel on employment law to a state-owned real estate company (the seller) for the resettlement and compensation of over 10,000 employees involved in the client’s material asset transaction

• Provided legal services to a well-known internet company in connection with the project of “employment compliance and risk mitigation"

• Provided legal services to a number of foreign-funded companies in connection with cross-regional economic layoffs in China

• Provided legal services a well-known foreign-funded company in the industry of mobile advertising in relation to a disciplinary investigation into gender discrimination and sexual harassment allegations as well as the resulting punishment of employees

• Provided legal services to a number of listed companies for disputes concerning stock option incentives between the listed companies and their senior management, with each dispute involving hundreds of millions of yuan

Arbitration and Litigation over Labor Dispute

• In 2016, Ms. Duan represented a central enterprise and its subsidiaries in arbitration and litigation over an employment dispute relating to retroactive pay to employees that had worked from home. The case involved a large number of employees, unfolded over an extended period, and attracted considerable social attention. It progressed through multiple stages of legal proceedings, including employment arbitration, proceedings of first instance, second instance, and retrial, with all proceedings concluding in favor of the clients.

• From 2015 to 2016, Ms. Duan represented an internet network security company in arbitration and litigation regarding the non-competition dispute with the company’s employee. The case went through employment arbitration, first instance, and second instance, where all proceedings concluded in favor of the client. Given the fierce competition for talents in the internet industry and the challenges faced by former employers in conducting investigations and collecting evidence, this case attracted a lot of attention as one of the most illuminative cases where a former employer successfully held the former employee liable for breach of contract and secured indemnities. This case was selected by the Beijing Chaoyang People’s Court as one of the “Ten Guiding Cases of the White Paper on Employment Disputes 2011-2015", and by Beijing High People’s Court as one of the “Ten Guiding Cases of Employment Relationship Integrity Construction".

• From 2019 to 2022, Ms. Duan provided legal services to a well-known internet finance company for litigation and arbitration relating to an employment dispute between the company and its employee over the company’s stock incentive plan. The case went through employment arbitration and proceedings of first instance and second instance, and all proceedings concluded in favor of the client. This case serves as a guide for solving disputes concerning granting of incentive stock by an overseas affiliated company (especially issues commonly arising from such disputes issues such as cause of action, determination of whether the income derived from incentive stock is considered employment remuneration, and whether an overseas entity is subject to litigation).

• From 2020 to 2022, Ms. Duan provided legal services to a mobile payment service provider for arbitration and litigation concerning an employment dispute between the client and its 59 employees, a case involving around CNY 32 million. The case was a new type of employment dispute as it was a transnational dispute occurring against the backdrop of Covid-19. With a lack of precedents to draw experience from, Ms. Duan helped the client to reach a settlement with 58 employees, and the settlement amount accounted for about 10% of the total amount of the employee claims, which not only timely resolved the mass dispute but also helped the company get out of its tough spot.

Languages Spoken

Chinese

English

Expert in these Jurisdictions

PRC Bar

Experience

Partner, Zhong Lun Law Firm, 2013 to present

Senior associate, King & Wood Mallesons, 2004-2013

Associate, Qiankun Law Firm, 2001-2004