Personal
Mark Gao is an equity partner with Zhong Lun Law Firm's tax and wealth planning team. Before joining Zhong Lun, he worked for five years as a senior tax consultant at its Shanghai office of a German tax consulting firm.
In his over 15 years in tax and wealth planning practice for both companies and individuals, Mark has exhibited expertise in tax compliance and planning in cross-border M&A, investment, and financing, company restructuring, and daily business operation. In addition, Mark is well-versed in tax-related dispute resolution, services including serving as tax expert for cross-border disputes, representing various Chinese central enterprises and private-sector businesses in tax administrative appeals and litigations, and devising effective tax dispute resolution strategies for companies. His proficiency extends to the domains of the sharing economy, flexible employment, and tax planning of ultra-high-net-worth individuals (including offshore family trust matters and employee benefit trust planning). Notably, Mark has successfully represented clients in negotiations with both PRC national and provincial tax authorities. For these representations, he has implemented feasible tax planning strategies, proactively addressed tax inspections, and adeptly managed tax-related conflicts.
In the private wealth planning area, Mark has been focused for many years on providing legal services to ultra-high-net-worth individuals, especially in the areas of offshore and domestic trusts, employee benefit trusts, and cross-border estate planning. Notably, in the new economic industry, Mark has represented hundreds of internet, high-tech, and unicorn companies and their founders and senior executives in setting up their offshore family trusts and employee benefit trusts.
Mark's clients operate in various sectors, including the internet, high-tech, biopharmaceuticals, investment fund, entertainment, media, sports, manufacturing, real estate, energy, trade, and professional services. Furthermore, he acts as tax and legal advisor to many single-family offices of the top ultra-high-net-worth individuals and provides several renowned families with cross-border tax and investment structuring services.
Mark has been recognized by esteemed legal directories like Chambers and The Legal 500 for many consecutive years. In 2023, he was rated as one of the leading individuals in the private wealth practice area by The Legal 500. He stands among the select group of legal professionals who have received premier accolades in both taxation and wealth planning. Mark is regularly sought after to deliver presentations on tax and wealth planning at domestic and international private banks, investment firms, and emerging media platforms.
As a prominent figure among Chinese tax and wealth planning lawyers, Mark is frequently invited to give speeches and deliver presentations on the progress and transformation of the Chinese tax landscape at various international tax conferences and prestigious universities.
Mark's team comprises highly experienced professionals, each holding both lawyer and tax accountant qualifications. They are capable of providing clients with integrated legal and tax services and assisting clients to navigate the dynamic tax environment by virtue of efficient and compliant tax and wealth planning.
Work Highlights
Tax Consulting and Planning
• Provided PRC tax advice and tax filing services to several international leading funds, including Carlyle, CLSA, Warburg Pincus, Blackrock, CDH Fund, PAG, CICC, etc., on direct and/or indirect transfer of PRC assets
• Provided tax advisory and planning services for the operation and investment activities of a number of family offices of ultra-high-net-worth individuals
• Advised Tencent on the privatization of a number of listed companies
• Provided tax advisory services for the FIFA World Cup and other events
• Provided tax advisory and planning services to a number of listed companies in connection with the exit of their founders' shareholdings
• Provided tax advisory services to a number of sports stars, including Federer, for their activities in China
• Provided tax consulting and compliance services to a number of flexible labor platform companies in the field of sharing economy
Tax Dispute Resolution
• Provided tax expert opinions as an expert witness in more than ten litigation and arbitration cases in Switzerland, Hong Kong and Singapore
• Provided tax consultancy and dispute resolution services for a number of subsidiaries of a central energy company in relation to VAT invoices, including representing the company in administrative reviews and administrative litigation
• Provided VAT and land value-added tax related dispute resolution services to a number of real estate companies, including representing the companies in administrative review and administrative litigation
Wealth Planning
• Provided family trust services to a number of co-founders and executives of a Hong Kong-listed technology company
• Provided family trust and family office related tax services to the founder and co-founders of a Hong Kong-listed F&B headquartered company with a total equity value of over RMB 80 billion
• Provided family trust services to the founders and executives of a US- and Hong Kong-listed new energy automobile company
• Provided family trust services to the founders of a number of gaming companies Provided overseas family trust tax and legal services to the executives of a Hong Kong-listed Internet company
• Provided overseas family trust services for hundreds of founders (co-founders) of Internet, high-tech and biotechnology companies
• Provided full-process legal advice to the domestic subsidiary of an overseas listed company on the compliance of the founder's overseas family trust in the listing process, and helped the subsidiary to list in China
• Provided overseas trust and Singapore family office establishment services to the family of the real controller of an A-share listed company +C7
• Provided Singapore family office establishment services to more than ten high net worth individuals since 2018
• Provided executive and employee incentive trust services to over 50 companies listed (including proposed to be listed) in the US and Hong Kong, covering biotechnology, high-tech, internet, consumer goods, semiconductor and other industries
• Provided legal and tax services for the establishment of a domestic family trust for the beneficial owner of an A-share listed company, which included a number of U.S. beneficiaries
• Provided legal and tax services for the establishment of domestic equity and insurance trusts for a number of high net worth individuals
