As economic globalization deepens, the international operations of Chinese enterprises have evolved from simple trade exchanges to full industrial chain investments. In recent years, the international trade order has faced profound adjustments, with some countries frequently resorting to trade protectionist measures, posing risks to global trade flows and industrial chain stability. Against this backdrop, Chinese companies encounter practical difficulties such as weak compliance awareness and limited response capabilities when going global. Building an effective cross-border legal service system is not only crucial for the survival and development of individual enterprises, but also relates to the nation's capacity for legal safeguards under its strategy of coordinating development and security. Therefore, addressing the structural mismatch between the supply of cross-border legal services and the actual demands of enterprises—through improving internal corporate compliance systems, optimizing global strategic layouts, and strengthening the attraction and cultivation of cross-border legal talent—has become critically important.
Legal risks and practical challenges under current trade protectionism
On one hand, some countries leverage their market dominance to continuously expand the scope of foreign trade policies, imposing restrictions on foreign enterprises through tariffs, export controls, and investment reviews, thereby undermining the international rule of law. These measures are characterized by "applying old laws in new ways" and "rule expansion," reflecting an extension of unilateral policy logic and the reshaping of enforcement tools. Such actions not only harm the legitimate rights and interests of enterprises but also make the international trade environment increasingly unstable and unpredictable.
On the other hand, Chinese enterprises face multiple legal and compliance risks in their overseas expansion. First, there are export control and economic sanction risks, involving technology blockades and entity list restrictions in sectors such as critical minerals, semiconductors, and pharmaceuticals, leading to delays in product R&D and production progress and reduced market competitiveness. Second, supply chain traceability compliance risks arise as cross-border operations must meet standards across different jurisdictions, significantly increasing compliance costs. Third, jurisdictional conflict risks emerge when domestic laws clash with foreign "long-arm jurisdiction," placing enterprises in a "dual compliance" dilemma, exposing them to litigation and financial penalties that disrupt normal operations and damage their reputation in international markets. Fourth, international organizations have limitations in resolving trade disputes, making it difficult to effectively curb the spread of trade protectionism and unilateralism.
Institutionalizing and improving internal compliance mechanisms in Chinese enterprises
Compliance for going-global enterprises is not merely a business strategy but a requirement for adapting to international legal rules. In response to various trade barriers, enterprises should be guided to shift from "passive response" to "proactive compliance," enhancing their ability to identify and handle trade risks and reducing transaction risks arising from trade policy changes.
Standardized construction of internal compliance systems. Based on international compliance standards, enterprises should establish professional, diversified supply chain management systems and risk control mechanisms. First, for risk identification and assessment, enterprises should rely on university legal research institutions and industry associations to conduct dynamic analysis of regulatory controls, economic sanction lists, and trade remedy rules in major target markets, precisely formulating compliance strategies at key points such as product design, raw material sourcing, and processing and production stages. Second, for contract clause design, international trade contracts should clearly define tariff liability and include provisions for responding to tariff rate changes (such as agreeing to segmented tariff responsibilities), and strive to apply trade terms and clauses favorable to our side.
Legal optimization of equity structures and supply chains. Under the guidance of cross-border professional legal institutions, enterprises should comprehensively review their overseas supply chain structures. In response to combined enforcement actions such as "anti-circumvention" and "anti-fraud" by relevant countries, enterprises should, on one hand, understand the relevant investigation procedures and sanction methods to prepare proactive responses; on the other hand, actively optimize "internationalized" equity design to steadily advance overseas expansion while effectively isolating potential commercial risks. Additionally, in cross-border transactions, priority should be given to agreeing on jurisdiction of mainstream domestic arbitration institutions in China, thereby leveraging the "home advantage" of domestic arbitration bodies for dispute resolution and reducing the high costs and legal uncertainties associated with overseas litigation.
Legal safeguards for corporate strategic restructuring and international cooperation pathways
Facing the uncertainties of global trade changes, enterprises need to enhance their resilience through strategic restructuring and technological breakthroughs, expand diversified business cooperation pathways, and achieve a strategic leap from "single-point dependence" to "multi-point development."
Application of rules within multilateral frameworks. Deeply integrate into the Belt and Road Initiative, make good use of relevant rules under the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), and fully leverage benefits such as simplified customs clearance, tariff reductions, and investment facilitation. Based on challenges including restricted international market access and trade compliance risks, optimize overseas strategic layouts, build risk hedging mechanisms, reduce trade dependence on single markets, and diversify geopolitical risks.
Legal support under the "dual circulation" strategy. Adhere to the domestic and international dual circulation strategy, strengthening headquarters economy and the development of new-type offshore trade. Enhance the comprehensive application of Chinese laws in areas such as cross-border investment, intellectual property, and anti-unfair competition, ensuring Chinese enterprises accelerate their value chain upgrade from "buy from China, sell to the world" to "buy globally, sell globally."
Technological autonomy and supply chain security. Support enterprises in increasing independent R&D investment, accelerating technological iteration and updates, breaking through external technology blockades and controls by cultivating new quality productive forces, enhancing local brand value, promoting domestic substitution in key areas, and ensuring supply chain resilience. Strengthen research on the extraterritorial application of the Law of the People's Republic of China on Foreign Sanctions and the Anti-Monopoly Law to prevent unfair treatment in cross-border mergers and acquisitions. Meanwhile, reinforce the platform functions of industry associations, establish dynamic tariff monitoring and early warning mechanisms in relevant fields, and provide diversified solutions to enterprises as needed to ensure the security and controllability of industrial and supply chains.
Supply-side structural reform of cross-border legal services and talent cultivation
The core competitiveness of cross-border legal services lies in professional, internationalized service networks and talent development. There is an urgent need to integrate resources and build a comprehensive legal service guarantee system.
International layout of legal service institutions. Encourage domestic law firms and arbitration and mediation institutions to establish overseas offices in key regions such as Belt and Road countries and Southeast Asia, deepening cooperation with overseas legal service providers to better safeguard enterprises going global. At the same time, actively introduce functional cross-border legal institutions to enhance the overall capability of the industry and address the issues of limited global network coverage and restricted scope.
Improvement of foreign law ascertainment services. Comprehensively integrate global tariff policies and trade remedy cases, compile "country-specific guides" for enterprises' overseas legal risks and a legal information resource database, and establish foreign law case databases, statute databases, and expert databases covering major trading partners to provide precise foreign law ascertainment services. Utilize technologies such as artificial intelligence to enable intelligent retrieval and push notifications, establish compliance early warning mechanisms, and improve the efficiency and accuracy of legal services. Furthermore, promote synergy at three levels: first, institutional coordination by establishing a joint meeting mechanism for ascertainment institutions to unify commissioning standards and quality requirements; second, regional coordination by promoting shared ascertainment databases in regions such as the Yangtze River Delta and the Greater Bay Area to avoid duplication; third, international coordination by expanding cooperation mechanisms with major trading partners through measures such as signing memorandums of understanding on legal ascertainment, gradually building a collaborative ascertainment network covering major jurisdictions.
Diversification of cross-border dispute resolution mechanisms. Promote the establishment of diversified cross-border legal dispute resolution mechanisms, including international arbitration and mediation, providing pathways for enterprises to reduce legal costs and risks in cross-border operations. Coordinate cross-border legal resources, build a "law firm-enterprise matching" mechanism, focus on dispute resolution needs in emerging markets, and innovate commercial arbitration rules.
Cultivation of high-end composite talent. Within pilot free trade zones, explore the implementation of a special licensing pilot system for Chinese cross-border legal service talents, actively introducing first-rate cross-border legal professionals familiar with international rules. Improve the university-enterprise joint training system and establish a legal talent database covering segments such as countries and industries. Focus on cultivating composite high-end legal talents in areas such as anti-sanctions and cross-border investment and financing to meet the urgent needs of enterprises' global development.
In the face of an increasingly complex international trade environment, enhancing the level of cross-border legal service support is not only a need for enterprises' own development but also an important strategic measure for the nation to coordinate development and security. Through collaborative efforts among government, enterprises, academia, and research institutions, building a comprehensive, multi-level, and broad-scope cross-border rule-of-law service system will undoubtedly provide a solid legal shield for Chinese enterprises to achieve stable and long-term success in the global market. Looking ahead, future research could further focus on compliance challenges under digital trade rules and the optimization of international judicial cooperation mechanisms.