NAPPA appoints Attorney Zhihua Duan as Regional Director, Beijing–Tianjin
A cross-border legal and IP specialist joins NAPPA to anchor the alliance's presence across China's northern life-science corridor.
NAPPA has appointed Attorney Zhihua Duan as Regional Director for Beijing–Tianjin. The appointment adds dedicated cross-border legal, IP, and capital-transaction capacity to NAPPA’s regional network — anchored in one of northern China’s most concentrated life-science innovation corridors.
Background
Attorney Duan is a practicing attorney at Beijing Qiankun Law Firm, Senior Advisor on Chinese Law at Global Reach Legal PLLC (Washington, D.C.), and a Partner at Tianjin Binhai Venture Investment Management Co., Ltd.
With 20+ years of legal experience, his work centers on cross-border legal services, intellectual property protection, investment and financing transactions, and international resource connectivity. He is a long-standing bridge between Boston and Beijing, with deep insight into U.S.–China business environments, regulatory dynamics, and cross-border collaboration. He also serves as President of the East Coast Cultural Exchange Association, promoting U.S.–China exchange in culture, technology, and talent.
Education: LL.M., China University of Political Science and Law; LL.M. in Intellectual Property Law, University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law.
Practice areas
- Cross-border commercial disputes and international legal services
- IP dispute resolution and strategic IP portfolio development
- Contract disputes, investment/financing transactions, and asset management
- Legal due diligence, legal opinions, and corporate counsel services
- Defensive patent searches, IP due diligence, and patent/trademark/copyright licensing and assignment
- Investment and financing support in biopharma and high-end medical devices
In the IP space, Attorney Duan takes a business-first approach — helping companies build competitive moats by aligning IP strategy with corporate growth objectives.
Focus areas
- Connecting the Beijing–Tianjin life-science ecosystem with NAPPA’s North American and global networks
- Legal, IP, and compliance support for biopharma companies in cross-border partnerships
- Resource matching for innovation projects in financing, technology transfer, and commercialization
- IP strategy, asset transactions, collaborative R&D, and capital access support
- Two-way engagement between the Beijing–Tianjin region and NAPPA’s global network