PRC-licensed attorney · Xiamen
Your Chinese supplier has the money. Now the deal has changed.
I’m Adrian Liu, a PRC-licensed attorney in Xiamen. I represent foreign buyers only — before the contract, after the supplier goes quiet, and when the paper trail stops at the border.
Start with what happened
You do not need a lecture on Chinese law. You need to know whether there is still a move.
These are the moments when foreign buyers usually contact me.
The supplier took the deposit — or the full price — and stopped shipping.
Evidence triage, a China-side demand, settlement pressure and a straight view on whether recovery is worth pursuing.
See what can be done → 02 · Defective goodsThe shipment does not match the approved sample.
Contract and inspection review, notice strategy, negotiation and preservation of the record you may later need.
See what can be done → 03 · CopyingYour factory is selling your product — or someone filed your mark first.
China-side IP, NNN, trademark and evidence work focused on practical pressure rather than decorative paperwork.
See what can be done → 04 · Before you wireYou are about to send drawings, tooling or a serious deposit.
Counterparty checks and China-enforceable contracts before your negotiating position leaves with the payment.
Protect the deal →Where the trail goes cold
The public record is only the outside of the file.
The questions that decide whether a supplier is safe often sit one layer deeper, in records and procedures that must be handled from inside China.
What a search from overseas shows
- A registered name and social credit code
- A capital figure with no sign it was paid
- The company named on the invoice
- A clean-looking entity with little visible history
What I can work with on the China side
- Internal registration archives, shareholders and paid-in capital
- The people and related entities behind the name
- Litigation, enforcement and predecessor-company trails
- Chinese-language letters, filings and evidence formalities
A small case that says more
4,000 RMB. One letter. The refund arrived the next day.
A US buyer’s supplier took the deposit for a wig order, stopped shipping and went silent. The amount was too small to sue over. I sent one formal lawyer’s letter, in Chinese, to the company’s registered address.
Inside China, the smallest amount of the right pressure can land differently from months of angry emails sent from overseas.
Every matter is different. This is a real, anonymised example — not a promise of outcome.
What clients remember
A straight answer before they spend.
“One of the most honest, professional, and genuinely caring attorneys we’ve ever worked with — transparent about the strengths and weaknesses of our case, and never overpromised.”
“He flagged risks I hadn’t considered. Turned the work around on time and stood behind it.”
“Deep understanding of Chinese legal requirements — and a professional bilingual version, essential for enforceability in China.”
Field Notes · 桌子另一邊
The Other Side of the Table.
What foreign buyers and their lawyers routinely miss about the China side — written under my own name, from the matters and judgments I actually see.
Chinese Supplier Demand Letter: When It Helps — and When It Doesn’t
A Chinese supplier has your deposit or full payment and will not ship or refund. You are considering a lawyer’s letter because another round of emails from overseas […]
Read →Chinese Supplier Won’t Refund? Preserve These 12 Pieces of Evidence First
You paid a Chinese supplier. The promised shipment or refund did not arrive. The explanations are changing, messages are being deleted, or the person who took the order […]
Read →Your Chinese Supplier Took Full Payment and Won’t Ship. A Court in Jinan Just Showed What Happens Next.
The deal starts normally enough. You agree on 50% down, balance against the bill of lading. You wire the deposit. Then the supplier comes back with a new […]
Read →Before you send the file
A few practical questions.
How do I pay you from overseas?
Before any paid step, you will receive the price and payment instructions in writing. The practical arrangement depends on the work and where you are based.
How do we communicate across time zones?
Advice and instructions are mainly in writing, so the record remains usable across borders and teams. That also makes the next step easier to review when your day and mine do not overlap.
What documents should I send first?
Start with the contract or purchase order, invoice, payment record and the communications that show what the supplier promised and what changed. If you have inspection records or the supplier’s Chinese registration details, include those too.
Is my amount too small to be worth it?
Sometimes. The honest answer depends on the amount, evidence, counterparty and cheapest credible pressure available. If a lawyer is not the economic answer, I will say so plainly.
Do you replace my own lawyer?
No. I handle the China side alongside your team, not in place of advice on your own law.
Can you guarantee recovery?
No. Every matter is different, and no assessment or step can promise an outcome. The point is to identify what the documents support and whether a proportionate next move remains.
What is an NNN and why is my NDA not enough?
An NNN is designed around non-disclosure, non-use and non-circumvention in the China manufacturing context. A Western NDA may not address the practical risks created when drawings, tooling or supplier relationships move into China.
Tell me where the deal stands
If this is happening now, send me the short version.
I’ll give you a straight read on whether it is worth pursuing before you spend on the next step. No promise of outcome — just the clearest China-side assessment I can give from the documents.
For foreign counsel and in-house teams
I handle the China side alongside your team, not in place of advice on your own law.
- Attorney
- Xiaoyu Liu · 刘效宇
- Firm
- TENET & PARTNERS
- Admitted
- P.R. China, 2021 · Xiamen
- Licence no.
- 13502202110350464
- Focus
- Buyer-side only