On June 3, 2026, Benchmark Litigation, a leading international legal ranking guide, released its Benchmark Litigation China Rankings 2026. Watson & Band was again ranked in Tier 2 for "Shanghai: Intellectual Property", in recognition of its outstanding performance in intellectual property dispute resolution. Liu Yizhou, Secretary-General of the firm's Management Committee and Senior Partner, was once again named a "Dispute Resolution Star" in the same practice area.

This recognition follows Watson & Band's earlier inclusion in the Benchmark Litigation Asia-Pacific 2026 rankings, announced in early May, where the firm was recommended for its intellectual property practice. Together, the two rankings reflect the firm's growing recognition across both the Asia-Pacific and China editions.

Recognition Across Asia-Pacific and China

Benchmark Litigation, part of the Euromoney group, was founded in 2008 and is widely regarded as one of the leading guides focused exclusively on dispute resolution. Its 2026 rankings were based on a six-month research process, including extensive interviews with dispute resolution specialists, litigators and clients. The research evaluated firms and lawyers by reference to their case work, client feedback and peer commentary.

Watson & Band's continued recognition in intellectual property demonstrates authoritative recognition of the firm's professional capability, client reputation and market influence.

Protecting Innovation Through Proven Strength

Watson & Band has long supported corporate innovation through its strength in intellectual property dispute resolution. Recent representative matters include the copyright infringement case brought by eight major Hollywood studios against Renren Video, one of the largest enforcement actions initiated by Hollywood film companies in China. Led by Liu Yizhou, the Watson & Band team overcame the platform's reliance on the commonly invoked "safe harbor" defence by proving that the defendant had knowingly facilitated piracy through conduct such as setting up dedicated U.S. drama sections and actively recommending infringing content. The case ultimately held the platform directly liable and led to the removal of infringing content far beyond the works specifically at issue, making it a benchmark enforcement case in China-U.S. intellectual property practice.

The firm also represented Tuhu in its unfair competition dispute against JD.com concerning "automotive maintenance services", securing full victories at both first and second instance. The case was selected by the Supreme People's Court as a typical anti-unfair competition case. Both matters were named among China Business Law Journal's Deals of the Year 2025 in early 2026.

Deepening Capabilities for the Next Stage

Building on its leading intellectual property practice, Watson & Band is continuing to strengthen its broader dispute resolution capabilities. As technology innovation, cross-border disputes and data compliance issues continue to reshape legal demand, effective dispute resolution increasingly requires coordinated expertise across commercial compliance, international arbitration, data compliance and other disciplines.

Watson & Band's intellectual property team is working closely with the firm's commercial disputes, international arbitration, bankruptcy and restructuring, and compliance teams to build a dispute resolution service framework that is specialised, industry-focused and international in outlook. With legal insight into technological change and strong cross-disciplinary collaboration, Watson & Band will continue to provide robust legal support for innovation-driven growth and help clients move forward steadily in an increasingly global market.