I. Guiding thought and principle
In accordance with the framework plan for Shanghai free trade zone and the arrangement for enlarging the opening-up of service industry, and by reference of the methods of mainland China opening up to and making cooperation with legal service industry of Hong Kong and Macao, make first try to explore the close cooperation mode and mechanism of Chinese and foreign law firms in SFTZ to raise the level of mutual opening-up and cooperation between the Chinese and foreign law profession, improve service and competitive power of Chinese law profession, and build a legal service system meeting the development demands of Shanghai free trade zone. The pilot program shall follow the principles of being appropriate, progressive and under control; the pilot measures shall be in line with the national conditions and the development level of lawyer trade of China, try to form a working mechanism of scientific, effective opening-up guidance, supervision and service to accumulate experience in gradually expanding and deepening the opening-up and cooperation of Chinese and foreign law profession.
II. Measures for pilot program 
1. Allow foreign law firms with representative offices in SFTZ and Chinese law firms to make mutual assignment of lawyers as legal consultants in a mode of cooperation. That is to say, Chinese law firms assign Chinese practicing lawyers as Chinese legal consultants to representative offices of foreign law firms, and foreign law firms assign foreign lawyers as foreign legal consultants to Chinese law firms to conduct professional cooperation within their respect practicing field and authority in a mode of division and cooperation. 
2. Allow foreign law firms and Chinese law firms to practice joint operation in SFTZ. That is to say, foreign law firms that have established representative offices in China and Chinese law firms, according to the rights and obligations stipulated in agreements, practice joint operation in SFTZ, respectively providing legal service for Chinese and foreign clients with legal service related to foreign and Chinese applicable laws. In the term of joint operation, both parties maintain their independent legal status, name and financial affairs, each assuming independent civil liability. 
3. Matters about applicability to law firms in Hong Kong and Macao regions. Allow Hong Kong and Macao law firms that have established representative offices in mainland to participate in the abovementioned pilot program.
III. Supporting measures for Pilot Program
1. Formulate relevant supportive policy measures to guide and encourage foreign (Hong Kong and Macao) law firms to establish branches in SFTZ by changing their domiciles (representative offices) or setting up more representative offices, and encourage powerful domestic law firms to set up branches in SFTZ.
2. Reduce time of administrative examination and approval, after commencement of the pilot program, make open commitment to reduce the time of preliminary examination of matters about foreign (Hong Kong and Macao) law firms applying for establishment of representative offices and assigning (altering) representatives in SFTZ from statutory three months to 30 working days, and the time of examination of domestic law firms applying for establishing branches or assigning(altering) lawyers in SFTZ from statutory 30 working days to 10 working days.