Barbara Li

Practice Areas

Barbara Li, a partner based in Beijing of Reed Smith LLP and dual-qualified in China and England and Wales, advises international companies and financial institutions on a full spectrum of data protection, cybersecurity and digitalisation matters in China and the APAC region. She is experienced in counselling MNCs, financial institutions and Chinese companies on data compliance, privacy programs and documentation, response to cybersecurity incident, cross-border data transfer, and deployment of emerging technologies such as AI, blockchain, big data and cloud. She works closely with the industry, serving as the Vice Chair of the Cybersecurity Sub-Working Group of the EU Chamber of Commerce in China and also sitting on the IAPP Women Leading Privacy Advisory Board. She is ranked as Band-1 Data Protection Lawyer by Chambers Greater China Guide 2024 and is also CIPP/EU certified privacy professional.

With almost three decades’ experience benefiting from her role as a partner at leading international firms in China, and providing business services via the world’s most prominent consultancies, Barbara brings a wealth of hands-on knowledge and experience in advising MNCs, financial institutions and Chinese companies on doing business in China and globally. She focuses on complex and cross-border data projects, M&As, and joint ventures across various industries including aviation, automotive, e-commerce, energy, financial, infrastructure, pharma/healthcare, and high-end manufacturing. She also counsels Chinese companies on their outbound strategies and major transactions.