Wu Jie — a criminal defense lawyer whose work has driven national policy change, been profiled twice by People’s Daily, and drawn the simultaneous attention of CCTV’s three flagship programs.
Criminal Defense · Criminal Compliance · Civil & Commercial Dispute Resolution · Data Compliance
About
Wu Jie is a Senior Partner and Deputy Director of the Management Committee at Beijing Xinnuo Law Firm. Trained under a leading authority in Chinese criminal law, she has built a hybrid body of expertise spanning civil-commercial and criminal law, bridging theory and practice. Throughout her career she has focused on the defense of major duty-related crimes, economic crimes and death penalty review cases — from matters involving provincial and ministerial officials to Supreme People’s Court death penalty review — developing a full-chain defense practice for duty-related crimes and a particular strength for identifying the decisive points of defense in difficult, complex and sensitive cases. She also maintains a longstanding civil and commercial dispute resolution practice handling major and complex commercial matters.
People’s Daily has profiled Wu Jie twice, under the headline “Gathered sparks become a lighthouse,” in recognition of her contribution to public interest law. The “housing-for-pension” fraud case she handled sparked nationwide attention, with sustained coverage from People’s Daily, China Youth Daily, CCTV’s Focus Report, Legal Report and News 1+1, and Beijing TV’s Justice in Action. The case directly prompted the Ministry of Justice to issue the “Five Prohibitions” notice on notarization practice on August 14, 2017 — after which unlawful notarization in housing-for-pension schemes was essentially eliminated nationwide. From individual justice to social justice, Wu Jie’s work shows that a lawyer can change not only a client’s fate but the institutions of an entire industry.
Education
Ph.D. Candidate in Criminal Law (Discipline Inspection & Supervision), Beijing Normal University
Master in Business Law, China University of Political Science and Law
LL.B., School of Civil, Commercial and Economic Law, China University of Political Science and Law
Firm & Position
Beijing Xinnuo Law Firm
Senior Partner · Deputy Director of the Management Committee
Expertise
Duty-related crime defense. Wu Jie has defended a series of major duty-related crime cases — involving a former provincial tobacco company party secretary and general manager, a former vice president of Bank of Beijing, a Ministry of Foreign Affairs department official (classified case), a People’s Bank of China unit officer, a central SOE chairman, an international trust company general manager and a municipal bureau chief — covering all principal duty-related offenses including embezzlement, bribery, misappropriation of public funds and abuse of power.
Death penalty review defense. Selected for the death penalty review legal aid panel of the Supreme People’s Court and the Ministry of Justice, Wu Jie takes review cases on direct assignment from the Ministry. In the drug smuggling case of a Colombian national, the Supreme People’s Court declined to approve the death sentence, vacated the judgment and remanded the case — a landmark outcome rarely achieved in death penalty review practice.
Acquittal and non-punishment defense. Her record includes non-prosecution decisions (acquittals) in robbery and insider trading cases, conviction without punishment in illegal business operation and other cases (with public office preserved), the only sentence reduction among four defendants in a homicide case, and sentences significantly below local benchmarks in arms smuggling and robbery cases.
Civil and commercial dispute resolution. Wu Jie serves as long-term general counsel to the Central Party School’s Study Times and Shenzhen-listed Fortune Software, among others. Her litigation and arbitration matters exceed RMB 1 billion in aggregate value, spanning corporate, contract, investment and M&A, and construction disputes.
Appointments
- Panel Lawyer, Death Penalty Review Legal Aid Program of the Supreme People’s Court and the Ministry of Justice
- Deputy Secretary-General, Membership Affairs Committee, Beijing Lawyers Association
- Member, 12th Criminal Law Committee, Beijing Lawyers Association
- Member, Technology & Big Data Legal Affairs Committee, Beijing Lawyers Association
- Council Member, Internet Finance Rule of Law Research Society, Beijing Law Society
- Council Member, Negotiation Research Society, Beijing Law Society
- Executive Director, Xinnuo Data Industry Legal Research & Compliance Center
- MBA Practice Mentor, Business School, China University of Political Science and Law
- Adjunct Lecturer, China University of Political Science and Law
- Arbitrator, Beihai International Arbitration Court
- Arbitrator, Jiujiang Arbitration Commission
- Arbitrator, Yulin Arbitration Commission (3rd term)
Publications
Data Assets on the Balance Sheet
A seasoned legal expert in data assets and the digital economy, Wu Jie co-authored the book published in 2023, writing its legal chapters on the legal foundations of data asset accounting, data ownership determination and compliant pathways for data asset rights confirmation.
Compliance Guidelines for Data Application in Generative AI
Wu Jie served as a principal drafter of this group standard, initiated and led by the National Industrial Information Security Development Research Center. The standard took effect on May 1, 2024.
Honors
- Lvxinshe Annual List: 40 Outstanding Young Lawyers of 2024A nationwide selection recognizing lawyers under 40 with exceptional professional achievement and social impact
- Outstanding Criminal Defense Lawyer, Beijing Xinnuo Law Firm
Philosophy
To face the most complicated corners of human nature with professional courage; to bring genuine care for each individual’s fate into every case; to hold the line of liberty and life for clients with masterful criminal defense. The ultimate mission of a lawyer is to guard justice with professional edge, to answer the times with accountability, and to let the light of the law reach every corner that needs to be seen.