November 2004 — Pu Zhiqiang, currently executive partner at Beijing’s Huayi Law Firm, is a leading lawyer representing Chinese journalists and writers in some of the most important court cases in the People’s Republic of China. He recently won a landmark victory for China Reform magazine against libel charges filed by a state-owned real estate developer. The court ruled that journalists should enjoy legal immunity if the story is backed up by a reasonably believable source and is not based on rumors or fabrication. He is also one of the defense lawyers for the case involving the husband and wife authors of “An Investigation of China’s Peasants,” a best-selling expose on corruption and abuse of power by officials. Pu has a master of laws from China University of Political Science and Law.