HAIKOU - McQiu Lawyers, a law firm headquartered in Australia, opened its representative office in South China's Hainan province Thursday, the first foreign law firm office in the resort island.

McQiu seeks to enhance the cooperation and exchanges with its Chinese counterparts in areas of corporations law, commercial law, property law, contract law and family law, said Qiu Xiaolin, founder and CEO of McQiu Lawyers.

By far, the office, located in Haikou, the capital city of Hainan, has signed cooperation agreements with six local law firms.

Qiu said the office will also contribute to improving the legal services of the Hainan pilot free trade zone.

China rolled out a plan for establishing Hainan as a pilot Free Trade Zone in October 2018, the 12th and largest among its peers.