Tracing assets moved from China to the United States
The window between suspecting a transfer and needing preservation is measured in days, not months.
A client discovers that significant sums have been wired from a Chinese account to a US brokerage account over the previous six months.
Apply for preservation on what can be evidenced now, then continue the investigation. Sequencing matters more than completeness at this stage.
The position in one paragraph
The window between suspecting a transfer and needing preservation is measured in days, not months.
Preservation over the remaining China-situated assets is the lever that actually changes behaviour, and it has to be applied for before the rest leaves. The US-side investigation informs the negotiating position, but it cannot be compelled by a Chinese court — so it should not be what the strategy waits on.
A typical situation
A client discovers that significant sums have been wired from a Chinese account to a US brokerage account over the previous six months.
Spending the first month building a complete evidentiary picture before applying for preservation. By then the China-side assets may also have moved, and the practical leverage is gone.
What distinguishes this from a purely domestic case
US courts apply state law to marital property, and community-property states (California, Texas) treat property very differently from common-law states.
On the China side, the connecting factor has to be established on the documents: A Chinese court can order disclosure and, in an appropriate case, preservation over assets located in China. Foreign-located assets need a separate route.
The practical sequence in a United States-connected matter
- Preserve first, investigate second — timing matters more than completeness
- Assemble the documentary trail: transfers, property records, corporate filings, and communication showing intent
- Apply for preservation over China-situated assets before they move
- Where assets have gone abroad, plan how a foreign court or authority would be asked to act
The state-level split means two documents from the same marriage can need certification in two different offices.
How United States documents are handled
Apostille. A state-issued document (marriage certificate, state court order) is certified by the state Secretary of State; federal documents go through the US Department of State.
The most common failure is sending a county-issued marriage certificate for the wrong level of certification. Confirm which office issued it first.
A state marriage certificate is authenticated by the Secretary of State, while federal documents go through the US Department of State — mixing them up is the single most common error.
What has to be decided before filing
Apply for preservation on what can be evidenced now, then continue the investigation. Sequencing matters more than completeness at this stage.
The boundary to plan around is this: Investigation powers do not extend extraterritorially; a Chinese court cannot order a foreign bank to disclose. Where value sits in United States — typically property in California or New York, LLC and corporate equity, brokerage accounts, 401(k) plans — it is handled by agreement or by a separate route there, not by an order the Chinese court could enforce directly.
If your situation has a United States element
Asset cases are won in the first two weeks. If you believe assets are being moved, send us what you have and we will say what preservation can realistically achieve.
One practical note for US-connected matters: because state and federal documents follow different certification routes, it is worth checking the issuing office for each document before deciding which to order first. Getting that wrong is the most common reason a filing is returned rather than accepted.
Frequently asked questions
Free initial review of jurisdiction, documents and enforceability — before any cost is committed.