Xu Yan told Radio Free Asia that Yu is currently serving a four-year jail term for "incitement to subvert state power," after being detained in a nationwide operation targeting rights lawyers under the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

He is scheduled to be released next year. Yu said it is still not clear whether he will once again get the licence to practice law.

"Yu Wensheng will be allowed to return home in about four months' time ... but his license to practise law has been revoked, so his ability to work as a lawyer will be highly restricted," Xu told RFA.

"This will have a huge impact on his career, and on our family," said Xu, who said she set up the company in her name to get around the problem.

She said the court also sentenced Yu to three years' deprivation of political rights, which means he won't be able to form a company in his own right for the next five years.

"Some [lawyers] have suffered a massive financial blow, and some are even in difficulty," Xu said. "Legal consultancy services could be one way [to deal with that]."

Meanwhile, the new consultancy firm has been named Beijing Wenshun Legal Consulting Services.

It was reportedly approved and issued with a business license two weeks ago.

"The company was established successfully on Oct. 12, 2021," she said. "Yu Wensheng wanted it to be called Wensheng, but you can't use personal names for companies, so I chose Wenshun instead."