Based on research conducted by Asia Business Law Journal, the following are Japan’s top 100 lawyers.
Click here to read the editorial report that accompanies the A-List.
Biographies and contact details, where provided, were written by the lawyers themselves and have not been independently verified.
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Mitsue Aizawa TMI Associates |
| Key practice areas: Civil rehabilitation & corporate reorganisation; bankruptcy & special liquidation; voluntary liquidation & ADR for business turnaround; commercial litigation; unfair competition | |
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Takashi Akahane Anderson Mori & Tomotsune |
| Key practice areas: PPP/PFI/concession; project finance; asset management & investment funds; structured finance; real estate finance | |
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Hiroki Aoyama Mori Hamada & Matsumoto |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; real estate; securitisation & structured finance | |
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Shinichi Araki Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; corporate governance; financial regulations; M&A; corporate | |
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Naoya Ariyoshi Nishimura & Asahi |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; capital markets; compliance; e-commerce, fintech, blockchain & cryptos; securitisation & structured finance | |
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Hiroo Atsumi Atsumi & Sakai |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; capital markets & structured finance; general corporate; project finance; real estate | |
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Rupert Burrows Mayer Brown |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; M&A; joint ventures & strategic alliances; litigation & dispute resolution; supply chain & distribution | |
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Dale Caldwell Morrison & Foerster |
| Key practice areas: Project finance; power & energy; M&A; banking & finance; infrastructure | |
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Alan Cannon Simpson Thacher |
| Key practice areas: IPOs; debt; capital markets; corporate; M&A | |
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Mark Davies King & Spalding |
| Key practice areas: M&A; power & energy; private equity, venture capital & funds; project finance; energy transition (hydrogen & ammonia) | |
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Naoaki Eguchi Baker Mckenzie |
| Key practice areas: Acquisition finance; banking & finance; consumer goods & retail; energy, mining & infrastructure; financial institutions | |
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Akira Ehira Mori Hamada & Matsumoto |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; capital markets; compliance; private equity, venture capital & funds; securitisation & structured finance | |
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Peter W Frost Linklaters |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance, capital markets | |
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Yoshinobu Fujimoto Nishimura & Asahi |
| Key practice areas: Corporate & commercial; corporate governance; joint ventures; litigation; M&A | |
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Kenichi Fujinawa Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu |
| Key practice areas: M&A; corporate governance; risk, crisis management & compliance; Asia; North America; Latin America | |
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Koji Fujita Anderson Mori & Tomotsune |
| Key practice areas: Corporate; M&A; labour & employment; taxation | |
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Motoyasu Fujita Linklaters |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; bankruptcy & insolvency; capital markets; securitisation & structured finance; derivatives, repos & securities lending | |
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Soichiro Fujiwara Mori Hamada & Matsumoto |
| Key practice areas: Bankruptcy & restructuring; M&A; corporate governance; corporate & commercial disputes | |
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George Gibson Norton Rose Fulbright |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; infrastructure; outbound investment; power & energy; project finance | |
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Ryan Goldstein Quinn Emanuel |
| Key practice areas: Anti-corruption & anti-bribery; arbitration & ADR; competition & antitrust; IP; litigation | |
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Jon Gray Davis Polk & Wardwell |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; securities regulatory; general corporate | |
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Keiji Hatano Sullivan & Cromwell |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; joint ventures; M&A; outbound investment; financial regulations | |
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Kaoru Hattori Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu |
| Key practice areas: General corporate; antitrust & competition law advice; antitrust litigation & investigation; merger control; international trade | |
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Yushi Hegawa Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu |
| Key practice areas: Corporate & commercial; corporate governance; litigation; succession planning (family office); taxation | |
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Takao Higuchi Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu |
| Key practice areas: General corporate; banking; project finance; restructuring; insolvency | |
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Masahisa Ikeda Shearman & Sterling |
| Key practice areas: Real Estate; Banking & Finance; Private Equity; Venture Capital & Funds; Capital Markets; Securitisation & Structured Finance | |
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Seishi Ikeda Baker Mckenzie |
| Tel: +81 3 6271 9444 Email: seishi.ikeda@bakermckenzie.com Key practice areas: Real Estate; Banking & Finance; Private Equity; Venture Capital & Funds; Capital Markets; Securitisation & Structured Finance |
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| Seishi Ikeda is a partner at Baker McKenzie and head of the real estate group at its Tokyo office. He graduated from the University of Tokyo (LLB, 1991) and Emory School of Law (LLM, 2000). He is a qualified lawyer in Japan (1994) and New York (2001). He served as an in-house lawyer at a large European investment bank (2002-2004).
For years, he has been a member of the Japan Securities Dealers Association’s (JSDA) solicitation working group. He is also admitted and registered as a real estate notary (2018), condominium manager (2019), and master property manager (2019). His recent focuses are mainly on real estate transactions, involving TK-GK and TMK schemes as tax-oriented structures, where underlying assets are commercial or residential buildings, hotels, logistics and data centres. He covers office relocations, building construction, renovation and leases. He also handles listing-related matters, IPOs, samurai bonds, investment funds, and cross-border M&A deals. |
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Hiroki Inoue Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu |
| Key practice areas: M&A; private equity & venture capital; acquisition finance; disputes in foreign jurisdictions; insurance | |
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Miyuki Ishiguro Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu |
| Key practice areas: Capital market; corporate | |
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Gaku Ishiwata Mori Hamada & Matsumoto |
| Key practice areas: M&A; corporate governance; crisis management; private equity & venture capital | |
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Kei Ito Nishimura & Asahi |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; compliance; private equity; venture capital & funds; technology, media & telecommunications | |
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Maya Ito Nishimura & Asahi |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; infrastructure; power & energy; project finance; real estate | |
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Masakazu Iwakura TMI Associates |
| Key practice areas: Corporate & commercial; IP; litigation; M&A; technology, media & telecommunications | |
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Masatsura Kadota Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; capital markets; corporate & commercial; M&A; real estate | |
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Mitsuhiro Kamiya Skadden |
| Key practice areas: Corporate & commercial; inbound investment; M&A; outbound investment; private equity, venture capital & funds | |
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Eiji Katayama Abe, Ikubo & Katayama |
| Key practice areas: IP; bankruptcy & insolvency; patent litigation; unfair competition litigation; corporate | |
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Kozo Kawai Nishimura & Asahi |
| Key practice areas: Competition & antitrust; compliance; international trade & bilateral investment treaties; white-collar crime | |
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Hisaya Kimura Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu |
| Key practice areas: Complex commercial litigation; antitrust litigation; labour litigation; international arbitration | |
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Mangyo Kinoshita Southgate |
| Key practice areas: Inbound investment; M&A; technology, media & telecommunications; venture capital | |
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Minoru Kobayashi Anderson Mori & Tomotsune |
| Tel: +81 3 6775 1052 Email: minoru.kobayashi@amt-law.com Key practice areas: Real estate finance; REITs; capital markets; structured finance; M&A |
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| Minoru Kobayashi is a partner at Anderson Mori & Tomotsune and has been involved in a wide range of real estate transactions, including the sale and purchase of the real estate, commercial leasing and real estate developments. Kobayashi has particular strength in complex real estate finance and real estate funds, and regularly represents lenders, sponsors, asset managers, developers, investors and other key players, including various financial institutions and global real estate funds, dealing with various types of assets including office buildings, residential buildings, commercial facilities, logistics facilities, hotels and healthcare assets.
Kobayashi’s practice also focuses on capital market transactions and has represented foreign issuers and managers in public and private offerings of debt and equity securities in Japan and globally. With the combination of his experience in real estate and capital markets, he is also highly experienced in handling public and private offerings of units of Japanese real estate investment trusts (REITs). Kobayashi’s practice also focuses on securitisation, the establishment of investment funds and other structured financing transactions involving numerous asset classes. In addition to his real estate, capital market and structured finance practice, Kobayashi also has experience in M&As and general corporate matters including corporate restructurings, licensing and international trade. Kobayashi is a graduate of the University of Tokyo (LLB, 1995) and the University of Virginia (LLM, 2002). He is admitted to practice law in Japan (1997) and New York (2003). |
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Nobuaki Kobayashi Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu |
| Key practice areas: Mergers & acquisitions; restructuring & insolvency; general corporate; civil & commercial disputes | |
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Takahiro Kobayashi Mori Hamada & Matsumoto |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; power & energy; project finance; securitisation & structured finance | |
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Kohei Koikawa Nishimura & Asahi |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; capital markets; corporate & commercial; technology, media & telecommunications | |
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Hiroshi Kondo Baker Mckenzie |
| Key practice areas: M&A; private equity investment; venture capital; corporate & commercial; labour | |
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Eiichiro Kubota Kubota |
| Key practice areas: Data protection; IP; litigation; technology, media & telecommunications | |
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Yoshio Kumakura Nakamura & Partners |
| Key practice areas: IP; antimonopoly; litigation; arbitration; dispute resolution | |
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Hiroyoshi Kuromaru TMI Associates |
| Key practice areas: General corporate; corporate governance; IPO; structured finance; project finance | |
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Leng-Fong Lai Clifford Chance |
| Key practice areas: Financial regulation; capital markets; structured finance; project finance; real estate finance | |
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Ken Lebrun Davis Polk & Wardwell |
| Key practice areas: M&A; joint ventures; strategic alliances; private equity | |
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David Macarthur Anderson Mori & Tomotsune |
| Key practice areas: Arbitration & ADR; international trade & bilateral investment treaties; litigation | |
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John Maxwell Linklaters |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; infrastructure; M&A; power & energy; project finance | |
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Hidetaka Mihara Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; corporate governance; M&A; real estate | |
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Jiro Mikami Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; M&A; power & energy; project finance; real estate | |
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Kenichi Minami Nishimura & Asahi |
| Key practice areas: Bankruptcy & insolvency; restructuring & insolvency; sports practice | |
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Fuyuo Mitomi Morrison & Foerster |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets; M&A; joint ventures; corporate governance | |
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Ken Miura Mori Hamada & Matsumoto |
| Key practice areas: Finance; regulatory & regulated transactions; infrastructure & energy; M&A; private equity | |
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Mitsuko Miyagawa TMI Associates |
| Key practice areas: Arbitration & ADR; corporate & commercial; data protection; IP; licensing & franchising | |
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Yusuke Nakano Anderson Mori & Tomotsune |
| Key practice areas: Competition & antitrust; corporate & commercial; IP; licensing & franchising; M&A | |
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Nobuo Nakata Hibiya Nakata |
| Key practice areas: M&A (including cross-border, public and private M&A); joint venture | |
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Scott Neilson Allen & Overy |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; environment; infrastructure; power & energy; project finance | |
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Miho Niunoya Atsumi & Sakai |
| Key practice areas: Environment; infrastructure; power & energy; project finance; real estate | |
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Yoshikazu Noma TMI Associates |
| Tel: +81 3 6438 5511 Email: ynoma@tmi.gr.jp Key practice areas: Banking & finance; real estate; private equity; renewable energy; web-3 business; aviation finance |
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| Yoshikazu Noma is a partner at TMI Associates and a key member of its aviation finance practice group. He graduated from Doshisha University School of Law (LLM) in 1995 and the University of Virginia School of Law (LLM) in 2003. He is a qualified lawyer in Japan (1997) and New York (2004). He was seconded to a large investment bank (2004-2005).
He has been serving as a mediator in Financial Instruments Mediation Assistance Centre since 2014. He also served as an instructor at the Legal Research and Training Institute of the Supreme Court of Japan, giving lectures on court proceedings (2011-2014). His recent focuses include real estate transactions, tax lease transactions such as JOLCO transactions of aircraft or freight containers, renewable energy projects including solar, wind, geothermal, biomass power generating projects, web-3 business, and establishments of private equity funds. As for real estate, he has handled more than 60 real estate transactions in the last year. |
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Yoshimi Ohara Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution; international arbitration & mediation; IP disputes; civil & commercial disputes | |
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Seiji Ohno Ohno & Partners |
| Key practice areas: Competition & antitrust; IP; licensing & franchising; litigation; technology, media & telecommunications | |
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Atsushi Oishi Mori Hamada & Matsumoto |
| Key practice areas: Litigation; M&A; private client; succession planning; taxation | |
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Kazuki Okada Vanguard Lawyers Tokyo |
| Key practice areas: Dispute resolution; labour & employment; litigation | |
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Taro Omoto Mori Hamada & Matsumoto |
| Key practice areas: Aviation; banking & finance; capital markets; environment; real estate | |
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Nobuharu Onishi Mori Hamada & Matsumoto |
| Tel: +81 3 5220 1860 Email: nobuharu.onishi@mhm-global.com Key practice areas: Capital markets; inbound investment; outbound investment; private equity, venture capital & funds; investment fund |
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| Nobuharu Onishi is a leading partner in the Asset Management and Investment Funds Practice Group at Mori Hamada & Matsumoto consisting of four partners, three counsels and 15 associates as well as 35 paralegals, who have been in charge of seven (out of 12) public offering deals for newly issued units/shares of foreign investment funds in Japan during the year 2022.
His expertise covers all aspects of investment funds and financial regulations, advising an international client base, with a particular focus on the US, the EU, Hong Kong and the Cayman Islands. Nobu has substantial experience in advising alternative investment fund managers (AIFM) and similar entities on contract drafting and regulatory compliance, including filing notifications and discussing with the Japanese authorities in connection with the admission of Japanese investors. He has advised on various innovative funds including investment funds aimed at products with less liquidity such as private equity and real estate. Also, he has advised on the formation and fund-raising of domestic and overseas private equity and venture capital funds. Moreover, he had been giving advice to the Financial Services Agency (FSA) and the Japan Securities Dealers Association (JSDA) when new foreign investment funds’ regulations concerning derivative transactions and diversification requirements were introduced, and he assisted JSDA to prescribe the new regulations in accordance with the Asia Region Funds Passport’s Memorandum of Co-operation that the Japanese government signed. He is a frequent speaker on investment funds at conferences and seminars. He has been recognised as a leading lawyer in the investment fund practice in Japan, ranked frequently by publications such as Legal 500 and Best Lawyers, and has been ranked as a Band 1 investment funds lawyer in Chambers Asia Pacific – “Nobuharu Onishi acts for an enviable roster of asset managers, multinational corporations and top-tier financial institutions, a commentator also notes: ‘He possesses a lot of experience related to the offshore funds and also has communication skills to align with the recipients.’” |
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Masaru Ono Nishimura & Asahi |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; compliance; corporate & commercial; corporate governance; sustainability | |
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Yo Ota Nishimura & Asahi |
| Key practice areas: Corporate governance,Defence,Mergers & acquisitions,Taxation | |
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Eriko Ozawa Mori Hamada & Matsumoto |
| Key practice areas: Real estate; banking & finance; structured finance; investment funds | |
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Gavin Raftery Baker Mckenzie |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; e-commerce, fintech, blockchain & cryptos; private equity, venture capital & funds; project finance; sustainability | |
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Hideyuki Sakai Anderson Mori & Tomotsune |
| Key practice areas: Restructuring; insolvency & bankruptcy; dispute resolution; international litigation & cross-border disputes; M&A | |
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Yutaka Sakai Atsumi & Sakai |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; corporate & commercial; project finance; securitisation & structured finance; shipping | |
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Reiko Sakimura Clifford Chance |
| Key practice areas: Capital markets | |
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Masanori Sato Mori Hamada & Matsumoto |
| Key practice areas: Structured finance; real estate; project finance; infrastructure & energy; M&A; private equity | |
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Tomohiro Sato Nishimura & Asahi |
| Key practice areas: Infrastructure; litigation; power & energy; project finance | |
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Katsu Sengoku Nishimura & Asahi |
| Key practice areas: Aviation; banking & finance; securitisation & structured finance; shipping | |
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Hironori Shibata Anderson Mori & Tomotsune |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; capital markets; corporate & commercial; corporate governance; M&A | |
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Asa Shinkawa Nishimura & Asahi |
| Key practice areas: Corporate governance; M&A; power & energy; private equity, venture capital & funds; technology, media & telecommunications | |
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Yasufumi Shiroyama Anderson Mori & Tomotsune |
| Key practice areas: IP; life sciences; TMT; competition & antitrust; dispute resolution | |
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Kenneth Siegel Morrison & Foerster |
| Key practice areas: M&A; joint ventures; outbound investment; inbound investment; corporate & commercial | |
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Gary Smith Morrison & Foerster |
| Key practice areas: M&A; joint ventures; outbound investment; inbound investment | |
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Brian Strawn White & Case |
| Key practice areas: Cross-border M&A; joint ventures; strategic alliances; reorganisations; commercial disputes | |
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Junko Suetomi Baker McKenzie |
| Tel: +81 3 6271 9900 Email: junko.suetomi@bakermckenzie.com Key practice areas: International trade & customs; dispute resolution; bankruptcy & restructuring; antitrust; international compliance (anti-money laundering, human rights, environments, SDGs, ESG, etc.) |
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| Junko Suetomi is a partner in the Baker McKenzie Tokyo office and handles the firm’s international trade and dispute resolution practice. Suetomi focuses her practice on international trade laws and regulations, WTO dispute settlement, civil and criminal litigation, antitrust law, bankruptcy law and general corporate law. She has extensive experience advising clients on issues involving trade remedy matters such as anti-dumping and countervailing duties, import restrictions, customs matters, export control and sanctions, tariff treatment and FTA/EPA applications, and public procurements, among others.
Prior to joining Baker McKenzie, Suetomi worked in the WTO Dispute Settlement Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Economics Bureau. She has served as a court-appointed defence attorney in many criminal cases. She has authored and co-authored numerous publications related to her practice. Suetomi was the chair and now is vice-chair of the Human Rights Committee of the Tokyo Bar Association. She delivers lectures at Waseda University and the National Tax College. She is a member of the Japan Association of International Economic Law. She has served as an expert member of the Ministry of Finance’s Council on Customs, Tariff, Foreign Exchange and Other Transactions since 13 March 2019. She has been appointed Bar Examiner by the Minister of Justice since November 2020. She has also been appointed expert member of the Financial Council of the Financial Services Agency since October 2021. Suetomi has been admitted both in Japan and New York. She received her LLB from Tokyo University and Kyushu University and her LLM from New York University School of Law and Cornell Law School. She has completed judicial training at Legal Research and Institute of the Supreme Court of Japan. She also holds a Certificate in Business Analytics from the Harvard Business Analytics Programme in March 2021. |
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Fumihide Sugimoto Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu |
| Key practice areas: Corporate governance; capital markets; banking; securitisation & structured finance; compliance | |
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Katsumasa Suzuki Mori Hamada & Matsumoto |
| Tel: +81 3 6212 8327 Email: katsumasa.suzuki@mhm-global.com Key practice areas: Capital markets; inbound investment; litigation; M&A; technology, media & telecommunications |
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| He is a lawyer qualified in Japan and New York, and a certified member of the Securities Analysts Association of Japan. His thorough knowledge of business, accounting, and corporate finance, together with plentiful experience in various kinds of deals and legal matters, enables him to provide uniquely valuable legal and business advice to his clients.
His confident, practical client-first style is highly appreciated for its strategic innovation by various clients and foreign law firms. He has advised on many “deals of the year” and first-ever deals, and he consistently wins challenging cases for his clients. Based on this reputation and experience, he has been selected as a leading lawyer in Japan by major publications, including WWL, Chambers, Legal 500, IFLR, asialaw and Best Lawyers, and ranked as a top-ten outstanding Asia-Pacific Innovative Lawyer by the Financial Times in 2016 (as the first-ever lawyer with the honour in Japan). In 2021, he received “Deal Maker of the Year” by ALB and in 2022, he was selected Asia’s Top 15 Capital Markets Lawyers by ALB and the firm won the “Creating New Standard” category in Asia-Pacific Innovative Lawyer Award thanks to his innovative advice in IPO deals. He publishes various articles relating to capital markets and M&A, which lead to rule-making and new standards. Recently, he is selected as a member of the study group to create Japanese-SPAC organised by Tokyo Stock Exchange. Katsumasa has been a member of the Securities Law Committee of the International Bar Association since 2018 (Chair of the M&A sub-committee from 2022 to present) and served as co-chair of the “4th Asia-based International Financial Law Conference” held in 2023. He heads the capital markets practice group at Mori Hamada & Matsumoto and leads the group with a mission of contributing to the growth of capital markets in Japan and Asia in the best interests of our clients. |
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Reiji Takahashi Anderson Mori & Tomotsune |
| Key practice areas: Banking; structured finance; project finance; asset finance; PPP/PFI/concession | |
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Chisako Takaya Mori Hamada & Matsumoto |
| Key practice areas: Labour & employment; litigation; M&A | |
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Yasuzo Takeno Mori Hamada & Matsumoto |
| Key practice areas: Finance; regulatory & regulated transactions; international practice | |
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Yuko Tamai Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu |
| Key practice areas: Corporate; general corporate; corporate governance; M&A | |
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Hajime Tanahashi Mori Hamada & Matsumoto |
| Key practice areas: M&A; private equity; venture capital; corporate governance; information technology | |
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Kenji Taneda Skadden |
| Key practice areas: Corporate; capital markets; M&A; equity & debt offerings | |
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Hiroyuki Tezuka Nishimura & Asahi |
| Key practice areas: Arbitration & ADR,Corporate & commercial,Litigation | |
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Koichi Tsujii Nakamura & Partners |
| Key practice areas: IP; international transactions; general corporate | |
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Jun Usami White & Case |
| Key practice areas: Corporate governance; joint ventures; M&A; private equity, venture capital & funds; technology, media & telecommunications | |
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Matthias Voss Allen & Overy |
| Key practice areas: Banking & finance; projects | |
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Kozo Yabe Midosuji Legal Profession Corporation |
| Tel: +81 3 3539 6070 Email: kyabe@midosujilaw.gr.jp Key practice areas: Corporate & commercial; data protection; intellectual property; licensing & franchising; M&A |
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| Kozo Yabe is a partner in Midosuji’s intellectual property and international corporate practice groups. He graduated with an LLB from Chuo University in Tokyo and with an LLM from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign College of Law in the US. He deals with intellectual property dispute resolutions, transactions, and corporate compliance, as well as his other major practice of international corporate transactions, including M&A. His area of practice also ccoverthe data regulations for various industries. | |
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Akiko Yamakawa Vanguard Lawyers Tokyo |
| Key practice areas: Arbitration & ADR; labour & employment; litigation; investigation | |
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Setsuko Yufu Atsumi & Sakai |
| Key practice areas: Competition & antitrust, Compliance, Corporate governance, International trade & bilateral investment treaties; EU laws | |
