Mayer Brown has hired M&A specialist Eiji Kobayashi as a partner in Tokyo from Greenberg Traurig, where he was a shareholder.

With more than 20 years of experience, Kobayashi advises clients, including Japanese industrial conglomerates, on cross-border M&A. Before joining Greenberg Traurig in 2019, he was head of Paul Hastings’ corporate, M&A and securities practice in Japan, having joined that firm in 2018 from Norton Rose Fulbright. Kobayashi was earlier at Nishimura & Asahi, becoming a partner in 2013.

Kobayashi’s arrival means Mayer Brown now has three partners in Tokyo. The other two partners are Rupert Burrows and Gordon Palmquist, who joined the firm around the time the office opened in 2018.