Cleary, A&G advise Japan’s Mitsui on $360 mln Ecuador shrimp deal

BY Sarah Wong |

U.S. law firm Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton, Singapore’s Allen & Gledhill and two Ecuadorian firms have advised Japanese trading house Mitsui & Co on its $360 million investment in an Ecuadoran shrimp farming company.

Skadden, AMT, MHM, Davis Polk advise on Trial Holding’s $258 mln Japan IPO

BY Nimitt Dixit |

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom and Anderson Mori & Tomotsune have advised Japanese discount-store chain operator Trial Holdings on its $258 million initial public offering on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE), the largest IPO of the year so far.

CROSS-BORDER INVESTMENT: Asia’s New Power Couple

BY Nimitt Dixit |

Increased economic activity between India and Japan is creating new work for lawyers in both countries, but there is still a long way to go to facilitate cross-border legal market growth and expansion. 

Yulchon continues disputes hiring spree with AMT practice head

BY Nimitt Dixit |

International arbitration veteran David MacArthur is moving from Tokyo to Seoul, joining the partnership at South Korean Big Six firm Yulchon as co-leader of the disputes practice. His move comes at a time when Yulchon has been aggressively bulking up its disputes offering.

Nishimura, MHM advise on Dai-ichi Life’s $2 bln acquisition of Benefit One

BY Mari Iwata |

Nishimura & Asahi has advised Japanese life insurance giant Dai-ichi Life Holdings on its 2.9-trillion-yen ($2 billion) acquisition of healthcare platform Benefit One, which was represented by Mori Hamada & Matsumoto.

MHM to expand in Japan with Yokohama office launch

BY Mari Iwata |

Leading Japanese law firm Mori Hamada & Matsumoto has announced that it will establish a presence in Yokohama, the nation’s second-largest city. It will be the firm’s seventh domestic office.

Clifford Chance, Nishimura, MHM lead on CVC’s $1.2 bln acquisition of Sogo Medical Group

BY Mari Iwata |

Clifford Chance and Nishimura & Asahi have acted for private equity firm CVC Capital Partners on its 17-billion-yen ($1.2 billion) acquisition of Sogo Medical Group, Japan’s fifth-biggest pharmacy by store numbers. Sogo was represented by Mori Hamada & Matsumoto.

PRIVATE EQUITY: New Dawn

BY Sarah Wong |

With global private equity investors falling out of love with a misfiring China, and other Asian alternatives coming up short, Japan has become the region’s new PE darling, bolstered by favourable monetary policies and government initiatives, market and regulatory reforms, and its unique socio-economic development. And lawyers are bullish about the country’s PE activity going into 2024.

Nishimura, NO&T, AMT advise on $3.3 bln Lawson privatization bid

BY Mari Iwata |

Nishimura & Asahi has advised Japanese telecommunication company KDDI on its 496.5 billion yen ($3.3 billion) offer to take convenience store chain Lawson private. Lawson is being represented by Anderson Mori & Tomotsune, with Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu guiding current shareholder Mitsubishi Corp.

Long-time Bakers corporate partner joins Tokyo International

BY Mari Iwata |

Tokyo International Law Office has hired corporate expert Jean-Denis Marx as a partner from Baker McKenzie, where he had worked for three decades.

Tokyo: Greenberg Traurig beefs up real estate further with White & Case team

BY Mari Iwata |

U.S. law firm Greenberg Traurig has further expanded its real estate team in Tokyo after recruiting a four-lawyer team from White & Case. Mizuho Yamada and Ayako Kawano come on board as shareholders, while Kazuo Kasai and Hiroshi Hara join as local partner and counsel, respectively.

MHM becomes 2nd large Japan firm to enter into Philippines alliance

BY Mari Iwata |

Leading Japanese law firm Mori Hamada & Matsumoto has expanded its presence to the Philippines after announcing a strategic alliance with local firm Tayag Ngochua & Chu in Manila.