Yoshio Ohno, a founding partner of Japanese Big Four law firm Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu, passed away on April 19. He was 92.

Born in 1926 in Japan’s Chiba Prefecture, Ohno attended the Naval Paymasters’ School, graduating in 1945. After serving in World War II, he returned to study economics and law at the University of Tokyo.

Ohno began his legal career at Shaozawa Law offices in 1954, where he met Yasuharu Nagashima. The two eventually became the founding partners of Nagashima & Ohno. 

After gaining his master’s in law from Tulane University in the United States, Ohno joined Foley & Lardner, before returning to Japan to practice in 1968. He remained a partner at Nagashima & Ohno until 1995, and was an of counsel and adviser for a decade following that, retiring in 2005. 

In 2000, the firm merged with Tsunematsu Yanase & Sekine to form the Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu of today.

Ohno is regarded as a leading pioneer in international legal issues, having advised domestic and foreign companies on the same. He was also involved in many international LNG development projects, including the negotiating and drafting of key agreements.

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