Association System
Our Firm has introduced an association system for the financial service/payment and settlement of funds area, real estate area, and the following areas of law where legal issues commonly arise in the course of business regardless of industry. Each attorney belongs to one or more association, conducts research on the latest judicial decisions and new legislation in their respective fields, and shares knowledge and know-how accumulated through practical experience, to respond promptly and appropriately to specialized issues. We do not currently have an association for litigation and other dispute-resolution areas, but this is because all members of our firm have extensive experience in litigation and other dispute resolution.
Financial Service/Payment and Settlement of Funds (Leaders Takumi HAMAMOTO・Taiji TAKAHASHI・Yasuhiro KITAGAWA)
The Financial Service/Payment and Settlement of Funds Association keeps abreast of enactments and revisions of laws and administrative guidelines related to finance and settlements, such as the Banking Act, Financial Instruments and Exchange Act, Insurance Business Act, and other business laws as well as collateral legislation, and analyzes court precedents and administrative disposition related to these areas. The Financial Service/Payment and Settlement of Funds Association also researches topics that no legislation is yet developed, such as Web3.0, blockchain, NFT, sustainable finance (SDGs/ESG finance and investment), startup finance support by studying publications by various councils and study groups.
Real Estate （Leaders Yoko DAI・Kentaro HAYASHIDA）
The Real Estate Association collects, analyzes, systematizes, and shares among attorneys in the firm information and know-how on issues that have accumulated in court precedents and on cases in which the firm has actually been involved in the process of transactions involving real estate, namely, the acquisition, management, and sale of real estate. The Real Estate Association also follows up on the recent revisions of the Civil Code and other laws related to the use of land, as well as Web 3.0 trends in real estate transactions and investments, which are also relevant to financial legal affairs and are always ready to provide precise legal advice on cutting-edge cases.
Corporate（Leaders Masanori SHIBATA・Ken HIRANO・Yasuhiro KITAGAWA）
The Corporate Association constantly keeps updated with the revision of laws and regulations related to the Companies Act, self-regulations of stock exchanges, practical guidelines for Japan’s Corporate Governance Code, etc., and various regulations for listed companies, as well as researching and analyzing court precedents and administrative dispositions related to these areas. In addition, The Corporate Association accumulates and shares know-how regarding M&A and shareholder meetings based on our abundant experience. The Corporate Association especially focuses on researching and analyzing practical issues on cutting-edge corporate governance trends.
Intellectual Property Rights/Information Technology（Leaders Masanori SHIBATA・Junko NUSHI・Takashi MOCHIZUKI）
The IP/IT Association researches legislative amendments and other practical trends in various areas of intellectual property laws, including the Patent Act, Utility Model Act, Copyright Act, Trademark Act, Design Act, Unfair Competition Prevention Act, and Plant Variety Protection and Seed Act. The IP/IT Association conducts an in-depth analysis of the latest court precedents and strengthens our capability to deal with IP/IT issues. In addition to traditional intellectual property laws, The IP/IT Association also keeps abreast of trends related to the latest IT technologies such as software development disputes, blockchain, virtual reality, and Metaverse, as well as the entertainment sector, to provide speedy advice to our clients on highly specialized issues.
International Practice（Leaders Ken HIRANO・Takahiro SUZUKI・Takashi MOCHIZUKI）
The International Practice Association collects, organizes, and analyzes the basic knowledge and know-how we have acquired through reviewing cross boarder contracts in English, negotiations with foreign companies, international dispute resolution (arbitration and litigation), and cases with Anli Partners and other associated foreign firms, as well as the problems and potential pitfalls unique to international business. In addition, to provide our clients with sophisticated legal advice in each practice area, The International Practice Association keeps abreast of the latest developments in each country and local hot topics by sharing information with our partners abroad.
Labor and Employment（Leaders Kenji SHODA・Issei YAMAMOTO）
To enhance our capability to labor and employment issues, The Labor and Employment Association collects information on court precedents, and the latest publication concerning practical issues and topics, analyzes and examines them, and accumulates and updates practical knowledge and know-how that are key to the topic. The Labor and Employment Association advises our clients through the knowledge and know-how accumulated in this way and contributes to our clients through daily consultations and litigation cases. The Labor and Employment Association also actively provides information through our newsletter "Torachu Tsushin”, and other various legal magazines, and holds in-house training and seminars.
Competiton Law（Leaders Kikuo ITAGAKI・Shinichi OGURA）
The Competition Law Association mainly focuses on the Antimonopoly Act, the Act against Delay in Payment of Subcontract Proceeds, etc., and the Unfair Competition Prevention Act. The Competition Law Association studies and collects court precedents, trial decisions, and administrative actions (cease and desist orders and subcontract law recommendations by JFTC) for analysis and review. In addition, The Competition Law Association also focuses on the issues of leakage of trade secret under the Unfair Competition Prevention Act which is one of the recent topics of social concern. The Association considers the perspective of both the measures that companies should take in advance to prevent the leakage of trade secrets (proactive measures) and the measures to mitigate the damage caused by a leak (post-action measures).
Risk Management（Leaders Takayuki ARIGA・Takao ARAI）
The Risk Management Association mainly collects and analyzes information and shares know-how based on its experience in crisis management and applicable laws and regulations and their court precedents regarding interpretation and application, with regard to a series of response practices in the event of corporate scandals, such as fraud investigations and disclosure responses, and corporate scandal prevention systems (expansion of internal control systems and whistle-blowing systems, etc.). In recent years, in response to the growing social momentum for AML (Anti-Money Laundering) and the elimination of anti-social forces, we have been particularly focusing on collecting and sharing information on the cases concerning limits of risk-shielding measures in AML, theoretical issues of eliminating anti-social forces, trends of police and other authorities, and the situation of anti-social forces.
Criminal Case（Leaders Takayuki ARIGA・Shinichi OGURA）
The Criminal Case Association studies criminal cases (1) to handle criminal complaints, including internal investigations and consultation with investigative authorities when the company is the victim of the crime, (2) to give advice regarding the cooperation to investigation agency when an employee of the company is accused of being a perpetrator or suspect against a third party, and (3) to handle cases in which the investigative authorities misunderstand the facts (denial cases). In addition, The Criminal Case Association conducts research, analyzes and reviews court decisions and the latest publications related to economic crime (fraud, embezzlement, breach of trust, etc.), and accumulates and updates knowledge and know-how that are key to practical matters related to such subject matter. We advise our clients through our knowledge and know-how accumulated in this way by utilizing it in our day-to-day consultations.