Nishimura & Asahi

Earlier this week, we held a joint event with Covington & Burling LLP at our Tokyo office regarding global perspectives on medical device regulation, U.S. and China market pathways, challenges, and emerging policies. Pamela Forrest, Scott Danzis, John Balzano, Mariko Mimura, Yoko Kasai, Inuzuka Alisa, and Taisuke Kimoto explored the complexities of U.S. FDA regulations, including the evolving framework for digital health and AI, as well as the impact of potential reforms under the Trump administration. They also examined China's regulatory landscape for medical devices, its challenges for international companies, and the potential impact of new U.S. policies like the Biosecure Act on global medical device development. Thank you to everyone who attended. For more information about future events, visit our website: https://lnkd.in/gqWiK9AP

The Stand-out Lawyers 2025 list by Thomson Reuters included 28 lawyers from Nishimura & Asahi. More than 2,000 senior in-house counsel nominated up to three exemplary individuals they worked with in the last 12 months to make the annual catalog. Congratulations to Kozo Kawai, Kazuhiro Takei, Yoshinobu Fujimoto, Hiroshi Uchima, Yo Ota, Yasutaka Nishikori, Hiroshi Kimeda, Kenichi Minami, Akihiro Hironaka, Shibahara Masaru, Kei Umebayashi, Takahiko Date, Shiga Yuji, Kohei Koikawa, Kaku Hirao, Takuya Oshida, Nobuya Matsunami, Ito Tsuyoshi, Taisuke Igaki, Matsudaira Sadayuki, Lars Markert, Chié Nakahara, Noriya Ishikawa, Amane Kawamoto, Shingo Yamada, Nozawa Yamato, Alisa Inuzuka, and Junko Watanabe. Read more on our website: https://lnkd.in/g-ApXe3K

𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐀𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐖𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧’𝐬 𝐄𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 On March 7, we gathered at SCL Nishimura & Asahi to celebrate International Women’s Day and engage in meaningful discussions centered around this year’s theme: Accelerate Action. Our inspiring panel, featuring colleagues from various roles, shared their experiences, insights, and the challenges they have faced throughout their careers. Their stories highlighted the importance of advocacy, mentorship, and collective action in creating a more inclusive workplace and society. A huge thank you to our panelists, the moderator, and everyone who participated—both in person and virtually. Events like these remind us that change occurs when we engage, listen, and take action together. Let’s keep the momentum going beyond this day—support, empower, and champion the women around us every day. 💜💛 Chanakarn Boonyasith Thiti Homjabok Nuttaros Tangprasitti Saowanee Leewijitsin Nicharee P. Nutphinya Akkaradumrongphorn #InternationalWomensDay #AccelerateAction #DiversityAndInclusion #WomenInLeadership

In November 2024, we hosted Darrell Chan (Deputy General Counsel) and Yuichiro Watanabe (Lead Counsel, Japan) from Airbnb’s APAC Legal Team for an insightful internal lunch session on the importance of DE&I in law firms. As highlighted by Mr. Chan, DE&I is crucial for improving service quality, fostering innovation, and enhancing performance. The session also featured a dynamic discussion with managing partner Ryutaro Nakayama and a fireside chat with Mr. Watanabe, who emphasized that DE&I is essential for both organizational competitiveness and growth. This session reinforced our ongoing commitment to creating a workplace where diverse perspectives thrive and contribute to delivering exceptional legal services. Find the full article on our website: https://lnkd.in/d6nKrmrY

We are honored to be named Japan Law Firm of the Year at Marsh PEMA Asia Client Appreciation Awards 2025. This recognition affirms our unwavering commitment to delivering exceptional client service and excellence across a wide range of M&A and Private Equity transactions, including in the area of representations and warranties insurance. Find more details on our website: https://lnkd.in/gzdgeuwV

We believe that an ideal organization highlights a wide array of skills that come together and function cohesively. Collectively and individually, there is respect and support for the different forms of diversity, including gender, age, nationality, race, ethnicity, religion, disability, sexual orientation, and gender identity, in all areas where we operate. Diversity, Equity & Inclusion have been essential to our growing success, enabling us to respond to the needs of our clients across jurisdictions by providing them with multi-faceted approaches and different perspectives. In honor of International Women's Day on March 8, we are highlighting wisdom from some of our lawyers. Tokyo partners Maya Ito, Cuiping Zhang, Taeko Suzuki, Yukiko Tomimatsu, and Junko Watanabe shared their advice for supporting women in the workplace.

We advised Carlyle on its acquisition through tender offer and privatization of Kaonavi, Inc. The team was led by partners Hiroshi Uchima and Keitaro Hamada from our corporate/M&A practice, and Toshiyuki Nonaka from our finance practice. Read more about the deal on our website: https://lnkd.in/gf4-saWt

Nishimura & Asahi partner Michelle Marie Villarica, alongside Sy & Partners (Member Firm of Nishimura & Asahi) partner Tara A. Mercado and associate John Malcolm Aniag, spoke at The Legal 500's 2025 GC Summit Philippines yesterday. Their insightful panel on "Managing Corporate Investigations" provided practical guidance on navigating legal, ethical, and strategic challenges faced by in-house counsel. Attendees gained valuable expertise on overseeing internal probes, ensuring compliance, and managing reputational risks in today's evolving legal landscape. 

Congratulations to Rendi Prahara Septiawedi and Raditya Pratamandika Putra, Walalangi & Partners (in association with Nishimura & Asahi) associates, who have been recognized in the Asian Legal Business “Indonesia Rising Stars 2025” list, published by Thomson Reuters, Hong Kong. Read more on our website: https://lnkd.in/g3HMHNuu

We are delighted to share that Tim Merchant joined our London office as a partner. Qualified in England & Wales, he has 15 years of experience in both the UK and Japan. He has advised financial sponsors and corporate clients on multi-jurisdictional private equity and private M&A transactions across a range of sectors. Tim's extensive experience will further enrich and support the work of our firm and of the London office. Find the full announcement on our website: https://lnkd.in/gCFqvEkf