Japan's Nishimura and Asahi joins rivals in Shanghai
Japan's largest law firm, Nishimura and Asahi (N&A) has opened an office in Shanghai after receiving approval from the Ministry of Justice in China. The base, located in the Jingan District, will be staffed by two of the firm's Japanese lawyers, finance partner and Chinese business specialist Toshihiro Maeda, and counsel Takashi Nomura who focuses on Chinese IP and M&A work.
February 25, 2014 at 02:45 AM
3 minute read
Japan's largest law firm by number of lawyers, Nishimura and Asahi (N&A) has opened an office in Shanghai after receiving approval from the Ministry of Justice in China.
The base, located in the Jingan District, will be staffed by two of the firm's Japanese lawyers, finance partner and Chinese business specialist Toshihiro Maeda, and counsel Takashi Nomura who focuses on Chinese IP and M&A work.
The firm currently has four offices in Japan, including Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka and Nagoya, as well as six other overseas offices located in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh, Yangon, Singapore, Bangkok and Beijing.
It opened in Beijing in April 2010 in order to support Japanese companies investing in China, but said it was now expecting further economic growth in Shanghai with the new Shanghai Free Trade Zone.
The office is expected to work together with Tokyo and Beijing to focus on finance and other service industries.
N&A is the third of Japan's 'big four' law firms to open in Shanghai. Mori Hamada & Matsumoto launched a base there in 2005, whilst rival Anderson Mori & Tomotsune set up in the city last September.
"The opening of our Shanghai office is in line with our commitment to consolidate our business development in Japan and overseas," N&A said in a statement.
"The further expansion of our network in Japan and overseas will enable us to provide quality legal services to our clients wherever they do business in the region."
Shanghai has attracted interest from a number of firms in the last 18 months.
Covington & Burling opened its doors there in January 2013, whilst Duane Morris Selvam launched in January this year with a five-lawyer office.
In August last year McKenna Long & Aldridge (MLA) said it too was applying for a Shanghai licence, whilst Dechert told Legal Week in November that it was looking for the right partners to oversee a practice after already obtaining approval from the authorities.
However, most firms have focused on Beijing as a centre for activity.
In July last year, Vinson & Elkins announced it was closing its Shanghai base in a bid to consolidate its Asia offering, whilst in December it emerged that Eversheds was to run its office in the commercial hub without any partners.
Related: Japan's Nishimura and Asahi to open in Myanmar and Thailand
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