Clifford Chance has recruited a corporate partner in Tokyo.

Michihiro Nishi joins from Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom where he was counsel. Nishi, who's qualified as a bengoshi in Japan, advises private equity funds and public companies on investments and other cross-border M&A deals. In 2017, he was part of the Skadden team that advised WeWork Companies on a $4.4 billion investment from the SoftBank Group and the SoftBank Vision Fund.

Nishi joined Skadden in 2011 after receiving an LL.M. from Stanford Law School. Earlier in his career, he practiced with Japanese firm Mori Hamada & Matsumoto.

Andrew Whan, Clifford Chance's Hong Kong-based Asia Pacific head of corporate said the addition of Nishi is part of the firm's effort to develop Japanese law capability. "The M&A market in Japan has witnessed sustained activity over recent years as international firms invest in the country, and as Japanese companies expand overseas, including within Asia Pacific," he said.

In 2019, Japan's M&A market saw a surge of activity in both outbound and inbound deals. Outbound deals from Japan hit $98.8 billion with 25 deals valued $1 billion or more, according to data compiled by Mergermarket. Meanwhile, investment into Japan, especially in the private equity sector, increased 88.7% to $12.4 billion last year. Private equity buyout deals reached $11.5 billion in 2019, more than five times the amount in 2018.

In addition to Nishi, three additional partners in Tokyo are qualified to practice Japanese law. They are: corporate partner Tatsuhiko Kamiyama, and finance partners Eiichi Kanda and Yusuke Abe. Kamiyama coleads the office's corporate practice with partner Natsuko Sugihara. The Tokyo office is co-managed by capital markets partners Reiko Sakimura and Leng-Fong Lai.

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