They are the best in the market. They are very quick to respond and provide the best solutions to issues that come up. — Chambers Asia-Pacific
Morrison Foerster's Tokyo office is one of the largest international firms in Japan, with approximately 50+ foreign attorneys (U.S. and UK qualified) and 50 Japanese bengoshi who team with the firm’s global network to advise on Japan’s most significant inbound and outbound transactions, investigations, and disputes.
The office is consistently ranked at the top of Japan practices, being named the “Japan International Law Advisers of the Year” by Chambers Asia-Pacific for nine times since the award has been given out, and with more top-tier practice and top-tier individual rankings in Chambers than any other international firm in Japan.
Our Japan Capabilities at a Glance
- One of the largest and most diverse Tokyo presence of any international firm with over 100 attorneys, including 50 Japanese bengoshi
- Nearly two-thirds of our attorneys are fluent in Japanese and English
- We offer market-leading capabilities for a broad group of practices, including:
Experience
We represented SoftBank in its £24.3 billion ($31.4 billion) acquisition of UK-based semiconductor and software design company ARM Holdings. The transaction was the largest ever cross-border acquisition by a Japanese company (and the largest ever cash acquisition of a UK company). Named M&A Deal of the Year 2017 by The Asian Lawyer’s Asia Legal Awards and by Asian Legal Business’ (ALB) Japan Law Awards.
We represented SoftBank in its $21.6 billion acquisition of a 78% interest in U.S. wireless operator Sprint. The transaction was the largest U.S. M&A transaction of 2013 and, when announced, the largest cross-border acquisition by a Japanese company (now second to SoftBank’s acquisition of ARM Holdings, a transaction that we handled for SoftBank in 2016).
We represented Toshiba Corporation on the $18 billion sale of its wholly owned subsidiary Toshiba Memory Corporation to a consortium led by Bain Capital. The transaction is the largest Japanese inbound M&A deal since 2011, as well as both the largest private equity and leveraged finance deal ever in Asia. Named M&A Deal of the Year, TMT Deal of the Year, and Japan Deal of the Year by Asian Legal Business (ALB) Japan Law Awards 2018.
Following our 2017 representation of SoftBank in its $5 billion investment in Xiaoju Kuaizhi Inc. (Didi), China’s leading ride-hailing and mobile transportation platform – reported as the largest ever venture financing and largest ever foreign technology investment in the PRC – in 2018 we represented SoftBank in connection with further $3.6 billion primary and $1 billion secondary purchases of Didi shares.
We represented SoftBank in its $7.7 billion primary and secondary investment as part of a $9.3 billion sale of stock by Uber. This is the largest ever private secondary transaction in the technology space.
We represented Renesas Electronics Corporation in its $6.7 billion acquisition of NASDAQ-listed Integrated Device Technology (IDT), a market-leading analog mixed-signal company, to create market-leading embedded solution capabilities.
We represented Renesas Electronics Corporation in its $3.2 billion acquisition of 100% of U.S. semiconductor developer Intersil Corporation, a leading supplier of semiconductors to the automotive industry.
We Represented FUJIFILM Holdings and Fuji Xerox, a 75%-25% joint venture between Fujifilm and Xerox, in connection with the acquisition by Fujifilm of Xerox’s 25% stake in Fuji Xerox for an aggregate purchase price of $2.3 billion.
We represented Taisho Pharmaceutical in its agreement to purchase French-based pharmaceutical products manufacturer UPSA from Bristol-Myers Squibb for $1.6 billion. The transaction consisted of a share purchase of the UPSA entity and separate asset purchases related to the UPSA business in 10 other jurisdictions, including trademarks, marketing authorizations, other intellectual property, and inventory.
We are representing Yahoo Japan Corporation in its $3.7 billion tender offer for a majority interest in ZOZO, Inc., a Japanese E-commerce company that operates Internet shopping websites including ZOZOTOWN, a leading online fashion retailer in Japan.