The close economic relationship between Japan and the United States does not require much explanation. Japanese companies have been carrying out various commercial transactions in the United States, including joint investments with U.S. companies, for a long time, and there is a massive and constant flow of people and communication between the two countries in connection with such business activities.

In the United States, which is known to be litigation-oriented, companies may be forced to bear a huge burden in terms of workload and cost once they are involved in a lawsuit. Therefore, it is important for companies to take preventive measures against legal risks in order to prevent any lawsuit. However, if a lawsuit is unavoidable, then its handling thereof in an appropriate and systematic manner is essential because any error in such handling may result in tremendous liability, especially in cases involving the jury system.

Furthermore, when Japanese companies have transactions with U.S. companies or invest in the Unites States, they should, as a matter of course, fully understand the relevant state and federal laws applied in the United States. It is also becoming more and more necessary for them to conduct corporate activities with sufficient knowledge of certain laws that may be applied to them extraterritorially in specific cases such as antitrust law, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA).

Many of our attorneys have studied and practiced in the United States, and we have handled multiple matters involving business activities in the United States or U.S. counterparties. Thus, we can provide advice and support to our clients taking into consideration the practices and working styles of U.S. attorneys and companies.

Furthermore, the number of Japanese companies expanding their businesses into Canada is increasing because of the favorable business conditions therein including inexpensive prices of land, labor and electricity, abundant water supply, easy business access to the United States fostered by the North American Free Trade Agreement, and other advantages including an excellent workforce and the availability of R&D infrastructure.

Our firm employs a system that enables us to appropriately and efficiently provide legal services to our clients relating to legal matters involving North America, through our collaboration with global and local law firms depending on the nature and scale of the businesses or transactions of the clients, and other relevant circumstances.