The Legal 500

Anderson Mori & Tomotsune’s practice handles a healthy balance of corporate support, tax planning and contentious work. Among recent matters, it successfully represented several companies in tax litigation against the Tax Agency. Lawyers are ‘prompt, well-informed and user-friendly’, with co-heads Koji Fujita and Eiichiro Nakatani singled out as for their ‘tremendous experience’.

At Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu, Yuko Miyazaki is recommended for international tax matters and leads a team which includes the ‘efficient and knowledgeable’ Yushi Hegawa. The firm is building a strong reputation for securities-related cases, and recently advised Japan Finance Corporation and Japan Finance Organization for Municipalities on the application of the new tax regime for debt offerings in the US and European markets.

Mori Hamada & Matsumoto advised listed Japan-based company DeNa on complex tax issues relating to its $361m acquisition of US-based ngmoco - the first cross-border “in-out” triangular merger using the stock of a Japanese corporation for the acquisition of a foreign corporation. Atsushi Oishi is ‘one of the leading tax lawyers in the market’, and M&A tax specialist Yoshihiro Kojima is also recommended.

Nishimura & Asahi has particular strength on the contentious side and regularly advises on large tax litigations. In 2010, the firm represented Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance in a high-profile case contesting a tax assessment and succeeded in recovering ¥6.73bn. Corporate tax partners Masakazu Iwakura, Kazuhiro Takei and Yo Ota are ‘taxation experts’, and partner Akihiro Hironaka is a ‘rising-star tax litigator’.

At Adachi Henderson Miyatake & Fujita, name partner Toshio Miyatake is widely acclaimed as a leading figure in the tax market, with peers crediting him as ‘the preeminent lawyer in Japan for taxation - what he doesn’t know isn’t worth knowing’. Miyatake’s leading reputation ensures that the small team punches above its weight to secure an impressive number of high-profile litigation instructions.

TMI Associates has invested heavily in its tax practice in recent years and it has paid off with an increase in corporate support instructions. The ‘fantastic’ Hidehiro Utsumi is ‘the tax star of the future’ and is particularly valued for his ‘strong international experience’.

Baker & McKenzie GJBJ Tokyo Aoyama Aoki Koma Law Office’s tax group continues to impress both clients and contemporaries. It ‘provides a very professional, responsive and knowledgeable service’. The firm fields a full-service team comprised of Japan-qualified lawyers, tax attorneys (zeirishi), US-qualified tax lawyers, economists (both foreign and domestic), financial analysts and certified practicing accountants. The group advises on general corporate tax matters, transfer pricing and tax litigation. Recently, it advised a NYSE-listed software company with various corporate and tax advice (including due diligence) related to the $170m takeover of its Japanese subsidiary, from a Japanese venture capital firm; and acted for a NYSE-listed skin care company in a litigation matter at the Tokyo District Court with Japan customs. Group head Edwin Whatley has ‘good industry and tax technical knowledge, and gives us very practical advice’.

Morrison & Foerster Ito & Mitomi launched its tax practice with the hire of the market leading transactional tax group from White & Case LLP- White & Case Law Offices (Registered Association). The firm now has the ability to offer coordinated advice on tax matters under Japanese, US and other foreign tax laws, and the capacity to provide integrated tax and legal advice. Eric Roose, Yasuo Igarashi, Takeo Mizutani and of counsel Michael Shikuma make a formidable team, whose clients include CapitaLand and Hitachi. Indeed, the firm recently represented Hitachi with respect to the $4.3bn sale of its Global Storage Technology group to Western Digital, which involved structuring the sale of global GST group with subsidiaries in the US, Europe and Asia.

Although White & Case LLP- White & Case Law Offices (Registered Association) suffered a blow with the loss of its transactional tax team to Morrison & Foerster Ito & Mitomi, tax doyen Gary Thomas and his tax controversy team remain at the firm. With the ability to provide both local Japanese tax advice as well as foreign tax advice, the firm also advises on Japan’s increasingly demanding tax enforcement environment. The firm’s clientsinclude major US, European and Japanese corporate groups in a variety of industries, including consumer goods, imported luxury brands, computer hardware and software, pharmaceutical and medical products, insurance, financial services, sporting goods, and entertainment. Zeirishi and former National Tax Agency official Akira Akamatsu and Shimon Takagi are also highly recommended.

Koichi Inoue’s tax team at Jones Day works in collaboration with the firm’s M&A, real estate, and finance lawyers. Recently, the firm provided a US hi-tech company with detailed legal and tax analysis to figure out an optimal transaction scheme for equipment leases; and provided legal and tax advice regarding therestructuring of Japanese companies that had Chinese subsidiaries.