Ivan Smallwood > Latham & Watkins Gaikokuho Joint Enterprise > Tokyo, Japan > Lawyer Profile

Latham & Watkins Gaikokuho Joint Enterprise
MARUNOUCHI BUILDING, 32ND FLOOR
2-4-1 MARUNOUCHI, CHIYODA-KU
TOKYO 100-6332
Japan

Position

Ivan Smallwood regularly advises leading Japanese and multinational companies on high-stakes cross-border M&A transactions, particularly in the technology, medical, and industrial sectors.

Mr. Smallwood draws on two decades’ experience driving many of Japan’s largest outbound transactions. He skillfully helps corporations and financial investors navigate inbound and outbound:

    • Strategic mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures
    • Joint ventures and strategic alliances
    • Minority investments

He understands clients’ commercial objectives and leverages comprehensive knowledge of Japanese and non-Japanese transaction regimes to achieve their goals.

Mr. Smallwood maintains an active pro bono practice and works with Open Supply Hub, a nonprofit organization that strives to improve human rights and environmental conditions in and around factories and facilities by opening up supply chain data to the public.

Before joining Latham, Mr. Smallwood worked at a leading international law firm in Tokyo.

Mr. Smallwood is a registered foreign lawyer in Japan as a member of the Dai-Ni Tokyo Bar Association.

Lawyer Rankings

Japan > Corporate and M&A: International firms and joint ventures

Latham & Watkins Gaikokuho Joint Enterprise‘s corporate M&A team is headed up by Hong Kong-based Ji Liu, who is also the chair for the firm’s Asia corporate department. Work carried out by the team includes cross-border acquisitions, venture capital financings, strategic alliances, and other inbound and outbound corporate transactions. Notable names within the team include Hiroki Kobayashi, Ivan Smallwood and Hiroaki Takagi. Noah Carr left the firm in November 2023.