Speakers
Sayo Takizawa, managing director, Legal and compliance group, Blackstone
Sayo Kondo Takizawa is a Managing Director in the Legal & Compliance Group and is based in Tokyo.
Prior to joining Blackstone in 2016, Ms. Takizawa worked at the law firms of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP and Shearman & Sterling LLP in the Mergers & Acquisitions group in New York and Tokyo.
Ms. Takizawa received a BA from the University of Pennsylvania, where she graduated summa cum laude, and a JD from Georgetown University Law Center.
Mihoko Kawamizu, head of legal & compliance, Philips Japan
Mihoko Kawamizu is a lawyer licensed in Japan and the State of New York. She holds a Master’s degree in Interdisciplinary Cultural Studies from the University of Tokyo, and LL.M. from the University of Washington.
Mihoko is also a member of the Daiichi Tokyo Bar Association. Currently, she serves as Director and Head of Legal and Compliance at Philips Japan Ltd. With nearly 20 years of experience, she has focused on managing legal and compliance matters, particularly in multinational corporations.
Kengo Nishigaki, representative partner, GI&T Law Office
Kengo Nishigaki founded GI&T Law Office LC in 2020. Before then, he worked for Baker & McKenzie from 2000 to 2020, being a partner of the dispute resolution group for longer than 10 years. He also belonged to Corporate M&A Group to support clients for international M&A and joint venture transactions. From 2004 to 2005, he worked at Baker & McKenzie’s Chicago office where he assisted a case related to compliance with the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and formation of joint venture in the chemical industry. He is admitted to practice in Japan and New York. Kengo was partially seconded to ZimmerBiomet at its Japanese subsidiary, a global medical device company to support their in-house work from 2016 to 2017.
Joel Greer, counsel, GI&T Law Office
Joel Greer has over 20 years of experience advising and representing companies across Asia, Europe, and North America in complex international arbitration and mediation. His work has involved proceedings under the rules of major institutions, including the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), Japan Commercial Arbitration Association (JCAA), London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA), Singapore International Mediation Centre (SIMC), and the American Arbitration Association-International Centre for Dispute Resolution (AAA-ICDR). Joel has handled disputes arising from licensing agreements, construction projects, joint venture arrangements, and sale and purchase agreements.
Patrick Forman, counsel, GI&T Law Office
Patrick Forman joined London law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer in 2008, where he advised multinational companies on complex litigation and internal investigations. During his time in private practice, Patrick was seconded to an oil super-major and a prominent investment bank, as well as the firms’ Washington DC office.
Patrick subsequently joined British Telecom plc, a leading UK telecoms, technology and media company, as Senior Counsel in 2015. At British Telecom he focused on privacy, AI and data ethics, cyber security and online harm. He advises on the GDPR, ePrivacy Directive, Net Neutrality Regulation, the EU’s proposed EU AI Act, the UK Investigatory Powers Act, and related international human rights standards.
Patrick joined GI&T Law Office in October 2023.
Yuji Yamamoto, senior associate, GI&T Law Office
Yuji Yamamoto joined GI&T Law Office in September 2020. Prior to joining GI&T Law Office, Yuji served as corporate counsel at one of the largest frozen food and logistics companies in Tokyo from 2017, where he was responsible for reviewing domestic and international contracts, managing M&A transactions, ensuring GDPR compliance and adherence to other personal data protection laws, handling labor law cases, and overseeing risk management related to compliance violations.
In addition to these areas, he provides services related to investigations of compliance violations for companies in Japan and abroad, supports the establishment and operation of global whistleblowing systems, and handles litigation and dispute resolution both domestically and internationally. He also provides services to the logistics and warehousing industries.
Peter Harris, partner, Clifford Chance
Peter Harris is a Partner of Clifford Chance. Based in Tokyo, Peter specializes in international arbitration, mediation and other forms of alternative dispute resolution. Originally from the UK Peter is qualified in laws of the England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Peter has assisted clients resolve disputes across multiple sectors with a particular focus on energy, infrastructure, natural resources, commodities, shipping, technology and construction. Peter regularly works on disputes between investors and governments as well as disputes between corporate enterprises. Peter is an experienced advocate who regularly appears before international tribunals. Peter also sits as an arbitrator.
Peter has degrees from the universities of Oxford and SOAS and has lived and worked in the UK, Singapore, Australia and Japan. Before becoming a lawyer, Peter had careers as a chef, teacher and journalist.
Fumika Ito, senior counsel , Broadcom
After serving as an attorney for Japanese Government in the House of Councilors, Fumika Ito has walked through a unique career as an in-house counsel, mainly in the muti-national and/or global companies which started from Oracle Japan. Since then she pursued legal leadership career in entities like JTB Corporation, particularly in its Global Business Unit, Mondelēz Japan, and her previous role as General Counsel of SAP Japan. In 2025, Ito became senior counsel for international semiconductor and infrastructure software company Broadcom.
Hiroshi Kurosaka, managing director, Just Legal
Hiroshi Kurosaka specialises in the recruiting of senior Bengoshi across all industries and law firms.
For 20 years, Hiroshi has been a legal recruiter in Tokyo. He has the track record that is unmatched by his competitors. Simply put, no one in Tokyo knows more about the careers, the options, the people or the companies in the Tokyo legal universe than him.
He trades on his reliability, market knowledge and honest and straight forward approach to search assignments and support request from candidates. He is a serious-minded, ethical individual with unique market insights, and you can count on him to do exactly what he says.
Hiroaki Inuyama, chief legal officer, Proterial
Hiroaki Inuyama is a highly experienced international legal and compliance leader with more than two decades of experience spanning Japan, the United States, and the Asia-Pacific region. He is currently Chief Legal Officer, General Counsel, and Chief Risk Control Officer at Proterial in Tokyo, overseeing global legal affairs, risk management, and corporate social responsibility. Prior to joining Proterial, Inuyama spent nearly six years at Air Liquide, where he served as Chief Legal Officer for Asia Pacific and North East Asia, and as General Counsel for Air Liquide Japan. Earlier in his career, he held multiple senior legal roles at Marubeni Corporation, including General Counsel in New York and Chief Counsel in Tokyo, advising on major power, ICT, and agri-business operations.
Nat Ishida, managing director legal and IP division & group privacy officer, Sega Sammy Holdings
Natsue Ishida is a legal and compliance professional with over 20 years of client service and in-house legal experience, serving as the head of legal, IP, data privacy and compliance functions for global companies in various industries including commercial vehicles, cosmetics, medical devices and electronics, and as a legal counsel for a major Japanese securities firm.
Ishida also has experience working in the United States and Europe in the areas of global data protection and transfer pricing in the international headquarters of a large multinational accounting firm.
She is a member of the New York State Bar and is a Certified Information Privacy Professional in the United States.
Joe Boswell, global editor, GC Powerlist Series , Legal 500
Joe Boswell has been a part of The Legal 500’s editorial team, specialising on the in-house legal community, for almost a decade. He now heads The Powerlist team, acting as chief editor for the over 40 separate editions of the GC Powerlist series which serve as The Legal 500’s flagship title celebrating the world’s top in-house counsel. He is also head of content for Legal 500 Events.
During the course of researching for the GC Powerlist series, Boswell has interviewed a vast number of world-renowned general counsel, chief legal officers, and legal directors about overcoming the challenges they face, their legal innovations, and how they see the general counsel role progressing in coming years. As well as this, he is a regular speaker at Legal 500 summits, roundtables, award ceremonies and other events, and often writes in-depth reports on business and legal issues.
Boswell graduated both the University of Sussex in The United Kingdom and the Rijksuniversiteit Groningen in The Netherlands.
Steering Committee
Emi Takeda, general counsel Japan, Accenture
Emi Takeda is General Counsel of Japan responsible for all legal support to the region. She provides strategic advice to senior business leadership on client engagements, risk management, compliance, and governance, and is a member of the Japan Geo Council, Market Investment Committee, and the global Legal Executive Committee. Emi Joined Accenture in 2011 and has served in various Contracting and market legal leadership roles in Japan and APAC.
Prior to Accenture, she was with US law firm Morrison & Foerster, where she practiced M&A, corporate and technology transactions and with UK Law Firm, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer. Emi received her LL.B. from the University of Tokyo and graduated from the Legal Training and Research Institute of Japan. Emi received her LL.M. from Columbia Law School. Emi is a Japanese Bengoshi admitted to practice in Japan and she is also admitted to practice in New York.
Steering Committee
Satomi Tanaka, counsel, IBM
Satomi Tanaka is Counsel for IBM in Japan and is widely recognised as one of the fastest-rising stars in the Japanese corporate counsel community. She has played a pivotal role in leading complex commercial disputes, combining strategic leadership with deep legal expertise to guide her company through high-stakes negotiations and critical decision-making.
Her practice spans dispute resolution, major deal negotiation and risk management, where she provides actionable legal strategies, ensures alignment with business priorities, and safeguards corporate reputation. Passionate about driving positive change and giving back to the legal community, Satomi is committed to advancing ethical practices, inclusion, and innovation in business. She believes in harnessing the power of technology to create a better and more sustainable future.
Steering Committee
Hiro Kato, chief legal officer and group general counsel, INPEX
Hiro Kato led the creation and growth of the global legal function INPEX, Japan’s largest oil and gas exploration and production company. Joining in 2013 to establish the company’s first dedicated legal department, Kato built a team that now numbers over 50 lawyers worldwide, unified under the “One Legal” philosophy. Known for a proactive approach to risk management, he emphasizes vigilance, scenario planning, and resilience in times of uncertainty. A thought leader on legal technology and governance, Kato continues to guide INPEX through shifting geopolitical and regulatory landscapes.
Before INPEX, Kato practiced at Anderson Mori and Baker & McKenzie in Tokyo and Chicago, where he spent nearly a decade advising Japanese clients on cross-border transactions and regulatory matters. His international experience across leading global firms laid the foundation for his expertise in managing complex legal and business challenges.
Steering Committee
Satoshi Kurata, executive officer＆general counsel, JGC Holdings Corporation
Satoshi Kurata drives JGC Holdings’s global legal strategy, advancing its mission to “Enhance Planetary Health.” He has led legal teams in landmark initiatives recently, such as Indonesia’s Tangguh enhanced gas recovery and carbon capture, utilisation and storage project, and a pioneering joint venture to produce sustainable aviation fuel from used cooking oil. A key member of JGC’s crisis management task force, Kurata ensures resilience through effective risk management and contract structuring. Passionate about diversity, he has built a dynamic legal department where women now form the majority, strengthening innovation and leadership within JGC’s global operations. As well as GJC, Kurata has also held notable positions with McKinsey & Company and KBR.
Steering Committee
Wise Wang, legal lead for Japan and Korea, X
Wise Wang oversees complex legal matters spanning commercial transactions, regulatory compliance, and litigation in fast-changing markets. He has guided the company through evolving internet regulations on transparency, content moderation, and user data protection, helping safeguard compliance, reputation, and user trust. With a background in management consulting at leading global firms, he brings a rare blend of business and legal expertise, enabling pragmatic, strategically aligned advice. Passionate about technology’s impact on law, he is focused on how generative AI will reshape legal practice while elevating the importance of leadership and soft skills.
Steering Committee
Sayaka Matsui, general counsel, Unilever
Sayaka Matsui, general counsel of Unilever Japan Holdings since 2024, is recognised for combining legal expertise with purpose-driven leadership. In 2021, she spearheaded the introduction of a sustainability-oriented contract model, reducing CO2 emissions and truck use, which earned Unilever Japan the Supply Chain Innovation Award 2023 Grand Prize from METI. Beyond legal matters, Ms. Matsui actively advances sustainability initiatives, particularly in tackling plastic waste through business coalitions and policy advocacy. As a leader, she develops team members into “business leaders who know the law,” fostering creativity, psychological safety, and business acumen. Ms. Matsui’s career reflects innovation, collaboration, and a commitment to sustainable growth.