Shearman & Sterling > Tokyo, Japan > Firm Profile
Shearman & Sterling Offices
FUKOKU SEIMEI BUILDING, 5TH FLOOR
2-2-2 UCHISAIWAICHO CHIYODA-KU
TOKYO 100-0011
Japan
Shearman & Sterling > The Legal 500 Rankings
Japan > Corporate and M&A: International firms and joint ventures Tier 2
The Tokyo-based corporate department at Shearman & Sterling is commended for its ‘presence and good networks with Japanese local firms‘, and offers clients assistance in complex cross-border mergers and acquisitions. Karl Pires, who has more than 20 years’ experience, frequently advises Japanese clients on transactions taking place outside Japan and transactions within Japan for multinational clients. Other sectors the team advises on include the energy and renewables, healthcare, automotive, and chemicals industries, with clients ranging from private equity huoses to government institutions and publicly listed companies. Key contacts within the team include Toshiro Mochizuki for matters involving corporate and capital market aspects, and Masahisa Ikeda for cross-border acquisitions.Practice head(s):
Karl Pires
Other key lawyers:
Testimonials
‘Sherman has a good Tokyo presence and good networks with Japanese local firms.’
‘Masahisa Ikeda, head of Tokyo office, is a distinguished practitioner. He has extensive knowledge and expertise in the areas of US securities regulations which is often relevant in M&A transactions involving Japanese companies doing business worldwide, and his advice is always practical and very helpful.’
Key clients
Osaka Gas
Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha
GC Holdings Co.
The Aomori Bank
The Michinoku Bank
Atlas Holdings LLC
The Aichi Bank
International Chemical Investors Group
Daiwa International Capital Partners
Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation
Celanese Corporation
Work highlights
- Advised Atlas Holdings LLC on its acquisition of the US and European subsidiaries of Central Glass Co., a publicly listed Japanese company.
- Advised The Aichi Bank on US securities law relating to its potential business combination with The Chukyo Bank by way of a joint share transfer and a subsequent merger of the banks under a holding company.
- Advised Daiwa International Capital Partners through its wholly owned subsidiary Bluto Holdings Limited.
Japan > Investment funds: International firms and joint ventures Tier 2
Located in Tokyo, Shearman & Sterling’s asset management and fund formation practice in Japan concentrates on handling fund formations involving Japan-focused funds or Japan-based funds, assisting with private fund investments, and advising investment management companies on regulatory issues. Standout recent mandates for the group, led by Etienne Gelencsér, include high-value work involving offshore fund structuring issues and fundraisings. The practice's client base features large banks, such as the Development Bank of Japan, and asset management companies.Practice head(s):
Etienne Gelencsér
Other key lawyers:
Key clients
DBJ Asset Management Co., Ltd.
Development Bank of Japan Inc
Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF)
Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC)
Work highlights
- Advising Japan Industrial Partners Inc. on its offshore fund structuring and fund raising in connection with its public tender offer buy-out for Toshiba Corporation.
Japan > Projects and energy: International firms and joint ventures Tier 2
Project development and finance expert Etienne Gelencsér leads the projects and energy team at Shearman & Sterling, where group’s outbound focus sees it advise Japanese clients on the development of their projects globally. The team advises both lenders and sponsors, counting some of the country’s largest banks and utilities among its client base, and is prominent in various areas within the energy sector, including up-and-coming hydrogen and ammonia projects. The team also noted a recent uptick in investment across the infrastructure industry more widely, extending beyond infrastructure related to the energy transition, to include transport infrastructure. M&A specialist Karl Pires brings over 25 years’ experience advising clients across the energy, power and infrastructure sectors.Practice head(s):
Etienne Gelencsér
Other key lawyers:
Testimonials
‘The Shearman & Sterling team is outstanding. Their opinion and views are always straight forward and on point, this makes it very easy to understand what the client needs to do. The people are very helpful and easy to work with. The discussion with them feels very relaxed and it makes us easier to explain on any issue.’
‘We work with Etienne Gelencsér, who provides analysis from many perspectives which makes for very comprehensive advice. The teamwork is outstanding.’
‘In my view, Shearman & Sterling is the firm that I would like to ask highly important tasks. They have significant track records on working with the key firms in the project financing field in Tokyo. Their experiences makes them highly unique. ’
‘One of the best people working Shearman & Sterling is Etienne Gelencsér. He knows what the preferences are for the key players in the project financing field in Tokyo. His experiences and network allow us to avoid any possible miscommunication with these key players.’
Key clients
Canada Pension Plan Investment Board
Development Bank of Japan, Inc.
Ichthys LNG Pty., Ltd
Itochu Corporation
JBIC
JERA
Marubeni
Mitsui
Mizuho
MUFG
Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI)
Osaka Gas
Sumitomo
TEPCO Renewables
Work highlights
- Advised JBIC as lender in connection with its approximately $330m project financing for the Ontario Line subway project in Toronto, Canada.
- Advised MUFG Bank, Ltd. and JBIC as lenders on the financing of a Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) in Senegal with Senegal LNGT Company Limited (SLNG).
- Advised OGUSA in connection with the agreement with Oriden LLC, a U.S.-based renewable project developer, to jointly develop a portfolio of more than 700 MWdc (600 MWac) of utility-scale solar and storage projects throughout certain US markets.
Japan > Antitrust and competition: International firms and joint ventures Tier 3
Shearman & Sterling‘s antitrust practice is jointly led by Masahisa Ikeda, Toshiro Mochizuki, and Kana Morimura. Ikeda is the name to note for government investigations and securities law, while Mochizuki regularly advises on corporate issues and US antitrust matters. Morimura is skilled at antitrust litigation and compliance matters. The department as a whole is recommended for its regular collaboration with teams in Europe and the US, which enable it to offer advice on US and EU antitrust matters.Practice head(s):
Masahisa Ikeda; Toshiro Mochizuki; Kana Morimura
Japan > Capital markets: International firms and joint ventures Tier 3
Shearman & Sterling's capital markets practice is headed by Masahisa Ikeda, who frequently advises underwriters and financial entities on a range of capital market transactions. The practice displays broad experience when advising on governance-related mandates, disclosure requirements, and securities law. Toshiro Mochizuki is recommended for his vast knowledge of SEC registrations and global offerings.Practice head(s):
Masahisa Ikeda
Other key lawyers:
Testimonials
‘Masahisa Ikeda, head of Tokyo office, is a distinguished practitioner. He has an extensive knowledge and expertise in US securities regulations, which are often relevant in M&A transactions involving Japanese companies doing business worldwide, and his advice is always practical and very helpful.’
Key clients
Advantest Corporation
GC Holdings Co., Ltd.
The Aomori Bank, Ltd.
The Bank of Kyoto, Ltd.
Work highlights
- Advised The Kyoto Bank, Ltd. regarding its SEC reporting obligations in connection with its offering of its shares to existing shareholders of Kyoto Bank to transition into a holding company structure through a sole share transfer.
- Advised The Hachijuni Bank, Ltd. regarding its SEC reporting obligations in connection with its offering of its shares to existing shareholders of The Nagano Bank, Ltd. in order to make Nagano Bank a wholly owned subsidiary of Hachijuni Bank through a share exchange.
- Advised The Iyo Bank , Ltd. in connection with its transition to a holding company structure through a sole share transfer.
Shearman & Sterling > Firm Profile
Shearman & Sterling has a long and distinguished history of supporting its clients wherever they do business, from major financial centers to emerging and growth markets, for 150 years. The firm’s global presence and deep understanding of its clients’ businesses and the industries they operate in, drives the firm’s work to provide outstanding legal service and commercial advice.
As a global, elite law firm, Shearman & Sterling represents many of the world’s leading corporations and major financial institutions, as well as emerging growth companies, governments and state-owned enterprises, on ground-breaking, precedent-setting matters.
The firm leverages the use of smart technology in all of its client work through its innovative data management system, Shearman Analytics, which provides a leading edge in staffing matters leanly and effectively. In addition to driving value for clients, the data system also provides powerful predictive insights to help clients achieve their business goals.
In all matters, Shearman & Sterling is dedicated to serving clients at the highest level. The firm’s lawyers are true business partners to their clients and pride themselves on forming long-standing working relationships, while navigating shifting regulations and market developments, to help clients succeed.
Main Areas of Practice:
Antitrust:
Shearman & Sterling’s lawyers have market-leading experience dealing with all aspects of U.S. and EU antitrust law and represent clients on some of the world’s most challenging, multi-jurisdictional antitrust cases. These include complex mergers and acquisitions in the United States, Europe and other jurisdictions; unilateral conduct; antitrust/IP interface; cartel investigations; antitrust compliance and counseling; State aid and privatizations; market investigations; and litigation, including in antitrust class action lawsuits and jury trials.
Capital Markets:
As capital markets have developed and diversified, the firm has helped its clients navigate these important changes and take advantage of opportunities. Over the years, Shearman & Sterling lawyers have had a prominent role in many of the developments that have transformed the capital markets, most notably the growth of the high yield market, the globalization of capital markets and the increase in worldwide privatizations.
Compensation, Governance & ERISA:
As regulatory and shareholder scrutiny intensifies, public and private companies, corporate boards and committees regularly turn to Shearman & Sterling’s Compensation, Governance & ERISA lawyers to help them successfully manage market demands and carefully navigate complex and sometimes conflicting regulations and stakeholder interests. Clients depend on the firm for practical, insightful and strategic guidance to help them stay ahead of the curve across all industry segments.
Derivatives & Structured Products:
The firm’s practice is widely recognized for representing the full spectrum of market participants across the complete range of derivatives products and asset classes. It is the breadth of their client base, the depth of their product experience and their true cross‐border capabilities that distinguish their practice from others in the market. With significant high-end capabilities in both the United States and the United Kingdom, they advise clients on the full range of structural, legal and documentation considerations that arise in derivatives and structured product transactions across all major asset classes, including credit, equity, fixed-income, currency and commodity-linked instruments.
Emerging Growth:
From the back-of-the-envelope to the opening bell, Shearman & Sterling provides strategic advice for each stage of growth. For a promising idea to grow into a successful company, entrepreneurs need insightful, business-minded counsel that can keep up with the pace of innovation. Collaborating side-by-side, they know their clients’ businesses. The firm’s lawyers provide tailored, cutting-edge solutions to emerging growth challenges, working with their clients as their needs change over time across Capital Markets, Mergers & Acquisitions, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Compensation, Governance & ERISA and other complex areas.
Finance:
The firm’s finance practice helps companies and lenders successfully navigate all aspects of the bank financing process and obtain the best possible outcomes. The firm routinely handle cross-border financings and provide comprehensive advice to clients who need both bank and bond financings by creating tailored solutions to address particular financing needs, whether asset-based, leveraged or investment-grade. The firm work closely with their capital markets lawyers, particularly those focused on the high yield market, and have a long tradition of using a variety of securitization structures.
Financial Institutions Advisory & Financial Regulatory:
Shearman & Sterling’s market-leading financial regulatory practice serves their clients’ businesses around the world. This focus on regulatory activity across geographies and the excellence of their U.S., U.K. and European practices in particular, make them the international counsel of choice for clients with difficult regulatory challenges in their home jurisdictions that are also seeking to meet global best practices. Backed by clear technical advice and strong relationships with regulators, the firm advise clients on the laws and regulations of the world’s key financial and commercial centers.
Financial Restructuring & Insolvency:
Shearman & Sterling’s Financial Restructuring & Insolvency practice represents stakeholders across the full spectrum of restructuring matters. The firm’s global team has a wealth of experience advising on complex domestic and cross-border restructurings, including some of the most high-profile transactions of recent years. The firm combine a commercial approach with technical expertise and work in partnership with their clients to navigate the legal, political and business landscapes in which they operate. The work closely with other practice groups, leveraging expertise across products, sectors and industries to provide innovative and effective advice.
Intellectual Property Transactions:
As the most valuable corporate assets become increasingly intangible, it is essential to identify and solve intellectual property-related issues arising in complex corporate transactions. Clients look to their Intellectual Property Transactions practice for guidance on intellectual property issues arising in all types of corporate and financial transactions.
International Arbitration:
Shearman & Sterling’s international arbitration team provides advice and advocacy to companies, States and State entities in investment treaty and commercial arbitrations conducted in accordance with all major international arbitration rules. The multilingual, multicultural team is widely regarded as one of the very best on the market. Because of the firm’s strategic view and thorough knowledge of arbitration processes and comparative law, clients turn to the firm for their most critical matters. They work together with their clients, ahead of and throughout the dispute, to devise and implement a strategy that meets their objectives and leads to the optimal resolution of their thorniest legal problems.
Investment Funds:
The firm’s full-service investment funds team is led by lawyers based in New York, London, Hong Kong, Beijing and Tokyo, with support from a global network of offices. By combining their multidisciplinary knowledge with a globally integrated approach, the firm provide a comprehensive range of investment funds services to clients on a worldwide basis. The firm have extensive experience assisting fund sponsors and investors across the Americas, Asia, Europe and Africa in finding innovative solutions to the challenges they face. The firm are skilled at reconciling complex regulatory and tax regimes with the competing requirements of fund sponsors, their investment strategies and their target investors.
Litigation:
Shearman & Sterling’s Litigation Group is strongly positioned to counsel and protect clients in today’s challenging environment. With more than 130 attorneys in the United States, Europe and Asia, their litigation team is ready to assist in any crisis, whether the adversary is a government regulator, a competitor, or a well-funded class action attorney. The firm’s lawyers have experience in a wide range of substantive areas including securities, criminal law enforcement, antitrust, commercial disputes, intellectual property and arbitration. The firm are trial-ready and trial-tested. The firm’s litigation partners include several former prosecutors who have tried dozens of jury trials in United States courts. Their team regularly represents parties in major trials in state and federal courts, and they are equally strong in the arbitration area, handling numerous contested proceedings every year.
Mergers & Acquisitions:
With M&A lawyers on the ground across the Americas, Europe, Asia and the Middle East, their team advises both principals and their financial advisors on the full spectrum of domestic and cross-border public and private mergers and acquisitions deals, whether negotiated or unsolicited. Clients rely on their team to guide them through transactions that will ultimately transform their organizations. Corporations and financial sponsors trust that the firm understand their business needs and will offer pragmatic and solutions-oriented advice, negotiate aggressively on their behalf and provide focused execution throughout each deal.
Privacy & Data Protection:
Shearman & Sterling’s privacy and data protection practice is a destination for clients – from startups to multinational corporations alike – seeking advice on every aspect of privacy laws and regulations, as well as incident prevention and response. The firm’s global privacy & data protection team is well-known for its actionable intelligence and data-driven solutions. The firm’s cross-disciplinary and responsive team takes a practical approach and provides global compliance strategies and solutions for international data transfers, product counseling for new and enhanced product launches, and assistance with data security breaches.
Private Client:
Individuals, family offices, privately owned companies and charitable organizations, both in the United States and across the globe, turn to Shearman & Sterling for their extensive experience in issues affecting private clients. Drawing on a multidisciplinary team of lawyers dedicated to serving the unique needs of family offices and family businesses, they also represent clients in corporate, regulatory, real estate, tax and litigation matters.
Project Development & Finance:
Shearman & Sterling has a market-leading project development and finance practice. The team has played a leading role at every stage in the procurement, structuring, development, financing, operations purchase and sale of major infrastructure projects globally, including oil and gas (upstream, pipelines, LNG, refineries and petrochemicals), mining and metals, transportation (rail, roads, airports and bridges), thermal, nuclear and renewable (including wind, solar, geothermal and hydro) power, and power infrastructure (including transmission). Clients rely on th firm to help them achieve their most ambitious goals. Many of these projects are unique, innovative or first-of-their-kind.
Public International Law:
Public international law is increasingly becoming a significant feature in international commerce. Issues that traditionally arose in the context of State-to-State relations, are now raised in the context of international commercial and investment disputes. They may concern, for example, natural resource development, infrastructure programs or project financing. Their practice includes both advisory and advocacy work on all aspects of public international law.
Real Estate:
The firm’s real estate practice assists clients in achieving their strategic goals around the world, partnering with private and institutional investors, developers, owners, lenders and underwriters in real estate joint ventures, financings, development projects, leasing, and acquisitions and dispositions. The firm’s clients value their breadth and depth of experience in regional, national and international markets and through decades of market cycles. Regardless of where their clients are located across the globe, they find innovative ways for them to achieve their objectives.
Special Situations & Capital Solutions:
Shearman & Sterling’s special situations and capital solutions team of partners works across practice groups to develop innovative solutions to capital structure and other complex problems. Each member of their interdisciplinary team—including Capital Markets, Leveraged Finance and Direct Lending, Restructuring, Litigation, Mergers & Acquisitions and Tax—has the experience to address the issues that arise in this unique context and spends a substantial amount of their time working with many of the world’s leading hedge funds, private equity funds, direct lenders, CLOs and other institutional investors.
Tax:
Ranking among the leading advisors in domestic and international tax, Shearman & Sterling’s tax practice plays an integral role in the firm’s corporate and cross-border practice and provides tax capability in France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States. Clients regularly entrust the firm with their most complex and strategic tax matters, resulting in their involvement in groundbreaking transactions throughout the world. The firm also advise clients with respect to a full range of tax controversies and disputes.
Tokyo Office:
Shearman & Sterling’s Tokyo office was established in 1997 and the office has a proven track record in successfully executing many complex, multi-jurisdictional, time-sensitive transactions for clients. The Japan practice consists of some of the country’s leading lawyers, who have been involved in some of Japan’s largest and most high-profile and complex transactions. The lawyers are qualified to practice US or English law, fluent in the Japanese language and have extensive experience with local legal and business practices – enabling the firm to effectively assist foreign clients in navigating the numerous legal, business and cultural complexities of doing business in Japan. It also has extensive experience advising Japanese clients on a diverse range of matters, including making outbound strategic investments, negotiating with foreign government authorities, and managing disclosures and other investor relations issues. The Tokyo office has advised on many of the largest M&A deals involving Japanese entities, including inbound and outbound deals and private equity transactions, and listed major Japanese blue-chip companies on the US and European stock exchanges. The firm has also launched some of the most significant global securities offerings and ground-breaking privatisations issued by corporations and Japanese government organisations; structured numerous offshore and onshore investment funds, including the first corporate restructuring fund in Japan; as well as advised on significant power (including nuclear and renewable), infrastructure and oil and gas projects.
Lawyer Profiles
Photo | Name | Position | Profile |
---|---|---|---|
Etienne Gelencsér | Partner | View Profile | |
Masahisa Ikeda | Partner Asia Regional Managing Partner Head of Tokyo Office | View Profile | |
Rena Katsuyama | Associate | View Profile | |
Ami Kurakado | Associate | View Profile | |
Toshiro Mochizuki | Partner | View Profile | |
Kana Morimura | Counsel | View Profile | |
Yuka Ohba | Associate | View Profile | |
Karl Pires | Partner | View Profile | |
Karl Pires | Partner | View Profile | |
Takako Shigetomi | Associate | View Profile |
Legal Briefings
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The last two years have seen significant developments and unexpected turns in the financial restructuring market. The impact of the Covid pandemic precipitated an immediate and significant uptick in the level of corporates facing underperformance and distress, only to be followed in 2021 by an incredibly ‘hot’ financing market and significant drop-off in corporate default …