It gives me immense pleasure to welcome all our newly-minted 2025 GC Powerlist Japan awardees, whether you are appearing for the first time, second time or, most prestigious of all, you are among the lucky few who have appeared in all three of our editions so far.  As our research base grows each year, each edition of the GC Powerlist gets correspondingly more competitive, so inclusion in this year’s list is a major achievement that you should be extremely proud of. 

As well as a huge congratulations to everyone appearing in this listing of Japan’s top in-house counsel, on behalf of everyone in Legal 500’s in-house legal research team I must also extend sincere thanks for the thoughtfulness and in-depth nature of the interviews provided to me during the four months I have spent researching this project.   

Having edited thousands of interviews with leading corporate counsel around the world during my time at Legal 500, I can confidently say that the average quality of contributions in this edition is perhaps the highest I’ve seen across any GC Powerlist—detailed, comprehensive, and rich with practical insights on how to navigate the complex waters of the modern general counsel role. 

There was also a refreshing clarity of purpose in the answers provided. Take, for example, Yosuke Yashio of Lenovo Group’s explanation of when to outsource a legal service, which is a perfect fit for an educational textbook:  

‘We use external legal services mainly in case of the following scenarios: a) the external service is more cost-effective than our inhouse resources; b) the external service has appropriate expertise in a given jurisdiction which we do not have; c) to supplement bandwidth of our inhouse counsel.   

Each of our in-house counsel managing external legal services is responsible for selecting the right external counsel at the right cost. Engaging external counsel can be justified only in one or more of scenarios (a) to (c) above. With [a] personal estimate in mind, we can assess a fee quote from external service providers. If the quote aligns with our own estimate, we may consider it reasonable. Otherwise, we might seek a further fee quote from other legal service providers, either to verify reasonableness or to create competitive tension for the engagement.   

 External service providers are evaluated primarily based on:   

 (i) whether they directly address our queries or solve our problems, rather than simply citing relevant laws;   

(ii) whether the manner of their engagement demonstrates a sense of ownership comparable to that of in-house counsel (for example, understanding internal decision-making processes, responsiveness, and tracking issues through to completion); and   

(iii) whether there is an absence of unnecessary work (for example, involving too many lawyers, producing redundant memos, or providing excessively lengthy explanations).   

If all of criteria (i) to (iii) are met, we are likely to be eager to continue working with the same external service providers, provided their fees remain reasonable, as described in the preceding paragraph.’  

On the strategic end of the spectrum, many interviewees choose to speak about how to minimise risk for their organisations, given the challenges businesses are facing as the global trade system faces increasing headwinds. An excellent example is Nobu Hiroi, Global Chief Legal Officer  of Mujin, who believes that legal departments are ‘the natural architects of organisational resilience’. The legal team’s first role during a crisis, Hiroi goes on, ‘is not just to contain legal exposure, but to map the full system, identifying key internal and external stakeholders, pressure points and risks. From there, we construct a communication and decision-making framework that neutralises tension and builds trust, often across conflicting priorities.  

He gives an example of how this works in practice: ‘when escalating tariffs and geopolitical tensions disrupted Mujin’s ability to operate efficiently across the US, Japan and China, I led the legal restructuring of our intercompany sales and supply workflow. This required coordinating with sales, R&D, supply chain, tax, operations and finance to develop a legally sound structure that preserved operational agility, reduced customs exposure and future-proofed our licensing model. Rather than relying on ad hoc workarounds, we created a dynamic and resilient system for managing supply chain risk under volatile conditions, turning a reactive challenge into a strategic redesign.’  

The top GCs are leaders who can get the most of each member of their legal team. Kenji Tagaya, head of legal for national energy company JERA, gives a useful insight into how to do this:  

‘I am passionate about respecting the strengths of each member and creating a system where members with different backgrounds can demonstrate their abilities.   

It is easy to talk about meritocracy. However, it is a fact that there are people who cannot demonstrate their abilities because they lack the necessary resources due to reasons such as age, gender, native language, different backgrounds, or being new to the organisation.   

I am committed to removing such invisible barriers. As the saying goes: “More work with less people”. Instead of lamenting this, I focus on how to help the current members fully utilise their abilities. From my experience working abroad in a foreign environment, I am attuned to such insights. Before complaining that members are not performing to their full potential, I make it my motto to identify the barriers and remove them once they are recognised.’  

Yuko Noguchi, head of legal for Japan at Google, added to this insight in the context of working at one of the world’s largest multinational companies:   

‘Two things are key to our success.  Representing Japan well in the complex matrix of global risk-taking decisions within Google is always an important aspect of our job, given legal and cultural differences in regulation and business and evolving sentiments within our country.  Explaining our efforts, responsibility and positions externally to regulators and our partners is another important aspect of our job.  In the time of change and instability, things can change in many aspects – being flexible and open-minded, deciding what we can change and what we need to adopt, and maintaining close communication with stakeholders internally and externally is key to navigate the time of change.  As the general counsel for Japan, making sure I support the well-being and motivation of my team members is another important aspect of my job.  Here, I bring forward transparency and empathy in my daily work.’  

Undoubtedly the most poignant interview included this year is the one with Tim Mackey, corporate officer, CLO & GCO and head of legal at Softbank Group Corporation. As most reading this will know, Tim sadly passed away unexpectedly between providing his GC Powerlist interview and the launch of the publication. Tim was always a positive, cheerful and knowledgeable presence in the room, and what was always most striking was how helpful and engaging he was, particularly for someone who has reached the very pinnacle of the profession they have devoted their life to. This tragedy creates a void within the Japanese legal community that cannot be filled, but he leaves behind an unmatched legacy and many people – family, friends and colleagues alike – who have been positively impacted by him.  

These are just a few of the many valuable insights you’ll find in the full interviews featured in this packed 2025 edition of the Japan GC Powerlist. Japan may well be my favourite edition to work on out of all Legal 500’s GC Powerlists that we publish around the world, and it was a very satisfying experience to polish the excellent interviews provided to me in 2025. 

Thank you once again to everyone who engaged with me during the research, and to all those who offered research guidance, tips, and support along the way. In particular, our headline law firm sponsors, Anderson Mori & Tomotsune and Morrison Foerster, were instrumental in helping shape this edition, while iManage, Just Legal, and SS&C Intralinks also played key roles in the research process. 

Most importantly, congratulations to all those featured, for everything you have achieved in your careers to reach this point. Legal 500’s international GC Powerlist community is an elite group, and you should feel justly proud to be part of it. 

Joe Boswell 

Global Editor – GC Powerlist and Manager, International Events Content 

Legal 500 

July 2025