Yanagida Kazuhiro
Chair & Managing Partner
Practice Areas：
M&A
Corporate
Business Succession
Financial Law
Crisis Management
Business Restructuring
Dispute Resolution
Personal Information Data Protection
Consumer Protection Law
Environmental Law
Pharmaceutical Law
Transportation Law
Real Estate Law
Instruments and Exchange Act
Compliance
Private Equity
Cross-border transactions
Languages：
Japanese
English
Careers
1991
Tokyo Gakugei University Senior High School
1996
Meiji University, Faculty of Law
1999
Completed Master's Program, Graduate School of Law, Waseda University
2000
Admitted to the Bar (Tokyo Bar Association)
2000-2002
Visiting Scholar, Harvard Law School
2003
Harvard Law School（LL.M.）
2003-2004
Foreign Associate, Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP (New York)
2004
Admitted to the New York Bar
2004
Judicial Extern, United States Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California
2004-2005
AlixPartners (New York, Turnaround Management Group)
2006–2010
Nishimura & Asahi
2010
Yanagida & Partners
Outside Directorships
2011–Present
Outside Company Auditor, Daiwa Next Bank, Ltd.
2025–Present
Outside Director, Tsukuba Golf Course Co., Ltd.
International Activities
2011–Present
Review Committee Member, World Bank Task Force on Bankruptcy and Corporate Restructuring (Washington, D.C.)
2012–Present
Harvard Law School Leadership Council
2019, 2023
Expert Committee Member, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Workshop on Business Rehabilitation and Personal Insolvency (Singapore)
Public Interest Activities
2015–Present
Outside Director, Ebara Hatakeyama Memorial Foundation for Culture
2026–Present
Executive Managing Director of the Nakamura Tempu Foundation (Tempukai), a Public Interest Incorporated Foundation
Educational and Research Activities
2023–Present
Visiting Specially Appointed Professor, Tohoku University （Advanced Graduate Program for Future Medicine and Health Care）
Interviews
Dialogue: The Essence of Legal Work and Professionalism Seen from the Front Lines of M&A －Representative Partner Kazuhiro Yanagida× Partner Mitsuhito Taki
Dialogue: At the Forefront of Securities and Financial Law—Practical Expertise Tackling Complex Regulations and Cutting-Edge Schemes －Representative Partner Kazuhiro Yanagida × Partner Mitsuhito Taki
Dialogue: "Operating from the Management Perspective" - The Essence of our Crisis Management —Representative Partner Kazuhiro Yanagida × Partner Yohei Okuda
Dialogue: At the Forefront of Litigation and Dispute Resolution—The [Front Lines] Where All of a Lawyer's Capabilities Are Put to the Test Representative Partner Kazuhiro Yanagida× Partner Mitsuhito Taki× Partner Yoshiyuki Watanabe
Awards
4th in Cross-border M&A 6th in General Corporate Legal Affairs 10th in Compliance 17th in AI Governance (Nikkei’s 2025 Annual Survey of Leading Lawyers)
2025
Nikkei Inc.’s "Lawyers Ranked by Companies (2024)" General Corporate Law: 7th place International Trade & Economic Security: 6th place Consumer Affairs: 6th place Tax: 13th place
2024
Nikkei Inc.’s "Lawyers Ranked by Companies (2023)" M&A: 2nd place General Corporate Law: 4th place Crisis Management: 7th place Business and Human Rights: 10th place
2023
Nikkei Inc.’s "Lawyers Ranked by Companies (2022)" International Trade and Economic Security Field: 2nd place General Corporate Law: 4th place
2022
Nikkei Inc.’s "Lawyers Ranked by Companies (2021)" Corporate Legal Affairs Category: 3rd place
2021
Publications
"The Limits of Arbitration Clauses as Seen in the Toshiba-WD Case" NBL (Issue 1103, August 1, 2017)
2017
"Key Points in Managing Overseas Subsidiaries (Part 1 & Part 2)" Chugin Global News (Overseas News) published by The Chugin Bank, Ltd. (May 2017 issue and June 2017 issue)
2017
"The Future of Bankruptcy Systems for SMEs and Other Entities - Report on Participation in the World Bank ICR Task Force Meeting (2016)" NBL (Issue 1088, December 15, 2016)
2016
"Report on Participation in the World Bank ICR Task Force Meeting" NBL (No. 1070, March 15, 2016)
2016
Common Pitfalls to Avoid in English Contracts" Business Law Journal (May 2015 Issue)
2015
"Key Points for Managing Overseas Subsidiaries: Lessons Learned from Risk-Based Approaches and Scandals" Business Law Journal (October 2014 issue)
2014
"The Reality of Insider Trading Prevention" Roundtable Discussion Article, Business Law Journal (December 2013 issue)
2013
"Division of Roles Between Legal Departments and Law Firms: Proactive Outsourcing to Attorneys" Dialogue Article, Business Law Journal (May 2013 issue)
2013
Media
Interview published in "International Justice Corps," Harvard Law Bulletin, Spring 2024
2024
Commentary published in "Is Our Company Safe?" Nidec's Excessive Dividend Issue Sends Ripples to Other Companies, Nikkei Shimbun (print edition: August 21, digital edition: August 18)
2023
Commentary published in "Nidek Overpaid Dividends in April-September 2022 Period," Nikkei Shimbun (print edition: June 3, digital edition, June 2)
2023
Commentary published in "2023: How Laws and Rules Will Change" "Obligation to Provide Meeting Materials Electronically," Nikkei Shimbun (print edition: January 9, digital edition: January 8)
2023
Appeared on BS TV Tokyo's "Nikkei Morning Plus FT" (October 25)
2021
Commentary published in "Deep Dive: U.S. Corporate Acquisition Risks Are Off the Charts: Germany's Bayer Settles for Over ¥1 Trillion," Nikkei Shimbun, July 8
2020
Commentary published in "Huawei Cornered: The Devastating Impact of 'Export Ban Measures'," Weekly Toyo Keizai (June 1)
2019
Interview published in "Huawei Export Restrictions: Legal Risks for Companies," Nikkei (May 24)
2019
Seminar
"The Legal Mindset Required of Management in an Era of Transformation" Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Headquarters / Daiwa Securities Co., Ltd. Internal Seminar for Executives
2025
Panelist at an International Conference Hosted by the Ministry of Justice of the Kingdom of Thailand "Legal Approaches to Digital Assets in the Modern Era"
2024
Moderator at a session for legislative officials from Asian countries hosted by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) "Workshop on Business Rehabilitation and Personal Insolvency" (Location: Singapore)
2023
Moderator at a session for legislative officials from Asian countries hosted by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) "Workshop on Business Rehabilitation and Personal Insolvency" (Location: Singapore)
2019
"Roles and Responsibilities Expected of Directors of Listed Companies" In-house Seminar for Clients
2018
"Antitrust Law Seminar: Focusing on Illegal Coordinated Conduct" In-house Seminar for Clients
2017
"Key Points for Responding to Emergencies at Overseas Subsidiaries" Client-Oriented In-House Seminar
2016
"Practical Points for Managing Overseas Subsidiaries" LexisNexis Japan K.K. Hosted Seminar
2016
