Legal Internationals — Comprehensive legal publicationLegal Internationals · Comprehensive legal publication
Jurisdiction · JP · G20

Top Law Firms in Japan

Nishimura & Asahi leads, on recognitions from 2 independent publishers, as the firm announced them. 10 of the 37 firms on file are placed on evidence; the rest are listed, not ranked.

Firms on File
37
Region
Asia-Pacific
Evidence coverage
30% of 50% needed
Press mentions
62
Japan: Tokyo Tower, Minato City
Japan: Tokyo Tower, Minato CityDavid Kernan · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Tokyo Tower

Top 10 Law Firms in Japan

By recognitions

In Japan, 10 of 31 verified firms are placed: 10 placed by recognitions the firm announced from at least two independent publishers, reconciled to one figure per publisher. Firms on file without either are listed in the directory below and are not ranked. No composite score is published for Japan.

  1. 1Nishimura & AsahiRecognised by 2 independent publishers
  2. 2Mori Hamada & MatsumotoRecognised by 2 independent publishers
  3. 3Anderson Mori & TomotsuneRecognised by 2 independent publishers
  4. 4Nagashima Ohno & TsunematsuRecognised by 2 independent publishers
  5. 5Baker McKenzie TokyoRecognised by 2 independent publishers
  6. 6TMI AssociatesRecognised by 2 independent publishers
  7. 7Abe, Ikubo & KatayamaRecognised by 2 independent publishers
  8. 8Atsumi & SakaiRecognised by 2 independent publishers
  9. 9Vanguard Lawyers TokyoRecognised by 2 independent publishers
  10. 10Oh-Ebashi LPC & PartnersRecognised by 2 independent publishers

Rankings by practice area in Japan

20 practice areas · read from the publishers’ tables

Each publisher’s placement as it stands on the publisher’s own table, side by side. The practice areas are grouped under one name where publishers word them differently; the publisher’s own wording is shown on hover.

Corporate and M&A

FirmChambersThe Legal 500
Anderson Mori & TomotsuneBand 2Tier 1
Baker McKenzie (Gaikokuho Joint Enterprise)Band 3Band 4Tier 1Tier 1Tier 3Tier 1Tier 1Tier 1Tier 1Tier 1Tier 1Tier 1Tier 2
Clifford ChanceBand 4Band 3Tier 3Tier 1Tier 1Tier 2Tier 2Tier 1Tier 2Tier 2Tier 1Tier 2
Hogan Lovells CadwaladerBand 4Tier 2Tier 1
Mori HamadaBand 1Tier 1
Morrison FoersterBand 1Tier 1Tier 2Tier 2Tier 1Tier 1Tier 1Tier 2Tier 1Tier 1
Nagashima Ohno & TsunematsuBand 1Tier 1
Nishimura & AsahiBand 1Tier 1
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLPBand 4Tier 3Tier 1Tier 4Tier 1
TMI AssociatesBand 2Tier 1
White & Case LLP - White & Case Law Offices (Registered Association)Band 2Band 2Tier 2Tier 1Tier 1Tier 3Tier 3Tier 1Tier 1Tier 2Tier 2
Greenberg Traurig Tokyo Law Offices—Tier 1
King & Spalding—Tier 3Tier 3Tier 1
Latham & Watkins Gaikokuho Joint Enterprise—Tier 3Tier 1Tier 2
Linklaters—Tier 1Tier 1Tier 1
Milbank—Tier 2Tier 1
Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP—Tier 3Tier 2Tier 1Tier 1
Atsumi & SakaiBand 5Tier 2
Jones DayBand 4Tier 2Tier 2Tier 2Tier 3Tier 3Tier 3
Miura & PartnersBand 4Tier 2
Oh-Ebashi LPC & PartnersBand 3Tier 2
Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLPBand 5Tier 3Tier 3Tier 2
Ropes & GrayBand 3Tier 2Tier 3
A&O ShearmanBand 2—
DLA Piper Tokyo Partnership Gaikokuho Kyodojigyo Horitsu Jimusho—Tier 2Tier 3Tier 2Tier 3
Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer LLPBand 2—
Withers Japan—Tier 3Tier 2Tier 2
Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 3—
FreshfieldsBand 3Band 3—
Iwata Godo—Tier 3
Mayer Brown GJBJ—Tier 3Tier 3
PwC Legal Japan—Tier 3Tier 4Tier 3Tier 3
Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP—Tier 3Tier 3
Sidley Austin Foreign Law Joint Enterprise—Tier 3
Watson Farley & Williams (Gaikokuho Kyodo Jigyo Horitsu Jimusho)—Tier 3
Tokyo International Law OfficeBand 5Tier 4
Ushijima & PartnersBand 5Tier 4
DLA Piper Tokyo PartnershipBand 4Band 4—
Gaien PartnersBand 4—
Kojima Law Offices—Tier 4
Linklaters TokyoBand 5Band 4—
One Asia Lawyers—Tier 4
Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLPBand 4—
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Affiliates | Skadden Arps Law OfficeBand 4—
City-Yuwa PartnersBand 5Tier 5

Energy, Resources and Infrastructure

FirmChambersThe Legal 500
Anderson Mori & TomotsuneBand 1Tier 1
Mori HamadaBand 1Tier 1
Nagashima Ohno & TsunematsuBand 1Tier 1
Nishimura & AsahiBand 1Band 4Tier 1
A&O ShearmanBand 1—
Milbank LLPBand 1—
Atsumi & SakaiBand 2Tier 2
TMI AssociatesBand 2Tier 3
Baker McKenzie (Gaikokuho Joint Enterprise)Band 2Band 3—
Clifford ChanceBand 2Band 2—
Morrison FoersterBand 2—
White & Case LLP - White & Case Law Offices (Registered Association)Band 2—
City-Yuwa PartnersBand 3Tier 3
Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer LLPBand 3—
King & Spalding Gaikokuho Jimu Bengoshi JimushoBand 3—
Latham & Watkins Gaikokuho Joint EnterpriseBand 3—
Linklaters TokyoBand 3Band 3—
Norton Rose FulbrightBand 3—
Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLPBand 3—
Ashurst Perkins CoieBand 4—
Hunton Andrews Kurth LLPBand 4—
Kaynex Law Offices—Tier 4
Mayer Brown GJBJBand 4—
Oh-Ebashi LPC & Partners—Tier 4
PillsburyBand 4—
Sidley Austin Foreign Law Joint EnterpriseBand 4—

Banking and Finance

FirmChambersThe Legal 500
Anderson Mori & TomotsuneBand 1Tier 1Tier 1
Mori HamadaBand 1Tier 1Tier 1
Nagashima Ohno & TsunematsuBand 1Tier 1Tier 2
Nishimura & AsahiBand 1Tier 1Tier 2
TMI AssociatesBand 3Tier 1Tier 3
Baker McKenzie (Gaikokuho Joint Enterprise)Band 2Band 1—
Clifford ChanceBand 1Band 2—
So & Sato Law Offices—Tier 1
White & Case LLP - White & Case Law Offices (Registered Association)Band 2Band 1—
Atsumi & SakaiBand 2Tier 2Tier 3
City-Yuwa PartnersBand 3Tier 2
A&O ShearmanBand 2—
K&L GatesBand 2—
Milbank LLPBand 2—
Morrison FoersterBand 2—
Norton Rose FulbrightBand 4Band 2—
Ropes & GrayBand 2—
Iwata Godo—Tier 3
Kaynex Law Offices—Tier 3
Oh-Ebashi LPC & Partners—Tier 3
PillsburyBand 3—
Watson Farley & Williams (Gaikokuho Kyodo Jigyo Horitsu Jimusho)Band 4Band 3—

Capital Markets

FirmChambersThe Legal 500
Anderson Mori & TomotsuneBand 1Band 1Tier 1
Mori HamadaBand 1Band 1Tier 1
Nagashima Ohno & TsunematsuBand 1Band 1Tier 1
Nishimura & AsahiBand 1Band 2Tier 1
Clifford ChanceBand 1Band 1—
Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPBand 1—
Linklaters TokyoBand 1Band 1Band 1—
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLPBand 1—
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Affiliates | Skadden Arps Law OfficeBand 1—
Atsumi & SakaiBand 2Tier 3
TMI AssociatesBand 3Tier 2
Baker McKenzie (Gaikokuho Joint Enterprise)Band 2—
A&O ShearmanBand 3—
Morrison FoersterBand 3Band 3—

Private Equity and Funds

FirmChambersThe Legal 500
Anderson Mori & TomotsuneBand 1Tier 1
Mori HamadaBand 1Tier 1
Nagashima Ohno & TsunematsuBand 1Tier 1
Nishimura & AsahiBand 1Tier 1
Atsumi & Sakai—Tier 2
Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLPBand 2—
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLPBand 2—
TMI AssociatesBand 3Tier 3
DLA Piper Tokyo PartnershipBand 3—
Oh-Ebashi LPC & Partners—Tier 3
So & Sato Law Offices—Tier 3
White & Case LLP - White & Case Law Offices (Registered Association)Band 3—

International Trade

FirmChambersThe Legal 500
Mori HamadaBand 1—
Nishimura & AsahiBand 1—
Anderson Mori & TomotsuneBand 2—
Baker McKenzie (Gaikokuho Joint Enterprise)Band 2—
White & Case LLP - White & Case Law Offices (Registered Association)Band 2—
Ashurst Perkins CoieBand 3—
TMI AssociatesBand 3—

Insurance and Reinsurance

FirmChambersThe Legal 500
Anderson Mori & TomotsuneBand 1—
Mori HamadaBand 1—
Nishimura & AsahiBand 1—
Baker McKenzie (Gaikokuho Joint Enterprise)Band 2—
Linklaters TokyoBand 2—
Chuo Sogo LPCBand 3—

Shipping, Aviation and Transport

FirmChambersThe Legal 500
Hiratsuka & CoSpotlightTier 1
Nishimura & Asahi—Tier 2
TMI Associates—Tier 2
Atsumi & Sakai—Tier 3
City-Yuwa Partners—Tier 3

Other practice areas

FirmChambersThe Legal 500
Mori HamadaSpotlightTier 3
Nagashima Ohno & TsunematsuSpotlightTier 1
Nishimura & AsahiSpotlightTier 1
Baker McKenzie (Gaikokuho Joint Enterprise)—Tier 1
DLA Piper Tokyo Partnership Gaikokuho Kyodojigyo Horitsu Jimusho—Tier 1
TMI Associates—Tier 1
Atsumi & Sakai—Tier 2
K&L Gates—Tier 2
Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP—Tier 2
Oh-Ebashi LPC & Partners—Tier 2
Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP—Tier 2
City-Yuwa Partners—Tier 3

Guides Written by Firms in Japan

190 chapters

Country chapters firms contributed to the directories' comparative guides. The firm wrote it; the link goes to the host. Chapters stay with the host.

How Japan Is Ranked

14 of 37 firms in Japan are ranked here, ordered by a reconciliation of 2 external publishers (Chambers, The Legal 500). Each figure is the weighted mean of the best tier every publisher gave that firm, and no firm appears without at least two independent publishers agreeing. Firms with no reconciled figure are listed below the ranked ones, alphabetically, and are not ranked.

Publishers Reconciled Here

Chambers · The Legal 500

What This Ranking Does Not Rest On

  • 6 of 37 entries still rest on a Wikipedia category rather than the firm's own website
  • no court record feeds any firm's position — judgments are collected but not yet attributed to the firms that argued them
  • no firm has made a submission, because intake is not open
  • no peer or client review has been collected
Firms ranked
14 of 37
Verified against own site
31 of 37
Evidence coverage
30%

Ranked Firms

By reconciled consensus, then A–Z
FirmPress
Anderson Mori & Tomotsune8
Baker McKenzie Tokyo—
Mori Hamada & Matsumoto14
Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu6
Nishimura & Asahi17
TMI Associates—
Abe, Ikubo & Katayama—
Atsumi & Sakai2
Vanguard Lawyers Tokyo—
Oh-Ebashi LPC & Partners—
Ushijima & Partners—
City-Yuwa Partners—
Miura & Partners—
Tokyo International Law Office—
Adire Legal Professional Corporation—
Blakemore & Mitsuki—
Chuo Sogo LPC—
Daiichi Fuyo Law Office—
Gaien Partners—
Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer LLP15
Hibiya-Nakata—
Hiroe & Associates—
Iwata Godo—
Kaynex Law Offices—
Kitahama Partners—
Kojima Law Offices—
Momo-o, Matsuo & Namba—
Nakamura & Partners—
Ohno & Partners—
One Asia Lawyers—
Pillsbury—
Sakura Sogo Law Offices—
Sakurazaka Law Offices—
Shiga International—
So & Sato Law Offices—
Sugimura & Partners—
Yuasa and Hara—

Every firm above is a real entity with a source recorded against it. Inclusion is not an endorsement. Firms recognised by at least two independent publishers are listed first; the rest follow alphabetically. Founding years are shown only where a source states one.

Bar associations, in-house counsel bodies and arbitral institutions, by market · 86

Korean Bar Association대한변호사협회Korea In-house Counsel Association한국사내변호사회Japan Federation of Bar Associations logoJapan Federation of Bar AssociationsJapan In-house Lawyers Association logoJapan In-house Lawyers AssociationAll China Lawyers Association logoAll China Lawyers AssociationLaw Society of Hong Kong logoLaw Society of Hong KongHong Kong Corporate Counsel AssociationTaiwan Bar Association logoTaiwan Bar AssociationLaw Society of SingaporeSingapore Corporate Counsel AssociationBar Council of IndiaIndian Corporate Counsel AssociationLaw Society of England and WalesBar Council of England and WalesAmerican Bar AssociationAssociation of Corporate CounselCanadian Bar Association logoCanadian Bar AssociationCanadian Corporate Counsel AssociationLaw Council of Australia logoLaw Council of AustraliaBundesrechtsanwaltskammer logoBundesrechtsanwaltskammerBundesverband der UnternehmensjuristenBUJConseil national des barreaux logoConseil national des barreauxAssociation Française des Juristes d'Entreprise logoAssociation Française des Juristes d'EntrepriseOrdem dos Advogados do BrasilOABLaw Society of South Africa logoLaw Society of South AfricaNigerian Bar Association logoNigerian Bar AssociationIstanbul Bar Association logoIstanbul Bar AssociationIsrael Bar Associationלשכת עורכי הדיןKorean Commercial Arbitration Board대한상사중재원Japan Commercial Arbitration Association日本商事仲裁協会China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission logoChina International Economic and Trade Arbitration CommissionHong Kong International Arbitration Centre香港國際仲裁中心Singapore International Arbitration CentreAsian International Arbitration Centre logoAsian International Arbitration CentreThai Arbitration InstituteสถาบันอนุญาโตตุลาการVietnam International Arbitration Centre logoVietnam International Arbitration CentreIndonesian National Board of Arbitration logoIndonesian National Board of ArbitrationPhilippine Dispute Resolution Center logoPhilippine Dispute Resolution CenterMumbai Centre for International Arbitration logoMumbai Centre for International ArbitrationChinese Arbitration Association, Taipei logoChinese Arbitration Association, TaipeiLondon Court of International ArbitrationICC International Court of Arbitration logoICC International Court of ArbitrationGerman Arbitration InstituteDeutsche Institution für SchiedsgerichtsbarkeitSwiss Arbitration Centre logoSwiss Arbitration CentreNetherlands Arbitration Institute logoNetherlands Arbitration InstituteMilan Chamber of Arbitration logoMilan Chamber of ArbitrationMadrid International Arbitration CenterCentro Internacional de Arbitraje de MadridArbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce logoArbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of CommerceIstanbul Arbitration Centreİstanbul Tahkim MerkeziDubai International Arbitration Centre logoDubai International Arbitration CentreSaudi Center for Commercial Arbitration logoSaudi Center for Commercial ArbitrationIsraeli Institute of Commercial Arbitrationהמוסד הישראלי לבוררות עסקיתLagos Court of ArbitrationArbitration Foundation of Southern Africa logoArbitration Foundation of Southern AfricaAmerican Arbitration Association, ICDR logoAmerican Arbitration Association, ICDRADR Institute of CanadaInstitut d'arbitrage et de médiation du CanadaCentro de Arbitraje de México logoCentro de Arbitraje de MéxicoCAM-CCBCCentro de Arbitragem e Mediação da Câmara de Comércio Brasil-CanadáAustralian Centre for International Commercial Arbitration logoAustralian Centre for International Commercial ArbitrationInternational Centre for Settlement of Investment DisputesPermanent Court of ArbitrationCour permanente d'arbitrageIntegrated Bar of the PhilippinesMalaysian BarMajlis Peguam MalaysiaLawyers Council of Thailand logoLawyers Council of ThailandVietnam Bar FederationLiên đoàn Luật sư Việt NamIndonesian Advocates Association logoIndonesian Advocates AssociationMacau Lawyers Association澳門律師公會Law Society of IrelandDlí-Chumann na hÉireannGerman Bar AssociationDeutscher AnwaltvereinParis Bar logoParis BarConsiglio Nazionale ForenseConsejo General de la Abogacía EspañolaNetherlands Bar logoNetherlands BarSwiss Bar AssociationSchweizerischer AnwaltsverbandSwedish Bar Association logoSwedish Bar AssociationUnion of Turkish Bar AssociationsTürkiye Barolar BirliğiFederal Chamber of Lawyers of the Russian Federation logoFederal Chamber of Lawyers of the Russian FederationDubai Legal Affairs Department logoDubai Legal Affairs DepartmentSaudi Bar Associationالهيئة السعودية للمحامينLegal Practice Council of South AfricaBarra Mexicana, Colegio de Abogados logoBarra Mexicana, Colegio de AbogadosColegio Público de la Abogacía de la Capital FederalInternational Bar Association logoInternational Bar AssociationLAWASIA logoLAWASIAUnion Internationale des Avocats logoUnion Internationale des AvocatsInter-Pacific Bar Association logoInter-Pacific Bar Association