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Why having a dedicated Japan practice is important for law firms
In today’s interconnected global legal landscape, the presence of a dedicated Japanese practice within a law firm has become essential, argues one BigLaw practice head.
Grace Robbie
Given the increasing international business and trade relationships between Japan and Australia, the presence of a specialised team well versed in Japanese law, culture, and language can offer significant advantages to law firms and their clients.
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The head of the Japan practice at national law firm Clayton Utz, Hiroyuki Kano, highlights the importance of bridging the gap between the Australian and Japanese legal systems to provide clients with comprehensive and actionable advice. Additionally, he identifies strategies for building a successful Japanese practice within an Australian law firm.
During his early career at a prominent Tokyo law firm, Kano revealed the moment when he noticed the need for lawyers to understand the need to bridge the gap between individuals understanding differing legal systems.
“Going back to my days in the Tokyo law firm in the late ’90s, acting for US clients and doing merger and acquisition deals in Japan, we, as a Japanese law firm at the time, advised US clients about Japanese law in English. But they didn’t sometimes get it and understand it because the background information and knowledge of the law is so different,” he said.
“I thought there was a big gap, not just a language gap, but the knowledge and background is so different they didn’t understand it. Maybe they could understand 70-80 per cent at most.”
This experience and realisation led Kano to understand the necessity for Australian law firms to offer customised legal counsel to Japanese clients as this approach guarantees the provision of comprehensive legal advice required by the clients.
“In Australia, perhaps we should sort of provide tweaked Australian legal advice so that the Japanese clients who have only a Japanese legal background and knowledge can fully understand and appreciate the nuances that are different from Japanese law,” he said.
Kano revealed how a law firm’s ability to bridge this gap effectively makes the legal advice Japanese clients receive more relevant and actionable, which helps foster trust.
“By having this, we can advise the clients by filling out the 20-30 per cent gap efficiently, and that’s how I see the value for the clients and the Japanese law firms by having a dedicated Japan practice,” he said.
He also entailed how this dedicated approach positions law firms to attract more business from clients who seek nuanced and understandable legal advice, expressing that “every single law firm, even the sophisticated firms like other competitors, they did have Japanese practice, but they didn’t have Japanese-qualified lawyers”.
Kano offered guidance on establishing a successful Japan practice within an Australian law firm, highlighting the necessity of adopting a dual strategy involving internal support and external connections.
He said: “Internally, you need the support from the firm. I must say that I’ve been lucky that the management at Clayton Utz has been quite understanding and supportive towards what I have been trying to do.”
This internal support is crucial for providing the necessary resources and encouragement to build and maintain a specialised practice.
Regarding the external matter, Kano emphasised the importance of cultivating relationships with clients and other law firms based in Japan. This approach is integral for establishing trust and rapport, ultimately leading to a preference for seeking legal counsel from your firm.
“Externally, you need to go out there and build up those relationships with clients and also other law firms.
“I was lucky because I originally worked in the Japanese legal profession and there are very limited number of people there, so they knew me,” he said.
In addition to leveraging existing networks, Kano emphasised the importance of ongoing engagement with clients and the broader legal community.
“In terms of the clients, I do lots of seminars in Japan every year and also every fortnight, I write an article about Australian law in the Japanese newspaper,” he said.
He articulated that this consistent presence has proven advantageous, saying: “By doing this, I am known to clients as the one to go to if they have any investment or business opportunities.” In the same conversation with Lawyers Weekly, Kano discussed the key differences between practising law Down Under and in the Land of the Rising Sun.
