Blake Dawson says its precedent-setting move in being the first Australian firm in Japan may help other Aussie firms launch there too.
Six months after announcing its plans, the firm coordinated with the Japanese Ministry of Justice to obtain regulatory approvals and has secured its licence to operate as a foreign firm advising on Australian law.
“It was a fairly lengthy process in confirming that our office would satisfy all the legal requirements of the ministry,” said resident partner Natsuko Ogawa. “It was probably made more difficult in that the Australian system has not had to come into their scrutiny in the past. That in some ways may benefit other firms following in our footsteps if they choose to, but it’s hard to say.”
Managing partner John Carrington said the office is the fruit of many years of focus on Japan: “Attaining the licence represents not just a major step for Blake Dawson but for the Australian legal profession,” he said. “It follows extensive discussions and engagement with the Japanese regulatory authorities …”
Ogawa is accompanied by three other lawyers stationed at the new office, with another to join later this year. Although the firm has a stable list of Japanese clients such as Kirin and Mitsui – there is scepticism that the market for an Australian firm in Japan may not be sustainable.
“The market solely for Australian law advice is far too thin in Tokyo to merit a major investment there by the large Australian law firms, who already compete effectively for this business among themselves in the major Australian cities,” said White & Case Tokyo partner Robert Grondine, in a February interview with Australasian Legal Business. “Just because there has been a surge of investment transactions from Japan to Australia in the past 12-24 months, which already illustrates my point that all of that work has been accomplished and serviced by them without having offices in Tokyo, does not justify the very large investment to open offices and staff people to Tokyo for the ongoing future.”
Ogawa says that the firm is focusing on building relationships with clients and Japanese firms on the ground. “Australian firms have done very well serving clients from Australia over the years and their clients may well be more than happy with that arrangement,” she said. “In that sense, for those companies us opening a Tokyo office may make no difference to them – but it’s a case by case basis and for [companies] less familiar with the Australian market there will be some level of attraction in having someone close by, with a local presence.”
The firm does not see itself in competition with international and domestic firms in Japan, added Ogawa. “We see ourselves part of the service offering that the Australian [arm] has to date developed,” she said. “We don’t see ourselves as a separate office with separate objectives – our performance will be assessed in the context of our overall team’s performance. The relationships we have with Japanese law firms are an accumulation of years working together, and having a local presence is further opportunity to develop those.”
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