Top Japanese law firm Nishimura & Asahi is opening two offices in Germany – its first in Europe. The offices in Frankfurt and Düsseldorf – which is being dubbed a ‘branch office’ - will be jointly led by Japanese law qualified partner Noriya Ishikawa, a specialists in IP, data and privacy law, and German law qualified partner Dominik Kruse, a corporate specialist.

Although the offices will offer both Japanese and German law advice, the firm was keen to underline its intention to continue working with ‘top tier’ independent European law firms in Germany and beyond.

“We continue to value highly our relationships with such firms, and we see this as a further step to deepen our strong and friendly connections with them in the mutual service of our clients,” said managing partner Masaki Hosaka. 

He said the firm’s goal was to provide “a more convenient presence and a coordinating point for European clients as they do business in Asia”, adding:  “The focus of our operations in Germany on large, complex, cross-border matters, regulatory and compliance advice and on disputes aligns with our firm’s international growth strategy.”

Nishimura & Asahi lays claim to being Japan’s largest law firm, with more than 600 lawyers. It has a network of offices across Asia as well as a presence in Dubai and New York.

Noriya Ishikawa is a longstanding Nishimura lawyer with links to Germany and the US, having gained legal qualifications in both jurisdictions. He was made a partner in January 2018.

Kruse joined Nishimura last year from Pfizer, where he was a New York-based in-house counsel. He started out his career in Clifford Chance’s Düsseldorf office, moving to its New York office in 2017.