Canon Inc. - Antitrust/Competition Litigation

Kozo’s anti-trust/competition practice covers every area of the practice, i.e., violation cases such as cartel and unilateral conduct, merger regulations, and compliance to prevent violations of Japanese and foreign competition laws. Kozo continues to be recognized by international law journals as one of the top practitioners in Japan in the area of competition law. He has handled large scale international cartel cases and has contributed to the realization of prominent merger regulations. In the area of international trade law, Kozo is widely recognized as a pioneer of trade law practice in Japan and has advised both the private sector and governmental agencies. He has been involved in most of the trade remedy investigations, such as those for the imposition of anti-dumping duties and subsidy countervailing duties as counsel to Japanese and foreign clients, and in some overseas trade remedy investigations to defend Japanese clients. In addition, Kozo’s practice covers international disputes, corporate crisis management, and regulatory investigations.

Since 2002, Hiroshi has been a partner in the firm’s M&A and corporate practice area. His experience ranges from M&A (business integration, acquisition and organizational restructuring between operating companies, acquisition of listed/unlisted companies by funds, going private, cross-border M&A, etc.) to general corporate law (general meetings of shareholders, corporate governance, various commercial transactions and contracts, financing, personnel and labor, response to legal revisions, disputes, crisis management, etc.). While he has extensive experience in large-scale and complex M&A transactions, he also provides efficient and effective advice depending on the status of the project in areas such as overseas M&A of Japanese companies, expansion into Japan by overseas companies, and support for startup businesses. In crisis management and dispute cases, he provide practical and effective advice to ensure clients achieve their goals based on a thorough understanding of the circumstances faced by the client. His clients are diverse, including domestic and overseas companies, financial institutions, and investment funds.

Takashi advises in all areas of competition law, including Japanese merger control and compliance, as well as global merger control and investigation involving collaboration with local counsel. His practical advise is based in knowledge and experience garnered through practice in Japan and the EU including secondment to one of the leading firms in global competition law practice in Brussels and over a decade of employment with the Japan Fair Trade Commission.

Tatsuya handles all aspects of competition law-related matters, such as merger control, bid rigging and cartel investigations, anti-trust litigation, and unfair trade practice regulations. He is also involved in advocacy efforts towards the development of competition policy. Tatsuya regularly advises on a number of digital and platform-related competition law cases, and has extensive experience in competition law matters within the infrastructure and energy sectors.

He is well-versed in a wide range of regulatory matters regarding legal issues in the new technology industry, including digital platforms, cloud computing, advertising, AI, data centers, social media, telecommunication services, radio waves, cybersecurity, FinTech, and consumer protection for domestic and international clients. He also offers guidance on analysis and strategy development pertaining to legal and public policy issues in the emerging areas of digital policy and regulations, as well as public policy matters (e.g., sustainability) in light of domestic and international political and policy trends.

He has published numerous works concerning digital policy and regulation, and his work in the field of competition law was featured in the Academic Retrospective of the notable legal journal Horitsujiho in 2023 and 2024. He was selected as the only one Highly Recommended lawyer from Japan in Lexlogy's 2026 Artificial Intelligence - Regulatory & Compliance category.