- Notices
Yoshikazu Ochiai joins Nishimura & Asahi
We are pleased to announce that Yoshikazu Ochiai has joined Nishimura & Asahi as an Of Counsel.
Since his appointment as a prosecutor in 1986, Yoshikazu Ochiai has investigated and prosecuted crimes committed both within corporations, such as embezzlement, breach of trust, and insider trading, as well as crimes organized by corporations, such as tax evasion, price cartels, false statements in financial statements, and bribery of foreign public officials. At the Criminal Investigation Bureau of the Ministry of Justice, he was involved in the revision of criminal penalties for economic laws and regulations, and he participated in the negotiations for the conclusion of the Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials at the OECD. He was also posted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as first secretary at the Embassy of Japan in France, where he was in charge of mutual legal assistance in investigations between Japan and France, as well as reporting to Japan on revisions to the French judicial system. He was also posted to the Office for the Promotion of Justice System Reform within the Cabinet, engaging in the revision of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
From 2018, he served in the roles of Chief of the Criminal Investigation Department of the Supreme Public Prosecutors Office, Deputy Prosecutor-General, and Superintending Prosecutor of the Tokyo High Public Prosecutors Office, where he supervised a number of prosecutors.
With his considerable knowledge and experience, Yoshikazu Ochiai is expected to make a significant contribution to our firm as a leading member of our corporate crisis management practice group.
Profile of Yoshikazu Ochiai
Since his appointment as a prosecutor in 1986, Yoshikazu has been responsible for investigating and prosecuting crimes committed both within corporations, such as embezzlement, breach of trust, and insider trading, as well as crimes organized by corporations, such as tax evasion, price cartels, false statements in financial statements, and bribery of foreign public officials. In addition, he has handled many other criminal cases arising from changes in social and economic conditions. In each case, he considered the social background of the crime, the essential issues involved, the reasons why the crime could not be prevented, and the impact of the crime on society, and tried to ensure that the handling of the case was appropriate to prevent the recurrence of such incidents. At the Criminal Investigation Bureau of the Ministry of Justice, he was involved in the revision of criminal penalties for economic laws and regulations, and participated in the negotiations for the conclusion of the Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials at the OECD. He was also posted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as first secretary at the Embassy of Japan in France, where he was in charge of mutual legal assistance in investigations between Japan and France, as well as reporting to Japan on revisions to the French judicial system. He was also posted to the Office for the Promotion of Justice System Reform within the Cabinet, engaging in the revision of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
From 2018, he served in the roles of Chief of the Criminal Investigation Department of the Supreme Public Prosecutors Office, Deputy Prosecutor-General, and Superintending Prosecutor of the Tokyo High Public Prosecutors Office, where he supervised a number of prosecutors.