DLA Piper is continuing to expand its leading Finance & Projects and Corporate teams with the appointment of two new partners in the Tokyo office. Kaoru Umino will lead the Finance & Projects practice and Dan Matsuda will lead the Energy sector within Tokyo's Corporate practice.
Kaoru Umino has over 25 years of experience advising on complex cross-border finance and corporate transactions in New York and Tokyo. Her wealth of private practice experience includes advising non-Japanese clients in connection with their proposed investments in renewable energy projects in Japan, and advising the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) on export finance, overseas investment, and project finance transactions in Asia and the Americas. She has also advised U.S. corporate clients on their Japan business operations, and Japanese corporate clients on legal and regulatory issues arising in connection with their international expansion, including issues relating to money-laundering and anti-corruption. Furthermore she has advised on real estate securitization transactions, domestic and cross-border finance/capital markets and M&A transactions.
In addition to her extensive experience in private practice, Kaoru previously worked as a Managing Director and Associate General Counsel for J.P. Morgan in Japan, where among other responsibilities she was responsible for the Legal & Compliance Department. As a member of the senior management team, she provided legal and regulatory advice to the heads of each of the affiliated securities company, the bank, the trust bank and the asset management company. She also participated in a series of strategic initiatives for their Japanese business, including business acquisitions and alliances.
Dan Matsuda is a corporate lawyer with almost two decades of experience advising on domestic and cross-border M&A transactions, joint ventures, manufacturing and distributorship structures, and real estate transactions and investments. His experience spans securities regulations, commercial disputes and general corporate matters, covering a broad range of sectors including chemical, energy, technology and automotive industries.
Dan is qualified in Japan and New York, while Kaoru is admitted in New York and registered in Japan as a foreign qualified lawyer. Before joining DLA Piper, both Kaoru and Dan were partners at the Tokyo offices of Jones Day.
Terry O'Malley, Chair of DLA Piper’s Asia Committee, welcomed the team to DLA Piper commenting: ""Kaoru and Dan's appointments reflect our commitment to expanding our ability to service inbound and outbound transactions in Japan. This is the latest step in the growth of our finance and corporate practices in Asia. We recently expanded the Finance & Projects practice with partners Douglas Murning, Matthias Schemuth and Andrew Payne joining the team in Asia last year, as well as adding lawyers like Qiang Li, Stewart Wang and James Chang to our corporate practice in mainland China. Our 90 plus offices allow us to serve Japanese clients wherever they have legal needs, and these additions present an even more compelling proposition for our clients interested in doing business in Japan.""
Lance Miller, Country Managing Partner for Japan, added: ""Both Kaoru and Dan are talented practitioners with great experience and reputation. Combined with our already strong capabilities and supported by our international platform, their arrival will further bolster our practices. I am thrilled that they are joining the Tokyo office and I look forward to working with them.""
