One has been named Tokyo managing partner
Morgan Lewis & Bockius has recruited two lawyers in Japan from Morrison & Foerster.
Corporate partners Motonori “Moto” Araki and Mitsuyoshi “Mitsu” Saito have joined the firm, with Araki being appointed as Tokyo managing partner. Araki was a partner at Morrison & Foerster, while Saito was of counsel.
The appointments come after Morgan Lewis added partners Karun Cariappa in Singapore and Helen Fok in Hong Kong, followed by partner Hao Su in Beijing.
Araki is returning to the firm, which he left in 2007 as a partner. He is one of Japan’s foremost international lawyers, with a practice that focuses on M&A, commercial transactions, intellectual property licensing, and international dispute resolution.
Saito is a specialist in corporate, dispute resolution, and labour and employment matters. His wide range of clients includes those in the electronics, IT, chemistry, manufacturing, and pharmaceuticals industries.
Jami McKeon, who was recently re-elected as chairwoman of the global firm, said that the duo will solidify Morgan Lewis’ services to clients in Japan and throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
“Their arrival deepens and strengthens our ability to counsel clients on a broad range of both inbound and outbound cross-border corporate and regulatory matters,” she said.
Araki and Saito fill the needs of the firm’s clients for lawyers who are skilled in handling both local and global matters, said Steve Brown, who heads the firm’s global corporate and business transactions practice.
“Our firm and our clients will rely on them for advice on all aspects of transactions involving both Japanese and non-Japanese companies,” he said.
Motonori “Moto” Araki and Mitsuyoshi “Mitsu” Saito
