Japan Practice

Corporate advisory and mergers and acquisitions (M&A)

We advise on both private and public M&A in a wide range of industries, including:

• Software developer: We acted for a Japanese software developer on its acquisition of a Melbourne-based software company.

• Industrial and engineering: We acted for a well-known Japanese industrial and engineering corporation on its acquisition of a cross-border company within the desalination and industrial water treatment industry.

• Paint/chemical: We acted for a Japanese paint and chemical company on its acquisition of an ASX-listed paint and chemical company by way of scheme of arrangement.

• Bank: We acted for a Japanese bank on its investment in a major non-bank consumer lender based in Australia.

• Life insurance: We acted for a Japanese life insurance company on its acquisition of an Australian life insurance and wealth management company.

• IT services and development: We acted for a Japanese IT services and development company on its acquisition of an ASX-listed Australian IT services company by way of scheme of arrangement.

• Industrial gases and plastics manufacturer: We acted for a Japanese industrial gases and plastics manufacturer on its competitive bid to acquire an Australian LPG and specialty gases business.

• Human resources: We acted for a Singapore subsidiary of a Japanese human resources company on its acquisition of an Australian human resources business. 

• Hospitality and property management: We acted for a Japanese hospitality and property management company on its acquisition of a company group carrying on a business in managing and operating serviced apartments in Australia and New Zealand. We also acted for Japanese property developers on their acquisitions of hotels and resorts in Australia.

• Transport/logistics: We acted for a Japanese Government owned company on its acquisition of an ASX-listed large logistics company by way of scheme of arrangement. 

• Manufacturing: We acted for a Japanese car manufacturer on the incorporation of its local subsidiary and set up of its car dealership network in Australia.

• Construction machinery: We acted for a Japanese construction machinery manufacturer on its acquisitions of multiple companies, including a nationwide construction machinery distribution network and subsequent restructuring of the Australian business.

• Retail: We acted for a public Japanese retail holding company on setting up operations in Australia.  We also acted for a Japanese retail company in relation to its proposed acquisition of Australian retail business. 

• Water: We acted for a Japanese Government owned company in relation to a Japanese consortium acquiring a major Australian water utility company and its affiliated companies.

• Agriculture: We acted for a listed Japanese food business on its bid to acquire food and agricultural businesses under receivership in Australia.

• Aquaculture: We acted for a listed Japanese seafood company on its investment into an ASX-listed prawn farm operator.

• Food: We acted for a listed Japanese food manufacturer on its acquisition of an industrial chocolate manufacturer in Victoria.

• Seafood business: We acted for a Japanese food product wholesaler on its acquisition of a seafood wholesale business in Queensland.

• Education: We acted for a Japanese childcare and education provider on the acquisition of multiple Australian childcare businesses and the post-acquisition management.

• Industrial gas: We acted for a major Japanese industrial gas company on its acquisition of multiple Australian distribution companies dealing in industrial gases, including LPG.

• Homebuilding: We acted for a major Japanese homebuilder on its acquisition of a controlling interest in, and formation of, a joint venture arrangement in respect of a group of large homebuilding companies having operations across Australia.

Energy and Resources

We advise on a variety of matters in the energy and resources sector, including the following matters and transactions.

• Hydrogen: We acted for Japanese companies in relation to their various hydrogen development projects in Australia.   

• Alternative energy: We acted for a publicly listed Japanese conglomerate on the acquisitions of forestry and wind farm assets in Australia.

• Methanol: We acted for a major Japanese chemical company in various legal aspects of the commercialisation project of methanol production using carbon dioxide and green hydrogen.

• Iron ore: We acted for a listed Japanese steel company in relation to a number of iron ore and coking coal investments being undertaken in Australia.

• Liquefied natural gas (LNG): We acted for a major Japanese power company and a major Japanese gas company on a large-scale LNG project in Australia.

• Rare earth: We acted for a Japanese Government-affiliated agency and a Japanese trading house in their investment and finance in relation to a rare earth mine development in Australia.

• Uranium: We acted for major Japanese power companies and major Japanese trading houses in relation to uranium projects in Australia.

• Critical Minerals: We acted for a listed major Japanese mining company in relation to its entry into a joint exploration agreement with an ASX-listed minerals exploration company.

• Coal:  We acted for a major Japanese trading house in relation to its sale of an interest in coal mining assets in Queensland to an ASX-listed resources company. 

Debt finance and structuring

• We acted for Japanese financial institutions with facility agreements and securities on various types of financial transactions.

• We acted for a major Japanese bank in relation to its provision of acquisition financing facility to a Japanese semiconductor manufacturer’s acquisition of an ASX-listed multinational software company and security arrangements.

• We acted for a major Japanese trading house on the restructuring of its asset financing in relation to mining equipment used on mines in Australia.

Business start-up

• We acted for Japanese companies from a wide range of industries on their start-up of Australian businesses. These included advising on regulatory issues, the appropriate business structure, various legal issues concerning the establishment of a company, drafting a constitution and other legal documents, and submission of ASIC forms.

Restructure

• We acted for a number of Japanese companies on various internal restructure and carve-outs of businesses in Australia, including advising on corporate law issues, regulatory issues (including foreign investment approval requirements), documentation and completion.

Workplace relations, employment and safety

• We acted for a number of Japanese companies on various employment law issues, including various types of employment arrangements, compliance audits, and termination cases.

Privacy and e-commerce

• We acted for a number of Japanese companies in relation to privacy law and e-commerce related issues, including advice on compliance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the unfair contract terms laws.

Product liability

• We acted for various Japanese manufacturers and insurance companies on product liability and product recall issues in Australia, including class action cases.

Pharmaceutical

• We acted for various Japanese pharmaceutical companies on various regulatory issues, including marketing and distribution of their pharmaceutical products in Australia.

Litigation and dispute resolution

• We acted for a number of Japanese companies in relation to various types of commercial dispute resolutions, including mediations and court proceedings. 

Inquiries

For inquiries regarding the services of our Japan Practice Group, as well as our newsletters and seminar materials, please contact us at the address below.

T: +61 7 3292 7153 
E: [email protected]