Mori Hamada & Matsumoto, a full-service international law firm based in Tokyo, was formed through the merger on December 1, 2002 of Mori Sogo and Hamada & Matsumoto.  The firm subsequently merged with Max Law Offices on July 1, 2005. Mori Hamada & Matsumoto has more than 260 attorneys and a support staff of over 380, including judicial scriveners, legal assistants, translators and secretaries.

"Doing the best for our clients"

It probably goes without saying that a lawyer's first priority should be to do the best job possible for the client.  When things are left unsaid, however, they may also be left undone.  In a service industry like the law, we realize that we must never lose sight of the fact that the client's interests are paramount.  Therefore, even though it may seem like a rather simple statement of the obvious, we at Mori Hamada & Matsumoto believe that "doing the best for our clients" is a clear business objective worth putting in writing.

We are proud of the reputation for excellence that Mori Hamada & Matsumoto and its predecessor firms have established in the Japanese legal market.  Nevertheless, we realize that merely maintaining our current standing in the profession requires us to challenge ourselves continuously to provide better and better legal services.  The moment we attain one level of success, we must focus on the next challenge ahead: no sooner has one case been won or deal closed than the next project must be pursued with even greater dedication.

From its foundation by Ryosaku Mori in 1949, Mori Sogo came to be well respected for its expertise in complex litigation matters.  As its Japanese corporate clients grew and expanded internationally, Mori Sogo grew with them and steadily expanded its fields of expertise to include a wider spectrum of domestic and international corporate legal practice, including M&A, bankruptcy, finance, intellectual property, private equity funds etc.  Since its foundation in 1972 by Kunio Hamada and Keiji Matsumoto, Hamada & Matsumoto developed an international reputation in the field of international finance, including cross-border financing transactions involving complex securities as well as highly specialized asset management structures.  Hamada & Matsumoto also steadily built its practice to include a broad range of corporate and dispute resolution services, both domestic and international.  The firm's most recent expansion was the result of the merger with Max Law Offices, a Tokyo law firm with well regarded strength in the area of intellectual property and information technology.

The firm has pursued a growth strategy with the goal of building a better and more powerful service platform that is capable of offering even better and more efficient legal services.  The mergers that have created the current firm have been effected with very clear-cut guiding principles: to provide the highest quality legal services; to establish and develop a partnership with an atmosphere that nurtures the best legal talent; and to further the public interest through generous participation in pro bono activities.  In following these principles, we believe that we can succeed in our objective of "doing the best for our clients".