Professionals

Professional Summary

Kengo Nishigaki founded GI&T Law Office LC in 2020. Before then, he worked for Baker & McKenzie from 2000 to 2020, being a partner of the dispute resolution group for longer than 10 years.  He also belonged to Corporate M&A Group to support clients for international M&A and joint venture transactions. From 2004 to 2005, he worked at Baker & McKenzie's Chicago office where he assisted a case related to compliance with the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and formation of joint venture in the chemical industry. He is admitted to practice in Japan and New York. Kengo was partially seconded to ZimmerBiomet at its Japanese subsidiary, a global medical device company to support their in-house work from 2016 to 2017.

Practice Focus

Kengo's practice focuses on fraud investigations for Japanese and foreign listed companies, as well as matters related to compliance with anti-corruption laws including the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, UK Bribery Act and the Unfair Competition Prevention Act of Japan. Kengo also assists major Japanese and foreign-listed companies in litigations and other types of dispute resolutions such as arbitration and mediation for the healthcare and IT industry. Further he represents international clients to form joint ventures and conduct M&A transactions, and assists them with setting up operations in Japan.

Representative Clients, Cases or Matters​

• Assisted Japanese listed companies with establishing global whistleblower systems.

• Represented a global pharmaceutical company for an international arbitration at ICC Paris.

• Assisted a listed US company to form a joint venture with a listed Japanese company in the chemical industry.

• Represented an international IT company operating in Tokyo for several labor disputes at the courts of Japan.

• Represented a Japanese real estate company for negotiation with an international hotel chain to open a hotel in Tokyo.

• Conducting internal investigations for major international pharmaceutical and medical device companies.

• Assisted global pharmaceutical and medical device companies with clinical research agreements with hospitals.

• Assisted one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies in a dispute with the Japan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association, the largest Japanese pharmaceutical industry organization, regarding alleged inappropriate spending on healthcare professionals.

• Assisted one of the world's largest medical device companies in a dispute with the Japan Fair Competition Council, a medical device industry association given regulatory authority under the Japanese Anti-Trust Law.

• Assisted one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies in establishing off-label and donation compliance systems.

• Conducted nationwide anti-corruption seminars for American Medical Device and Diagnostics, an industry organization of American medical technology and diagnostic companies in Japan in 2012 to 2017.

• Served as a member of a third party investigation committee for Japan Transportation Consultants, one of the largest consulting and engineering companies in Japan, regarding its suspected bribery of foreign officials in Vietnam, Indonesia, and Uzbekistan which led to the arrest of four company officials in Vietnam and a further investigation in Indonesia. This has been the largest foreign bribery case since the enactment of Article 18 of the Unfair Competition Prevention Act of Japan to comply with to the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention.

• Assisted major listed Japanese companies with establishing and implementing their anti-corruption policies (in pharmaceutical, medical technology, trading, printing, automotive and chemical industries).

• Conducted anti-corruption analysis for one of the largest US defense companies in terms of its relationship with a Japanese trading company.

• Conducted fraud investigations as a member of an independent committee of a Japan-listed company.

• Conducted fraud investigations and represented a major IT-related company in a lawsuit.

Publications, Presentations and Articles

• Co-author, "Practical Operations for Global Hotline System", Chuokeizai-sha, May 2022, Language:　Japanese.​

• Provide FCPA trainings to dealers in the medical device industry for American Medical Devices and Diagnostics, an industry organization, from 2012 to 2020.

• Authored "Introduction to FCPA Resource Guide 2nd Edition", Business Law Journal, LexisNexis, November 2020.

• Chief editor and co-author, "Anti-Corruption Practice for Companies Doing Business Abroad, " Chuokeizai-sha, May 20, 2013, Language: Japanese.

• Co-author, "How to Respond to FCPA Resource Guide", Business Law Journal, Lexis Nexis, March 2013.

• Co-author, "UK Bribery Act", Business Law Journal, LexisNexis, August 2011.

• Co-author, "Response to Risks Arising from UK Bribery Act 2010", Junkan Keirijouhou, Chuokeizai-sha, April 2011.

• Co-author and editor, "Legal and tax practices on conducting business in Asia - from business start-up to expansion and withdrawal," Chuokeizai-sha, August 2011, Language: Japanese.

• Co-author, "Joint Venture and Contracts", special series, Business Homu, June, August and October 2008.

• Author, "Practical Response to Reporting Obligations under the Consumer Product Safety Act", Business Homu, February 2008.
   

Professional Affiliations

• Kengo is a member of the Japan Federation of Bar Associations, the Tokyo Bar Association and the New York Bar Association.

Education and Admission

• Kengo received his LLB from the University of Tokyo, and his LLM from the New York University School of Law.
   

Work History

2020- Current   Representative Partner, GI&T Law Office, LC

2000 – 2020　Baker McKenzie Tokyo Office

2008 – 2020　Partner, Dispute Resolution Group, Baker McKenzie Tokyo Office

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Languages

-      Japanese, English