Nishimura & Asahi

Dispute resolution practice

Partner, Tokyo

Akihiro Hironaka has been a partner at Nishimura & Asahi (Gaikokuho Kyodo Jigyo) since 2007. He has extensive experience in handling complex and large-scale dispute resolution matters, including product liability and mass tort claims, as well as contract disputes, for clients in the pharmaceutical and automotive industries, among others. Akihiro also has handled cross-border disputes arising from M&A transactions, reinsurance claims, and termination of distribution agreements, as well as disputes involving construction sites in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. He is licensed to practice law in Japan and New York. He served as a Japanese district court judge from 1998 to 2000, and worked at Arnold & Porter (Washington, D.C.) from 2002 to 2003. He is the author of various books, book chapters, and articles, including a contribution to Civil Procedure in Japan (Juris Publishing; edited by Yasuhei Taniguchi, et al.). In 2023, he was selected as one of the “Top 15 North Asia Litigators” by Asian Legal Business, and in 2022, he was awarded the “Dispute Resolution Lawyer of the Year” at the ALB Japan Law Awards by Asian Legal Business.

Japanese, English

2004 | Admitted in New York 1996 | Admitted in Japan (voluntarily deregistered in 1998 and readmitted in 2000)

Fellow, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (FCIArb)

2003 | Harvard Law School (LL.M.) 1993 | The University of Tokyo (LL.B.)