What are the most significant cases, transactions or projects that your legal team has recently been involved in?  

IBM Japan’s Legal Team is constituted by a strong and talented group professionals covering general legal, government affairs, security, trust and compliance, IP law, and IP licensing. They support IBM’s operations in Japan, which is one of the company’s largest markets outside North America. With 85 years of operation in Japan, IBM provides full IT services, including consulting, cloud migration, and developing cloud-native applications, using technologies such as AI, blockchain, cloud, Internet of Things, cybersecurity, autonomous driving, semiconductor production and quantum computing. The legal team faces the challenge of balancing legacy and cutting-edge IT solutions while handling high-value transactions and a diverse portfolio, including litigation, M&A, and partnerships.

Despite operating in an increasingly “do more with less” environment, the team aims to provide a “signature client experience” by offering expert advice and support for business outcomes. The team also provides thought leadership externally on various topics, setting a high standard for in-house legal services that extends beyond the department.  Among the various achievements of the legal department, the individual members are highly skilled in complex IT transactions, MI&A, Privacy and litigious matters. 

Could you share an example of a time when your team came up with an innovation that improved how your legal team works and did not come at a large expense? 

The legal team handles a significant volume of contracts each year. To prioritise high-value matters and manage this workload, the team conducts annual risk assessments and prioritises complex client-facing transactions, litigation matters, and customer security incidents. The team continues to re-assess areas to simplify work, educate and to support high priority transactions. Based on this work, our ongoing simplification projects include: redefining the legal service level by function/business unit;  repository enhancements for critical know-how and; business-facing legal FAQ and information sites on important issues. These are common sense measures that provide sharp focus and are highly effective despite the low cost.

How important is choosing to work with external lawyers who align with your company’s values? 

It is critical to choose external lawyers that align with our company’s values. We select the best lawyers and law firms for the necessary job at hand. Among other things, some key factors in our choice of external lawyers include depth of experience, value add contribution, and cost performance. We hold high expectations for our external counsel to work collaboratively with our legal and business teams. We normally have a good idea of what the legal issues are, therefore, we look to our external lawyers to help us execute or find solutions to manage challenges in an appropriate and creative manner.

How do you suggest in-house lawyers build strong relationships with business partners?  

I believe lawyers should strive to be proactive about adding value in all interactions. Within this concept is taking the initiative to continually reach out to their business counterparts to establish open communication channels, show interest, and demonstrate a deep understanding of their business. Rather than saying no, lawyers should empathize, understand the problem, and try to find practical solutions. They should advise how to define and manage acceptable risks, while clearly and professionally explain why certain risks or actions are unacceptable, all while trying to provide feasible alternatives. By relentlessly endeavoring to enable the business to thrive and keeping discussions positive, even if the content is difficult, I believe that business partners will seek out in-house counsel proactively – which is one of the best testaments to demonstrate the immense value that in-house lawyers can contribute to the business.