About

A deeply experienced lawyer with excellent problem-solving abilities, Ricardo Sasaki is the director of legal and intellectual property at Ajinomoto do Brasil, the Brazilian arm of the Japanese food and chemical multinational. Guarding both company assets and reputation, the legal department is a key strategic partner for Ajinomoto’s business in Brazil and Sasaki leads from the front; overseeing a department of specialist lawyers across various relevant practice areas. As the lead lawyer in the team he was responsible for a restructure that saw a new, internalised legal function and the establishment of both intellectual property and government relations functions, with a view to consolidate a compliance function in the near future. Throughout his career, which has seen Sasaki undertake roles in private practice and elsewhere – including a stint as the Consulate General of Japan in São Paulo – Sasaki has applied his technical skills and innovative methods to solve complex legal and operational problems. Indeed, Sasaki claims his biggest achievement was to ‘introduce and spread the concept of peaceful resolution of dispute’. Sasaki explains this as ‘trying to resolve a conflict without using a litigation proceeding’, allowing the company to avoid adding to the huge number of lawsuits in Brazil that are currently burdening Brazil’s judicial system and society. On top of these achievements, Sasaki is involved in several areas of industry discussion through his various positions on external bodies. He is legal adviser of the Consulate General of Japan in São Paulo, vice president of the Corporate Management Committee of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Japan, as well as holding positions on the Institute of Comparative Law Brazil-Japan and the Legal Committee of the Brazilian Society of Japanese Culture and Social Assistance.