On February 7th, 2024, our Bar Association co-hosted a joint seminar with the WOMEN IN LAW JAPAN (hereinafter referred to as the "WILJ"), an organization mainly composed of female lawyers qualified in foreign law, the Daiichi Tokyo Bar Association and the Daini Tokyo Bar Association, titled "Round Table Discussion: Navigating the International and Local Legal Market (for Japan-qualified and Foreign-qualified Lawyers together)" (hereinafter referred to as the "Seminar") at the Bar Building.

The planning for this Seminar was initiated when Laarni Victoria Q. Vinas, Co-President of the WILJ told Kei Miyoshi, Vice-Chair of the International Committee, about the idea and conception of this Seminar at the LAWASIA Sydney Congress in November 2022. With both of them in charge of planning, our Bar Association (The International Committee and the Grand Design PT International Team) and the WILJ worked together to develop the framework of the planning, which was finally realized with the generous cooperation of the Daiichi Tokyo Bar Association and the Daini Tokyo Bar Association.

The program of the day of the Seminar began with an opening speech by Mr. Junichi Matsuda, President of our Bar Association for FY2023 (hereinafter referred to as the "Speech").

In this Speech, Mr. Matsuda noted that he was very impressed with the energy, atmosphere, and planning ability of the WILJ members when he was invited to attend the WILJ-hosted DAZZLE event in December 2023, and he also spoke of the importance of pooling the wisdom of the participants in order to make Tokyo a global international legal hub.

Mr. Junichi Matsuda, President of our Bar Association for 2023FY

Following the Speech, a round table discussion which is the main part of the Seminar (Hereinafter referred to as the "Discussion") began.

This Discussion was moderated by Ms. Mindy Allen, from Executive committee of the WILJ, and similarly, the panelists were Ms. Keiko Ohara, former chair of the International Affairs Committee of the Daiichi Tokyo Bar Association and Mr. Daisuke Yuki, former chair of the International Committee of the Daini Tokyo Bar Association from the standpoint of lawyers qualified under Japanese law, and Michael Andreas Müller, previous chair of the International Committee of our Bar Association from the standpoint of a registered foreign lawyer in Japan, which is also called as "Gaiben" (Hereinafter referred to as the "Gaiben").

First row, left-hand photo:
Ms. Mindy Allen, from Executive Committee of the WILJ
Second row, from left-hand photo:
Mr. Daisuke Yuki, former chair of the International Committee of the Daini Tokyo Bar Association
Ms. Keiko Ohara, former chair of the International Affairs Committee of the Daiichi Tokyo Bar Association
Mr. Michael Mueller, previous chair of the International Committee of the Tokyo Bar Association

The participants of this Seminar

This Discussion lasted approximately one hour and provided substantial comments and exchange opinions on how to break barriers, market one's skills and be active in the Japanese and international legal market.

Specifically, first, the panelists introduced their experiences from the start of their practice, career development, and the establishment of their firms under the theme of "Start of the Panelists' Legal practice in Japan" The moderator then proceeded to discuss two topics, "Requirements for foreign-trained lawyers and any perceived barriers in the practice" and "How can we further internationalize the Tokyo legal market?" and the panelists provided substantial and thought-provoking comments and exchanged opinions on such topics as discussed the duration of practice experience required for Gaiben registration, their experiences in actually applying for registration, the activities of the International Committees and their measures, and how to start an international practice and expand the network.

The master of ceremonies for overall program was served jointly by Laarni Victoria Q. Vinas, Co-President of the WILJ, and Kei Miyoshi, Vice-Chair of the International Committee of our Bar Association, who were person in charge of planning this Seminar, and the program was conducted in a friendly and relaxed atmosphere.

From left to right: Ms. Laarni Victoria Q. Vinas, Co-President of the WILJ and Mr. Kei Miyoshi, Attorney at law (Vice-Chair of the International Committee of our Bar Association)

After finishing the Discussion, a networking event (Hereinafter referred to as the "Networking") among the speakers, moderator and participants was held in the form of a standing buffet.

This Networking was a lively mix of the members of the WILJ, our Bar Association, the Daiichi Tokyo Bar Association, the Daini Tokyo Bar Association, and other participants, who mingled, chatted, and exchanged business cards. Although the Networking was scheduled to last less than one hour, many participants continued to interact with each other until the end, even after the originally scheduled time had elapsed.

First row left photo, first from left: Ms. Catherine O'Connell, previous President of the WILJ
First row left photo, first from right: Mr. Junichi Matsuda, President of our Bar Association for FY2023

This Seminar was realized more than a year after the initial conception in Sydney in November 2022, and was attended by approximately 80 participants and was very productive in terms of its content, which, together with the active networking, greatly fostered and deepened the relationship between the WILJ and our Association and the Tokyo three Bar Associations.

Finally, we would like to express our deepest gratitude to the WILJ, the Daiichi Tokyo Bar Association, and the Daini Tokyo Bar Association for co-organizing this Seminar and for their generous cooperation.
For more details of this Seminar, if you are interested in, please refer to the uploaded video from the following URL.
https://vimeo.com/1022797866/45348f4030

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