Ranked in 1 Practice Areas
2

Band 2

Corporate/M&A: Domestic

Japan

12 Years Ranked

Ranked in Guides

About

Provided by Yo Ota

Global

Practice Areas

Corporate & Commercial Transactions, M&A, Defense against Hostile Takeover/Shareholder Activism, Compliance, Startups & Venture Capital, Capital Markets, International Taxation, Civil Disputes Arising from Corporate Scandals, Telecommunications & Media, Corporate Crisis Management, Tax Counseling, Tax Disputes

Career

Partner, Nishimura & Asahi; Professor, Graduate Schools for Law and Politics, The University of Tokyo (2013-2016); Outside Director, Nippon Kayaku Co., Ltd. (2016-); Outside Corporate Auditor, Ricoh Company Ltd. (2017-); Outside Corporate Auditor, Z Financial Corporation (2019-).

Professional Memberships

Admitted: Japan (1993); New York (2001).

Publications

"Panoramic - Shareholder Activism & Engagement 2024 (Japan Chapter)" (Law Business Research, 2024).

Expert in these Jurisdictions

Japan, U.S.

Languages Spoken

Japanese, English

Awards

Corporate/M&A, Tax: Leading Individual

Chambers Asia-Pacific 2025

2025

Tax: Hall of Fame

The Legal 500 Asia-Pacific 2025

2025

JAPAN LEADING LAWYERS: Capital markets, M&A

IFLR1000 Japan 2024

2024

Leading Individual: Corporate/M&A: Domestic

Chambers Global 2024

2024

Corporate/M&A, Tax: Leading Individual

Chambers Asia-Pacific 2024

2024

JAPAN LEADING LAWERS: Capital markets, M&A

IFLR1000 Japan 2023

2023

Corporate/M&A, Tax: Leading Individual

Chambers Asia-Pacific 2023

2023

JAPAN LEADING LAWYERS: Capital markets, M&A

IFLR1000 2022-23

2022

M&A Deal of the Year

ALB Japan Law Awards 2022

2022

Corporate/M&A: Domestic: Leading Individual

Chambers Global 2022

2022

Corporate/M&A, Tax: Leading Individual

Chambers Asia-Pacific 2022

2022

M&A: Japan

Client Choice Awards 2021

2021

JAPAN LEADING LAWYERS: Capital markets, M&A

IFLR1000 2021-22

2021

Moving the market forward: Commended

FT Innovative Lawyers Awards Asia-Pacific 2021

2021

Education

Harvard Law School

LL.M.

2000

The University of Tokyo

LL.B.

1991

Chambers Review

Provided by Chambers

Chambers Global Guide

Corporate/M&A: Domestic - Japan

2
Band 2
Individual Editorial

Yo Ota is praised by market sources for his corporate law expertise. He is well-placed to advise on acquisitions, business alliances and corporate governance matters.

Contributions

Latest contributions provided by Yo Ota

Global Practice Guide
Yo Ota
Bonso Morimoto
Authored by
Yo Ota, Bonso Morimoto
Article • Sep 2025

Discover other Lawyers at
Nishimura & Asahi

Provided by Chambers
Filter by
Band

Asia-Pacific Region

Gaming & Gambling

3
Tomohiro Takagi
3
Band 3
International Trade/WTO

4
Kojiro Fujii
4
Band 4

China

Technology, Media, Telecoms (TMT): International Firms

Cuiping Zhang
China, expertise based abroad in Japan

Europe-wide

International Trade/WTO

2
Benoît Servais
2
Band 2

Global Market Leaders

Business & Human Rights Law

4
Junko Watanabe
4
Band 4

Japan

Banking & Finance: Domestic

3
Takashi Saito
3
Band 3
U
Yuki Taguchi
U
Up and Coming
Banking & Finance: Domestic Asset Finance

2
Kentaro Miyagi
2
Band 2
2
Kosuke Shibukawa
2
Band 2
2
Nobuhiko Harada
2
Band 2
Banking & Finance: International Asset Finance

2
Adrian Joyce
2
Band 2
Capital Markets: Domestic

1
Kohei Koikawa
1
Band 1
4
Kentaro Sugimoto
4
Band 4
Capital Markets: Domestic: Securitisation & Derivatives

2
Naoya Ariyoshi
2
Band 2
Construction

Shintaro Uno
Japan, expertise based abroad in Singapore
Corporate/M&A

Daisuke Maeshiro
Japan, expertise based abroad in Malaysia
F
Hikaru Oguchi
F
Foreign expert for Vietnam
Kaoru Tatsumi
Japan, expertise based abroad in USA
Takashi Nomura
Japan, expertise based abroad in China
Yusuke Yukawa
Japan, expertise based abroad in Myanmar
20 of 48 results