What we are
We are nationally qualified legal professionals, shihoshoshi in Japanese, often called (judicial) scriveners. Our work addresses the various legal needs of our clients, offering our expertise in the specialized work of registration of real estate and corporations.
In 2018, our five (5) experienced scriveners from three (3) offices set up our new joint scriveners’ office. We all have strong specialty skills and practice experience in areas such as real estate registration and corporate legal affairs. The aim for our joint office is to realize a system that can meet the varied needs of clients. Since January 2020, we can offer six (6) partner scriveners.
From September 2021, new office has been established in Shiba, Minato-ku and we have been operating our businesses in two offices – Toranomon Office and Shiba Office
Our office name “INTRIM” derives from the phrase “in trim” meaning a well-organized state. Our goal is to sort out (trim) problems that clients have therein, to keep their state in trim, and thereby at the same time support their business in coordination with them.
Services for foreign business people
Our experienced scriveners can address various projects, including cross-border matters.
Masayuki KAWAHARA and Sakiko AKIYAMA have much experience in working with foreign business people both inside and outside of Japan, strong English-speaking skills, and an up-to-date understanding of foreign business culture that can meet the demands of foreign business people.
Taking advantage of their collective experience as in-house professionals in the legal departments of financial institutions and their expertise as independent specialists, they together with the INTRIM professionals are available for corporate secretarial services,
functioning as internal legal professionals in a tailor-made fashion fit for each client, providing outsourced legal or general affairs department services at reasonable costs.
They have dealt with corporate registrations for foreign business people for decades and can lead clients to a full understanding of the Japanese corporate and registration systems.
Practice Areas
Real Estate Registration
Our well-experienced scriveners can deal with general registration matters as well as due diligence and investigations of the rights related to real estate for real estate investment, M&A, energy-related businesses, etc.:
- Acquisition and sale of land for newly built buildings and condominium units
- Buying and selling profit-generating properties and trust beneficiary rights
- Inheritance, Gift and Exchange matters
- Trust registration associated with securitization of real estate
- Preparation of summary of security rights secured in real estate registry
- Registration of transfer of movables and claims
- Registration of factory foundation and other foundation matters
Corporate Registration
Our scriveners, having worked in legal departments of financial institutions and international law firms, can make use of their experience and knowledge of not only the Companies Act but also of various relevant business laws. They can respond to requests that are not limited to a commercial registration view point only.
- Establishment of corporations
- Various changes
- Issuance of shares
- Issuance of class shares
- Stock acquisition rights / stock options
- Restructuring of organization such as entity conversion, merger, company split, Share Exchange, and Share Transfer
- Registration involving foreign corporations and individuals as owner, directors, or officers, etc.
Real Estate Registration Related Services
- Family trusts
- Succession of business
- Management of assets and/or disposal of inventory
- Management and/or disposal of inherited property
- Preparation of notarized will, and other types of wills
- Preparation of documents to petition for waiver of inheritance
- Preparation and/or applying for probate of will
Corporate Legal Affairs Related Services
- Operational management of organizational decisions
- Management of due date control
- Checking, maintenance, preparation of minutes and internal regulations with an eye to listing and M&A
- Structuring investment funds and relevant support In response to the needs of clients beyond commercial registration, support services through INTRIM Co., Ltd., are also available. Such peripheral business support covers corporate legal affairs responsibilities (document management, information management, support for various procedures, etc.).
Our Clients
Real estate developers, real estate agents, investment funds, domestic and foreign financial institutions, business corporations, tax accounting firms, law firms
Profiles of Partners
ICHIKAWA, Shunsuke
Tokyo Shihoshoshi Association: No. 5436
Authorized attorney at summary court: No. 701219
Experience/Practice: General real estate registration, registration in connection with M&A and finance for first section-listed companies; after shift to independent practice: newly-built condominiums, land development for independent housing, trust registration for real estate securitization, large-scale energy-related registration, corporate reorganization registration.
- Office:Toranomon
Career Summary:
- 2006
- passed Shihoshoshi examination
- 2007
- admitted to Kanagawa Shihoshoshi Association
- 2007
- shihoshoshi office in Yokohama
- 2010
- admitted to Tokyo Shihoshoshi Association
- 2010
- opened Tao Shihoshoshi (Joint Office) in Meguro-ku, Tokyo
- 2018
- joined INTRIM Scrivener Office
Profiles of Partners
KAWAHARA, Masayuki
Tokyo Shihoshoshi Association: No. 3661
Representative Director of INTRIM Co., Ltd.
Experience/Practice: Focus on corporate legal affairs, much experience in legal departments of financial institutions. Legal affairs supporting services in collaboration with INTRIM Co., Ltd. as its representative. Support in compliance and procedures relating to regulatory laws in finance industry.
- Office:Shiba
Career Summary:
- 1996
- passed Shihoshoshi examination
- 1997
- admitted to Osaka Shihoshoshi Association
- 2002
- Washington University School of Law (LL.M.)
Legal & Compliance at Hudson Japan K.K. - 2003
- admitted to Tokyo Shihoshoshi Association
Legal Department at Goldman Sachs, Japan - 2011
- established INTRIM Toranomon Scrivener Office and INTRIM Co., Ltd.
- 2018
- joined INTRIM Scrivener Office
Languages:
- Japanese, English
Publication:
- “Legal Affairs and Practice for Corporation” (Nihon Kajo Publishing; joint authorship in 2018)
Profiles of Partners
SHIMADA, Yoshiyasu
Tokyo Shihoshoshi Association: No. 5943
Authorized attorney at summary court: No. 1601111
Experience/Practice: Real estate registration at a Tokyo shihoshoshi office; Legal & Compliance Department in foreign and domestic investment funds; after shift to independent practice: handled commercial registration for investment funds vehicles, venture companies, and listed companies as well as real estate registration of acquisition of revenue-generating properties, establishing mortgages and trusts, registration of assignment of claims and movables.
- Office:Toranomon
Career Summary:
- 2001
- passed Shihoshoshi examination
- 2002
- shihoshoshi office in Tokyo
- 2006
- Legal & Compliance Department at Goldman Sachs Realty Japan Ltd.
- 2008
- Legal & Compliance Department at Hudson Japan K.K.
- 2010
- Compliance Department in Sun Asset Management Corp.
(Samty Asset Management Co., Ltd.) - 2012
- joined Soto-Kanda Scrivener Office in Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
- 2018
- joined INTRIM Scrivener Office
Profiles of Partners
MATSUNAGA, Kazuya
Tokyo Shihoshoshi Association: No. 4542
Authorized attorney at summary court: No. 401461
Experience/Practice: Distressed loan disposal (drafting mortgage summaries, reviewing loan related documents, filing registrations, etc.); after shift to independent practice: commercial registration such as incorporation, issuance of shares, class shares, and share options and real estate registration such as inheritance, acquisition of properties, and registration for deals involving large-scale energy systems.
- Office:Toranomon
Career Summary:
- 2001
- passed Shihoshoshi examination
- 2002
- shihoshoshi office in Minato-ku, Tokyo
- 2003
- shihoshoshi office in Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
- 2007
- opened Matsunaga Shihoshoshi Office in Ota-ku, Tokyo
- 2010
- moved to Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
- 2012
- changed name to Soto-Kanda Shihoshoshi (Joint Office)
- 2018
- joined INTRIM Scrivener Office
Profiles of Partners
TOI, Masaya
Tokyo Shihoshoshi Association: No. 5437
Authorized attorney at summary court: No. 601469
Experience/Practice: General real estate and commercial registration in Sapporo, Hokkaido; large scale distressed loan disposal, golf course related matters, etc., in a shihoshoshi office in Yokohama; after shift to independent practice: expanded practice includes registration for foundation, such as factory foundation for renewable energy businesses, and registration of assignment of claims and movables.
- Office:Toranomon
Career Summary:
- 1998
- passed Shihoshoshi examination
shihoshoshi office in Sapporo, Hokkaido - 1999
- admitted to Sapporo Shihoshoshi Association
- 2001
- shihoshoshi office in Yokohama
admitted to Kanagawa Shihoshoshi Association - 2010
- admitted to Tokyo Shihoshoshi Association
opened Tao Shihoshoshi (Joint Office) in Meguro-ku, Tokyo - 2018
- joined INTRIM Scrivener Office
Profiles of Partners
AKIYAMA, Sakiko
Tokyo Shihoshoshi Association: No. 6061
Member of NPO International Shihoshoshi Association
Experience/Practice: Focus on services in corporate area, mainly for European, American, and other foreign companies in an international law firm; supported inbound companies as specialist in International Business Support Center in JETRO; meticulous corporate services for foreign and domestic companies including commercial registration.
- Office:Toranomon
Career summary:
- 1996
- passed Shihoshoshi examination
- 1997
- admitted to Tokyo Shihoshoshi Association
law firm in Minato-ku, Tokyo - 1999
- Legal Department at Goldman Sachs, Japan
- 2003
- Foreign Associate at Lovells (Hogan Lovells) in Düsseldorf
- 2012
- admitted to Tokyo Shihoshoshi Association
Blakemore & Mitsuki in Tokyo - 2020
- joined INTRIM Scrivener Office
Languages:
- Japanese, English
Publications:
- “Laws and Regulations on Setting Up Business in Japan”
(compiled by JETRO Investment Japan Department; annual revision since 2012);
“Case Book International Inheritance Registration Practice”
(Kabushiki Kaisha Minjiho Kenkyukai (Civil Law Workshop); joint authorship in 2020)
Profiles of Partners
KUWABARA, Gen
Tokyo Shihoshoshi Association: No. 5213
Experience/Practice: Long-term experience in involvements closer to financial matters, such as non- performing loan workouts, business restructuring, and M&A continuously until now; as a judicial scrivener: specialized in cases where the right side of the balance sheet moves, such as reorganizations, capital increases, and reductions, etc.; strong expertise in special cases, such as business restructuring through private liquidation, M&A involving civil rehabilitation and bankruptcy.
Office:Toranomon
Career summary:
- 1996
- passed Shihoshoshi examination
- 2000
- shihoshoshi office in Tokyo
- 2005
- EY Transaction Advisory Service Co., Ltd.
- 2010
- Capital Servicing Co., Ltd.
- 2013
- Corporation of Revitalizing Earthquake Damage Business
- 2016
- Hoosiers Holdings Co., Ltd.
- 2017
- joined Kaede Group
- 2022
- joined INTRIM Scrivener Office
Profiles of Legal Professionals
YOSHIMURA, Yusuke
Team Leader, Corporate Legal Team
Office: Shiba
TAKAMURA, Makoto
Shihoshoshi, Corporate Legal Team
Office: Shiba
Toranomon Office
Our office
- Name:
- INTRIM Scrivener Office
- Tel:
- +81-3-6205-7771
- Fax:
- +81-3-6205-7776
- Address:
- TG115 Bldg. 4F
15-7, Toranomon 1-chome, Minato-ku, Tokyo 105-0001, Japan(Google Map >) - Access:
-
Three minutes’ walk from Toranomon Station G07,
Ginza Line, Tokyo Metro
(Exit 2b or 4)
Two minutes’ walk from
Toranomon Hills Station H06,
Hibiya Line, Tokyo Metro (Exit 4)
Shiba Office
Our office
- Name:
- INTRIM Scrivener Office
- Tel:
- +81-3-6435-2037
- Fax:
- +81-3-6435-2047
- Address:
-
EARTH SHIBA BLD. 3F
10-6, Shiba 2-chome, Minato-ku,
Tokyo 105-0014, Japan (Google Map >) - Access:
-
Four minutes’ walk
from Shibakoen Station A01,
Mita Line, Toei Subway
Ten minutes’ walk from
Shiba Daimon Station A03,
Oedo Line, Toei Subway and from
Hamamatsu Station south exit,
JR Yamanote Line