Ms. Noma advises clients with respect to their corporate transactions, including internal control, guidance for shareholders meeting, labor affairs, joint ventures and licensing. She also has substantial experience on intellectual property rights matters, particularly ones related to information technology involving the Unfair Competition Prevention Act, the Personal Information Protection Law and other laws. In addition, she handles corporate rehabilitation, including M&A, and bankruptcy.
Practice Areas
- Intellectual Property
- Corporate
- Bankruptcy/Corporate revitalization (e.g., M&A)
Selected Representations
- Member of the Independent Committee of Nippon Computer Systems Corp., Member of the Independent Committee of JAPAN AUTOMOBILE AUCTION INC., Chairperson of the Independent Committee of KOJITU CO., LTD., Audit committee advisor of Oracle Japan Corporation,
- Advisor on TOB of FULLCAST HOLDINGS CO., LTD., involving AISIA PACIFIC SYSTEM RESEARCH shares acquired by CANON ELECTRONICS INC.
- Represented/defended Kimura Construction Co., Ltd. over a false quake-resistance case
- Case of filing for corporate reorganization proceedings of Cest la vie Resort IZUMIGO Co., Ltd.
- Cases of filing for civil rehabilitation of Kita-no-kazoku, Vissel Kobe, Aoi-mori Agricultural and Forestry Promotion Public Corporation, a super market chain, a game production company, an IT company, a food products distributor, a hospital, and others
- Cases of filing for bankruptcy proceedings of an apartment hotel, Nagoya Port Italian Village, Cést la vie Cruise Ship, a food production company, a housing materials company, a clothing fashion manufacturer, a blast furnace-related company, a third sector company, a content production company, a PR company, an estate management company, and others
- Case of the Sumitomo Trust and Banking Co., Ltd. vs UFJ Trust Bank Limited
- Cases of devastation photos, unauthorized duplication of Akira Kurosawa's films, injunction against copyright infringement over a database, and copyright infringement over a fashion show
- Cases of seeking an injunction against importing fake designer merchandise, an injunction against copyright infringement, and damages
- Advice services for investment LLPs (e.g., investment fund companies) in terms of the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act
- Cases of filing a provisional disposition to suspend execution of duties, an inspector election, and a demand for convocation of general meeting pursuant to minority shareholders rights; and cases of rescission/affirmation of invalidity of a shareholders meeting resolution involving, e.g., Kimuraya Sohonten., Ltd., The Daiei, Inc. and Tohato Inc.
- Cases of breach of the non-competition obligation, and breach of a franchise agreement
Education
| University of Washington Law School, LL.M., 1992 |
| Legal Research and Training Institute of the Supreme Court of Japan, 1986 |
| Keio University, Faculty of Law, 1982 |
Professional Experience
| Miyakezaka Sogo Law Offices, 1999 - |
| Oshima Sogo Law Offices, 1995 - 1999 |
| Sakura Kyodo Law Offices,1992 - 1995 |
| Hayakawa Law Offices,1986 - 1989 |
| Auditor of Nippon Computer Systems Corp., 2001 - 2008 |
| Auditor of Oracle Corporation Japan, 2002 - 2008 |
| Member of the Working Group on Medicine-related Medical Accident Protection of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, 2003 - 2005 |
| Human rights volunteer appointed by the Ministry of Justice, 2004 - 2006 |
| Visiting Professor & Conflict of Interest Manager of the Tokyo Medical and Dental University, 2004 - 2010 |
| Member of the Central Board on Intellectual Property Rights, Japan Federation of Bar Associations, 2007 - 2010 |
| Member of the Committee on ‘Japan Intellectual Property Arbitration Center’ Undertakings, 2007 - |
| Permanent Council Member of the Tokyo Bar Association, and Councilor of the Japan Federation of Bar Associations, 2008 - 2009 |
| Steering Committee Member of the Japan Intellectual Property Arbitration Center, 2008 - |
| Chairperson of the Committee on ‘Japan Intellectual Property Arbitration Center’ Undertakings, 2013 - 2014 |
| Deputy Director of the Japan Intellectual Property Arbitration Center, 2014 - |
Professional and Community Involvement
- Member of the Tokyo Bar Association
- Member of the Japan Federation of Bar Associations
- Member of the Incorporeal Property Rights Law Section, Japan Federation of Bar Associations
- Member of the Intellectual Property Law Net (iPLNet)
- Member of the Nationwide Bankruptcy Lawyers Network
- Associate of Asian Law Group Pty. Ltd.
- Member of the Center for Advanced Study and Research on Intellectual Property, University of Washington
- Member of the Intellectual Property Law Study Group of the Corporate Counsels Association
Publications and Speaking Engagements
- "On default and defect liability"
- "Parallel Importation: A Comparative Study of the U.S. and Japanese Trademark Laws"
- "Civil law" Ho-gaku Shoin
- "Compensation for lost photos and restitution delay"
- "Introducing some photo-copyright precedents," JPAA News Letter
- "Legal consultation on private roads, property lines and sunlight," Co-author, Gakuyo Shobo
- "A remark on the CAFC judgment over the copyright infringement of open-source software"
- "On new undertakings of the Japan Intellectual Property Arbitration Center," Patent News
- "Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights," Indonesian Patent Office
- "Children and human rights," Komae City
- "Case of an injunction against copyright infringement"
- "Case of devastation photos"
- "Case of copyright infringement over the database for travel agencies"
- "Fashion shows and copyrights," Intellectual Property Law Study Group
- "A course on music rights management," ACCS
- "How to cope with parallel imports of copyrighted works" TED Educational Practice Seminar
- "Aspire to become a debt-collection professional"
- "On the rights of photographic subjects"
- "Recent cases of copyright trouble"
- "A consideration on free-delivered photo images," JPAA
- "License agreement," Tokyo Medical and Dental University
- "On Japan Intellectual Property Arbitration Center," Kanagawa University
- "Untroubled cosmetic business at clinics"
- "Is mixed billing applicable to cosmetic business?" General Assembly of the Japanese Dermatological Association
- "Open-source software," OGIS Research Institute
