Agribusiness Law-Trusted legal support for agriculture, forestry, and fisheries—walking alongside you every step of the way
Specializing in agricultural, forestry, and fisheries law and agribusiness law, our firm places great importance on working closely with agricultural, forestry, and fisheries sector startups, public research institutes, agribusiness corporations, those working in the field, and plant breeders to collaboratively develop practical legal solutions that address their “on-the-ground challenges.”
Our unified team is well-experienced in proposing practical, field-tested options and providing support services.
We start by discussing your goals: “What do you want to achieve?” and “What challenges do you face?” Your goals might be developing a new product by genome-editing a specific variety, expanding your overseas business, protecting your brand, facilitating joint research, increasing exports, or monetizing technology.
The agricultural, breeding, and food industries tend to generate significant value from research outcomes and on-site innovations; they are also susceptible to unexpected losses stemming from factors such as imitation, the expansion of distribution networks, shortages of personnel and materials, climate change, and unfair trading conditions.
Intellectual property laws relevant to the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries sectors include multiple systems, such as the Plant Variety Protection and Seed Act (breeder’s rights), the Geographical Indications Act (GI Act), the Act on the Prevention of Unfair Competition Concerning Livestock Genetic Resources, the Patent Act, the Trademark Act, the Design Act, the Copyright Act, the Utility Model Act, and the Unfair Competition Prevention Act.
Rather than a starting point, intellectual property is simply “one of the means” to reach your goals, and we work with you to develop the optimal combination tailored to your on-site circumstances, costs, operational structure, and desired pace.
Contracts are also extremely important for preparing for unforeseen circumstances. Joint research, contract manufacturing, supply of seeds and seedlings, licensing, OEM, sales agencies, confidentiality, data sharing, and overseas transactions ˗ issues with these arrangements become most apparent not when “things are going well,” but when “the unexpected occurs.”
We address every aspect ˗ ownership of rights, deliverables, and data; scope of use; sublicensing; labeling and quality control; audits; remedies for breaches (including termination); damage claims ˗ from the perspective of dispute prevention and the perspective of business advancement.
We are more than just advisors providing insights for our clients; we are partners who think alongside you and walk with you every step of the way. Start by telling us about your current situation and goals.
