AWA R D SP O N S O R

SP O NS O RO FFI CI A L R EC RU IT M E N T S ITE

AS S O CIATE SP ONS OR

AL B S U PP O RT S

P ROUDLY P RESENTED BY

PART 1 - IMP ORTANT DATESOPENING OF NOMINATIONS

15 February 2019
DEADLINE OF NOMINATIONS

29 March 2019

Please submit nomination forms to anna.lam@tr.com

International law firm - that which is headquartered outsideJapanJapan element - refers to any of the following component ofwork: (a) one of the counsel representing a party is based inJapan; (b) one of the parties in interest is based in Japan; or(c) the subject matter of the transaction is closely connectedto JapanWork - a transaction, case or matter, service, program, initiative or the like

ANNOUNCEMENT OF FINALISTSPART 4 - AWARD C ATEGORIESApril 2019
AWARDS CEREMONY - TOKYO

13 June 2019
AWARDS INQUIRIESContact Anna Lam at anna.lam@tr.com or call(852) 2843 1672 for further details.
SPONSORSHIP INQUIRIESContact Amantha Chia at amantha.chia@tr.com or call(65) 6870 3917 for further details.
PART 2 - SUBMISSION INSTRUC TIONSGENERAL GUIDELINES— All submissions, whether by self-recommendation ornomination, must be written in the ALB submission form.
Otherwise, the same will not be accepted.
— The coverage period for the entries is 1 January 2018 to 31
December 2018
— The contact persons provided in the submission form will
be contacted by ALB, as may be necessary.
— No more than five hyperlinks may be incorporated in a
submission form to support any information expressly
stated therein.
— Every category requires the submission of three entries,except as specifically provided below.
— For frequently asked questions about the awards, please
visit the FAQ page.
PART 3 - JUD GING CRITERIA
Breadth - the degree to which a work involved numerous jurisdictions, legal practice areas, parties and industries
Complexity - the degree to which a work and any issues
involved require the crucial exercise of legal expertise,business acumen or innovative solutions
Firm size - total number of lawyers based in Japan
Impact or significance - the degree to which clients and otherstakeholders, the bench and bar, an industry or the country
may be affected
Innovativeness - the degree to which a work involves theapplication of a new concept or creative solution, process,service, program or the like to existing systems and processes,
thus improving organisational capabilities and adding morevalue to output or making the deal work more efficient

DEAL CATEGORIES
1
Debt Market Deal of the Year2
Equity Market Deal of the Year
3
M&A Deal of the Year (Midsize)
4
M&A Deal of the Year (Premium)5
Project Finance Deal of the Year
6
Real Estate Deal of the Year
7
Technology, Media and Telecommunications Deal ofthe Year
Specific Guidelines
a. Announcement/completion of deals - Only deals thathave been announced or completed between 1 January
and 31 December 2018 are eligible for submission. Deals
that have been announced but are pending completion
during this period may be submitted but will no longer be
eligible for submission next year or when the same shallhave been completed.
b. Japan - The submission of deals with significant Japanelement is strongly encouraged.
c.
Midsize and Premium categories - An organisation may
submit a total of three deals for each categories, provided
that no more than two deals are submitted for either
Midsize or Premium category.
d. Deal size - The following deal size requirements should
be complied with:1.
Debt Market Deal of the Year: Each deal
submitted must have a minimum financial value(MFV) of USD 1 billion.
2. M&A Deal of the Year (Midsize/Premium): For
the premium category, each deal must have aMFV of USD 1 billion; for the midsize category,each deal must have a MFV of USD 500 million
but must not exceed USD 1 billion.
3.
Equity Market Deal of the Year; Project Finance
Deal of the Year; Real Estate Deal of the Yearand Technology, Media and Telecommunications
Deal of the Year: Each deal submitted for thesecategories must have a MFV of USD 750 million.
Criteria
The judges will consider the following factors: breadth, complexity, innovativeness and impact or significance of deals.
INDIVIDUAL CATEGORIES
8Dealmaker of the Year
9Dispute Resolution Lawyer of the Year
10 Foreign Lawyer of the Year

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In-House Lawyer of the Year
Managing Partner of the Year
BMW Award Woman Lawyer of the Year
Young Lawyer of the Year

Criteria
The judges will consider the following factors: the entrants’or nominees’ professional accomplishments (in terms of thebreadth, complexity, innovativeness and impact or significance),innovation, development and social contribution.

Specific Guidelinesa.
Number of nominees - An organisation may put forward
only one nominee for every category.
b. Nomination - A third-party submission for any category
may only be considered when the nominee’s team has notnominated anyone of its members for the same category.
c.
Residence - A candidate must be a resident of Japan.
d. Dealmaker of the Year - The deals submitted must show
the candidate’s expertise in deal making across various
deal types.
e.
Dispute Resolution Lawyer of the Year - The key works
must show the candidate’s expertise in at least two modesof dispute resolution.
f.
Foreign Lawyer of the Year - This is open to all registeredforeign lawyers.
g. Managing Partner of the Year - This is open to all managingpartners or senior partners whose function is primarily
that of a managing partner.
h. Woman Lawyer of the Year - This is open to all womanlawyers, whether from a public or private entity.
i.
Young Lawyer of the Year - Only lawyers, whether from a
law firm or an in-house team, who are no more than 40
years of age as of 31 December 2018 are eligible to submit
for this category.
Criteria
The judges will consider the following factors: the entrants’ ornominees’ leadership, professional accomplishments (in termsof the breadth, complexity, innovativeness and significance)and social contribution.
IN-HOUSE CATEGORIES
15 Banking and Financial Services In-House Team ofthe Year
16 Construction and Heavy Industries In-House Team ofthe Year
17 Innovative In-House Team of the Year
18 Manufacturing and Retail In-House Team of the Year
19 Technology, Media and Telecommunications
In-House Team of the Year
20 Japan In-House Team of the Year
Specific Guidelinesa.
Physical office - All in-house teams with physical office inJapan are qualified to join the awards.
b. Innovative In-House Team of the Year - This is open toin-house teams that have applied a new concept or creativesolution, process, service, program or the like to existing
systems and processes, thus improving organizational
capabilities and adding more value to output. An in-houseteam may submit a maximum of three innovative works
for this category.
c.
Japan In-House Team of the Year - This is open to all
in-house teams, regardless of industry. The works
submitted must exhibit an exemplary spectrum of an
in-house team’s capabilities and achievements.

FIRM CATEGORIES
21 Antitrust and Competition Law Firm of the Year
22 Banking and Financial Services Law Firm of the Year
23 Boutique Law Firm of the Year
24 Energy and Resources Law Firm of the Year
25 Healthcare and Life Sciences Law Firm of the Year
26 International Arbitration Law Firm of the Year
27 International Deal Firm of the Year
28 International Intellectual Property Law Firm of the Year
29 Investment Fund Law Firm of the Year
30 Japan Deal Firm of the Year
31 Japan Intellectual Property Law Firm of the Year
32 Japan Practice Foreign Law Firm of the Year
33 Labour and Employment Law Firm of the Year
34 Litigation Law Firm of the Year
35 Maritime Law Firm of the Year
36 Overseas Practice Law Firm of the Year
37 Real Estate Law Firm of the Year
38 Regulatory and Compliance Law Firm of the Year
39 Restructuring and Insolvency Law Firm of the Year
40 Tax and Trusts Law Firm of the Year
41 Japan Law Firm of the Year
Specific Guidelinesa.
Physical office - All law firms holding an office in Japanare qualified to submit for any of the categories, except
for Japan Practice Foreign Law Firm of the Year.
b. Boutique Law Firm of the Year - This category is open for
submissions to law firms that specialize in limited areasof legal practice with no more than 15 partners.
c.
Japan Intellectual Property Law Firm of the Year - Law
firms headquartered in Japan are qualified to submit forthis category.
d. International Intellectual Property Law Firm of the Year Law firms headquartered outside of Japan are qualified
to submit for this category.
e.
Japan Practice Foreign Law Firm of the Year - The category
is open for submissions to law firms that do not have officein Japan. Each keyword submitted for these categories
must have a “Japan element” as defined above.
f.
Overseas Practice of the Year - The category is open forsubmissions to domestic law firms headquartered in Japan.
g. Deals as entries - No minimum financial value is requiredof deals submitted in any firm category, except as may beprovided below.
h. Japan Deal Firm of the Year - Only law firms headquarteredin Japan that have completed at least five deals may join
this contest. The deals should show the expertise of thelaw firm across various deal types.
i.
International Deal Firm of the Year - Only international law
firms that have completed at least five deals may join thesubmissions for this category. The deals should show theexpertise of the law firm across various deal types. Eachdeal submitted for these categories must have a “Japanelement” as defined above.

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j.

Japan Law Firm of the Year - This is open for submission
to all law firms holding an office in Japan. The category
requires the submission of key works showing the firm’s
expertise in various areas of legal practice, the firm’s initiatives for the engagement and development of its people,
its CSR strategy and its most significant contribution tothe legal community.

Criteria
The judges will consider the following factors: entrants’ ornominees’ professional accomplishments (in terms of thebreadth, complexity, innovativeness and impact or significance),
innovation, development and social contribution.
PART 5 - JUD GING PANEL
The panel of judges will be composed of at least 30 reputable
members from the legal academe, in-house teams, law firms,
legal associations and non-profit organisations in the region.
Each judge will evaluate only the categories assigned to him/
her and with which he/she does not have any conflict of interest.
The judges will rank the nominees according to the abovementioned parameters and only the top finalists will be includedin the shortlist.
In the final round of evaluation, the finalist with the highest
score in every category wins the award.

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