Cantor Colburn Immerses Japanese Lawyer In IP Law Business

Cantor Colburn partner Michael Cantor realized more than a decade ago that the way to bring his intellectual property law firm to the next level was to attract global business to bolster the rapidly growing domestic practice.

But in thinking big, he started small. The firm conquers the world by building personal relationships.

One approach has been to have lawyers from other countries, especially those who work for clients, come spend long periods of time at the Hartford office. For the past year, the firm has hosted Takashi Oki, an in-house counsel with Rohm Semiconductor in Japan. He is living in New Britain and is immersing himself in American culture and U.S. IP law.

"Partnerships like this help build bridges," said Jessica Lister, director of marketing for Cantor Colburn.

Cantor said Japanese companies apply for the second highest number of patents (after United States companies, of course) and he realized he had to build a relationship with Japanese companies. "We began to have foreign attorneys spend long periods of time at our office in the early 2000s, probably around 2002 or 2003. We have had extended stays from clients based in Japan, Korea and France," Cantor said.

"Like so many other aspects in life, creating, maintaining and growing strong win-win business dealings is all about building strong, close personal relationships," Cantor continued. "Bottom line is that there is no better way to create such long lasting relationships than living, working and socializing with a foreign colleague over an extended time period."

Cantor said that it's important for attorneys from other countries, especially those who work for big companies, to understand U.S. patent law, so these extended visits pay off for them as well. "It's important [for IP attorneys] in all these countries, especially Japan, that they understand U.S. patent law, U.S. culture, and English because they want them to efficiently work with their counterparts in the United States," Cantor said.

Oki will be in a good position when he returns to Japan when his one-year stint is up, Cantor said. "The ones that come here are the ones who are on the fast track," Cantor said.

Mentoring A Client

Oki is still learning English so the interview with the Law Tribune conducted was with the help of a paralegal, Shigemi Garbo. At times, she translated Oki's answers into English. Other times, he was able to answer for himself, in English.

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