Osamu Umejima

Osamu Umejima rejoined White & Case in October 2003 after a two-year hiatus working at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) of the Japanese Government. He assists clients with international trade matters, including WTO rules and dispute settlements, and antidumping, countervailing and other trade-related measures in the United States, EC, Japan, and other trading partners. He also advises on FTA and other custom issues, including country of origins, custom duties and classification, and import and export regulations. His experience in the government also enabled him to have successfully lobbied Japanese government agencies on regulatory issues on behalf of corporations and trade associations. These governmental agencies include the METI, the Ministry of Land Infrastructure and Transportation, and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery.

He started practicing international trade and corporate law at White & Case in 1992 in Tokyo, but his first experience on international trade matters goes back to 1989. Upon joining White & Case, the practice areas he worked in were corporate, contracts, antitrust, labor, and intellectual property. He moved to the Washington, DC office of White & Case in 1995, where he practiced U.S. trade laws, including the antidumping law, countervailing law, and Section 337. Mr. Umejima led various antidumping cases on behalf of Asian respondents, and appeared before the US Department of Commerce, the International Trade Commission, the Court of International Trade, and the Canadian International Trade Tribunal. In 2000, Mr. Umejima returned to the Tokyo office of White & Case, where he continued practicing international trade and corporate laws, until he joined to METI in 2001.

Before rejoining White & Case, he assumed the position of Director – Antidumping and Related Rules in Multilateral Trade System Department, Trade Policy Bureau at METI. He coordinated and argued in various antidumping and countervailing duty cases before the Dispute Settlement Body of the World Trade Organization on behalf of the Japanese government, including disputes on US – CRS Sunset Review, US – CDSOA (“Byrd Amendment”), and other disputes in which Japan participated as a complaining party or as a third party. He has also handled negotiations for the Antidumping Agreement under the Doha Development Agenda of the WTO.

Trade Law Practice:

Government actions increasingly affect companies involved in the global trade of goods and services. Whether they’re negotiating multilateral, regional or bilateral trade agreements, or revising national laws and regulations, the involvement of governments frequently has a direct and profound impact on the rules governing international trade. While the ultimate goal may be a more liberalized trading system, the immediate result is just as likely to be a thicket of rules, procedures and exceptions. This can mean an even more difficult business environment.

The International Trade Group of White & Case helps clients manage the risks and maximize the opportunities associated with the increasing regulation of international trade in goods and services. Our practice, centered in Washington, DC but extending throughout the globe, provides a range of services designed to match the scope of global trade regulation and to answer the needs of our clients wherever and whenever they arise. White & Case also has one of the leading WTO practices in the world, which is led by the Geneva office.

White & Case:

White & Case is a truly global law firm, uniquely positioned to help our clients achieve their ambitions in today’s G20 world.

As a pioneering international law firm, our cross-border expertise and diverse team of local, US and English-qualified lawyers consistently deliver results for our clients.

In both established and emerging markets, our lawyers are integral, long-standing members of the community, giving our clients insights into the local business environment alongside our expertise in multiple jurisdictions.

We work with some of the world’s most respected and well-established banks and businesses, as well as start-up visionaries, governments and state-owned entities.