Asia Legal Careers: A Conversation with Laurence W. Bates
Friday, September 16, 2022
12:00 PM - 1:30 PM (Eastern Time)
Location: Furman Hall 120 (Note corrected location)
* In person only
*Open only to NYU ID holders
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About the Event
For three decades, Laurence W. Bates has served as counsel in various corporations and firms throughout Asia, most prominently in Japan at GE and Panasonic. He is recognized in the field for expanding the role and status of in-house lawyers within Japanese companies. He will talk about in-house (and to a lesser extent, firm-based) career paths for internationally-minded lawyers interested in Asia. He will share his experience building in-house teams and working with outside counsel on complex matters.
The event is co-sponsored by the U.S.-Asia Law Institute, the Asia Law Society, and the Japanese Law Society.
Please note this in-person event is open only to NYU ID holders.
About the speaker
Laurence W. Bates was until recently director, managing executive officer, general counsel, chief risk officer, and chief compliance officer for Panasonic Corporation in Japan. Mr. Bates joined Panasonic in 2018 and had overall responsibility for Panasonic’s legal affairs globally, including Japan. He previously spent four years at LIXIL Group Corp. in Tokyo as senior managing director and chief legal officer. At GE, where he spent 22 years, he served in key legal leadership positions in Asia, including as general counsel for each of GE Medical Systems Asia, GE Capital Japan and GE Japan. Mr. Bates is a strong advocate for the interests of the international business community in Japan and served in various leadership positions at the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan, including six years as a member of the Board of Governors and president in 2013. He started his career with the New York law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison. He then spent three decades working in the legal profession in Japan, China and Hong Kong. Mr. Bates received his BA from Yale University, with a dual major in Chinese Studies and Economics, and JD from Harvard Law School. He spent time at Tokyo University as a recipient of the Fulbright Senior Professional Research Grant and was a Yale-China Teaching Fellow at Wuhan University, China. He is fluent in Japanese and Mandarin Chinese.