Japanese law firm Atsumi & Sakai has grown its roster after hiring Chris Hodgens (L) and Makiko Harada as partners.

Hodgens joins the firm after a 30-year career at Baker McKenzie, where he most recently served as senior counsel in the real estate group in Tokyo. With extensive experience in hotel management agreements (HMAs) and mergers and acquisitions (M&A), Hodgens specializes in hotel and real estate transactions.

During his tenure at Baker McKenzie, Hodgens advised on significant deals, including InterContinental Hotels Group's acquisition of a majority stake in a joint venture with ANA in 2006. He is fluent in Japanese and has worked on some of Japan's largest hotel investment transactions.

Harada brings expertise in corporate and bank loans, data protection, and project finance. She previously served as in-house counsel at the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and as an attorney at Michigan law firm Dickinson Wright, where she focused on Japanese business development. Harada began her career at Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu.

The addition of these two new partners marks Atsumi & Sakai's latest strategic expansion. The firm hired banking partner Akiko Hosokawa and corporate partner Dio Inoue earlier this year and also opened offices in Ho Chi Minh City and Brussels.