HIROE AND ASSOCIATES, Patent Professional Corporation

What HIROE AND ASSOCIATES, Patent Professional Corporation does

HIROE AND ASSOCIATES, Patent Professional Corporation (弁理士法人 広江アソシエイツ特許事務所) is a privately-held Japanese patent professional corporation founded in 1979 and headquartered in Gifu City, Gifu Prefecture. The firm is family-owned and operated by the Hiroe family, with Takenori Hiroe serving as Chairman and Masanori Hiroe as Director, alongside five additional patent attorneys covering physics/engineering, machinery, chemistry, life sciences, pharmaceuticals, IT, trademarks, and design rights. As of 2024, the firm employs seven named patent attorneys plus support staff.

The firm's core service lines are patent and utility model prosecution (over 300 domestic and international cases annually across mechanical, electrical, chemical, and life sciences fields), trademark registration (approximately 10,000 cases assisted since founding), and design rights (approximately 4,000 registrations since founding). The firm supplements these core services with foreign patent filings, IP strategy consulting, and an educational seminar program — most notably the long-running Gifu University IP Seminar series held on the third Friday of odd months. Service delivery is direct from the Gifu headquarters, supported by an international referral network spanning India, the United States, South America, and other regions, with in-house Chinese-speaking staff providing dedicated China IP expertise. The firm does not publish pricing or financial information.

Revenue is generated entirely through professional services fees on a project/retainer basis typical of Japanese patent attorney firms. The client base spans domestic Japanese companies requiring IP protection and international companies seeking Japanese and global IP coverage; no specific customer names, logos, or segment revenue splits are disclosed. The firm holds no subsidiaries, has no parent company, has not raised external funding, and has no public listing. Recognition includes annual selection by Managing Intellectual Property magazine as the only Tokai-region firm in both patent prosecution and trademark categories, a WTR 1000 Luminary designation (2020), and Asia IP Top 5 recognition (2019).

Name

HIROE AND ASSOCIATES, Patent Professional Corporation

Legal name

弁理士法人 広江アソシエイツ特許事務所 (Hiroe and Associates, Patent Professional Corporation)

Website

https://hiroe.co.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

1979

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

HIROE AND ASSOCIATES is a privately-held Japanese patent professional corporation founded in 1979 in Gifu, providing patent prosecution, trademark, and design registration services to domestic and international clients across mechanical, chemical, and life sciences fields via seven specialized attorneys and a global referral network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Intellectual Property Legal Services

NAICS

Legal Services (5411), Offices of Lawyers (541110), Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (541)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Patent Prosecution & Portfolio Management (BPAHAMAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

IP Search, Watch & Competitive Intelligence (BPAHAMAI), IP Filing, Annuities & Renewals Administration (BPAHAMAJ)

Keywords

• Patent prosecution services
• Trademark registration services
• Design rights registration
• Intellectual property consulting
• Utility model filing services

Headquarters

HQ city

Gifu City

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Patent and Utility Model Services: Handles over 300 domestic and international patent/utility model applications annually across electronics, machinery, chemistry, and life sciences fields.
2. Trademark Services: Assisted with approximately 10,000 trademarks domestically and internationally since founding.
3. Design Rights Services: Helped obtain approximately 4,000 design registrations for domestic and international clients since founding.
4. IP Strategy Consulting: Consulting on intellectual property strategies and conducting IP-related seminars.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

HIROE AND ASSOCIATES is a Japanese patent professional corporation providing intellectual property services including patent and utility model prosecution (over 300 cases annually), trademark registration (about 10,000 since founding), and design rights registration (about 4,000 since founding). Services are delivered by specialist patent attorneys across machinery, electrical, chemical, pharmaceutical, and textile fields, with dedicated Chinese-speaking staff for China-related matters and a foreign filing network covering jurisdictions worldwide.

Product overview

HIROE AND ASSOCIATES is a patent professional corporation (弁理士法人) providing comprehensive intellectual property services. The firm offers a unified suite of IP services including patent/utility model prosecution (handling over 300 cases annually), trademark registration (approximately 10,000 cases since founding), and design rights (approximately 4,000 cases). The core service portfolio is supplemented by foreign filing services, IP strategy consulting, and educational programs including regular Gifu University intellectual property seminars and internal Patent Study Group research presentations. The firm employs specialists across physics/engineering, machinery, pharmaceutical sciences, and information technology fields.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Patent and Utility Model Rights Services (特許権/実用新案権) Handles patent and utility model filings and prosecution for domestic and international clients, with over 300 cases per year managed by specialist staff in machinery, electrical, chemical, and life sciences. The service is targeted at companies and inventors seeking IP protection across diverse technology areas in Japan and overseas.
• Trademark Rights Services (商標権) Provides trademark registration and prosecution services for domestic and international clients. The firm has assisted with approximately 10,000 trademarks since establishment, supporting client brand protection in Japan and foreign markets.
• Design Rights Services (意匠権) Handles design rights filings and prosecution for domestic and international clients. The firm has assisted with approximately 4,000 design registrations since establishment, supporting product appearance and design protection in Japan and abroad.
• Other Intellectual Property Services (その他知的財産に関する業務) Covers foreign patent filings, intellectual property strategy consulting, and IP-related seminar implementation for clients needing cross-border IP coordination and strategic advisory beyond standard prosecution.

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered major.

• Moeller IPmajorTechnology or Integration · 10 October 2019Moeller IP has offices in Argentina, Brazil, Germany, and Uruguay with over 90 years of experience in South America. They have approximately 80 staff including lawyers and patent attorneys, handling patents, designs, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets.
• LexOrbismajorTechnology or Integration · 27 August 2018LexOrbis is based in New Delhi, India and collaborates with 137 countries' patent offices. They provide advice on patents, designs, trademarks, copyrights, and geographical indications. Known for their staff with product development and R&D experience who understand client backgrounds.
• clairvolexmajorTechnology or Integration · 15 May 2018clairvolex operates from 4 locations on the US West Coast and 2 locations in India. They manage patent portfolios for high-tech and life sciences companies globally with teams of engineers, scientists, and lawyers providing high-quality work.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• TMI Associates: TMI Associates is one of Japan's largest full-service IP and law firms with a deep patent prosecution bench across technical fields. It competes with Hiroe for Japanese corporate IP mandates but at much larger scale and broader geographic reach.

Direct peers

• Yuasa and Hara: Yuasa and Hara is a long-standing Japanese patent firm offering prosecution and IP litigation across technical fields. Comparable to Hiroe in its patent-prosecution focus and multi-decade operating history.
• Nakamura & Partners: Nakamura & Partners is a Tokyo-based patent firm handling prosecution, trademarks, and design rights across electronics, chemistry, and life sciences. It is one of the established Japanese patent boutiques comparable in scope to Hiroe.
• Kawamura & Partners (Kawamura Patent Office): Kawamura & Partners is a Japanese patent firm with broad prosecution and trademark expertise across technical fields. Similar in profile to Hiroe as a Japan-headquartered patent boutique.
• Shiga International Patent Office: Shiga International Patent Office is a Japanese patent firm providing patent, trademark, and design services with international filing support. Directly comparable to Hiroe in service mix and Japan-anchored IP practice.
• Asamura Patent & Trademark Law Office: Asamura is a Japanese IP firm handling patent prosecution, trademarks, and designs with strong international filing capability. Comparable to Hiroe across the same core service areas and Japanese client base.
• Aoyama & Partners: Aoyama & Partners is a Japanese patent firm offering prosecution, opposition, and IP litigation services. Operates in the same niche as Hiroe with comparable multi-decade history.

Regional players

• Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner: Finnegan is a leading US IP firm with strong patent prosecution practice. While US-based and not directly competing in Japan, it represents the kind of large international IP firm that Japanese corporates engage alongside domestic firms like Hiroe.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hiroe-and-associates

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about HIROE AND ASSOCIATES, Patent Professional Corporation