New Lawyer Declares Ghosn's Woes an “Internal” Matter

Carlos Ghosn’s new lead lawyer blasts Nissan Motor Co., prosecutors and Japan’s courts for their handling of the ex-chairman’s financial woes.

High-profile attorney Junichiro Hironaka (pictured) is nicknamed The Razor for his combative style. He promises a far more colorful defense than his predecessor, former prosecutor Motonari Otsuru.

In his first media briefing, Hironaka declared Japan’s court system out of step with international norms, Reuters reports. The court handling Ghosn’s case has refused to release him from jail since his arrest on Nov. 19, even after Ghosn offered to turn over his passport, wear a tracking device, meet daily with prosecutors and live under guard in a Tokyo apartment he would pay for himself.

Ghosn is charged with failing as Nissan’s chairman to report $82 million in deferred compensation over eight years and transferring personal currency trade losses to Nissan. Hironaka says Ghosn is innocent of all charges and asserts that Nissan’s concerns should have been handled as an internal matter.

But experts tell Reuters that a change in defense style won’t alter Ghosn’s defense strategy. They also note that only about 3% of defendants in Japan who plead not guilty, as Ghosn has done, are acquitted. Virtually no one who claim innocence is granted bail.