Japanese gaming tycoon Kazuo Okada has lost all official roles at Okada Manila after the Supreme Court lifted the order that had temporarily reinstated him as shareholder, director, chairman, and CEO of the company operating the casino hotel.
On November 27, Jun Fujimoto, representative director and president of Universal Entertainment Corporation—the parent company of Okada Manila—issued a notice confirming the development. He stated that the Supreme Court denied Kazuo Okada’s petition in the intra-corporate case he filed against Tiger Resorts Leisure and Entertainment Inc. (TRLEI).
“With the denial of Kazuo Okada’s petition, the Supreme Court also immediately lifted the status quo ante order it issued last year,” Fujimoto said in the notice.
According to Fujimoto, the Supreme Court ruled on November 13, 2023, that Kazuo filed his action beyond the allowable period for contesting corporate elections. The Court also confirmed that TRLEI had properly removed Kazuo from his positions.
Moreover, the ruling stated that Kazuo held only one nominal share in TRLEI and that the company had revoked that share in 2017. The Supreme Court also affirmed that Kazuo does not control Okada Holdings Limited (OHL), the ultimate parent company of Okada Manila.
Fujimoto emphasized that courts in Japan and Hong Kong had already issued final judgments recognizing Tomohiro Okada as the majority shareholder of OHL. Philippine authorities have acknowledged those rulings.
In June 2022, Kazuo’s group forcefully took over Okada Manila by invoking the Supreme Court’s earlier status quo ante order. However, with that order now lifted and his petition denied, Kazuo no longer holds any legal authority over the property or its operations.
