Christopher Yang is a global legal, compliance, risk and strategy executive serving as chief legal officer and senior vice president for Toyota Motor North America (TMNA), and as deputy chief compliance officer and deputy chief risk officer for Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC).

As TMNA’s chief legal officer and senior vice president leading Enterprise Integrity, Yang oversees the company’s Legal, Compliance and Audit, Regulatory Affairs and Environmental Sustainability functions within TMNA. In this role, he advises the enterprise on strategic, legal and regulatory matters while navigating complex compliance and governance challenges to advance business objectives and sustainable growth.

Yang also leads Enterprise Strategy and Solutions, overseeing TMNA’s enterprise and new business strategy, corporate development and business development functions. He advances Toyota’s North American strategy across both core and new business, and drives strategic growth and innovation through investments, acquisitions, strategic partnerships and initiatives that support the company’s mobility transformation. Known for integrating legal, compliance, risk and business strategy, Yang advises Toyota’s senior leadership on innovation and enterprise transformation in complex global environments.

In his global role as TMC’s deputy chief compliance officer and deputy chief risk officer, Yang oversees enterprise compliance and risk initiatives across Toyota’s seven global regions. He leads TMC’s global investigations and enterprise-wide compliance initiatives and helps shape Toyota’s global enterprise risk management framework.

Yang serves as senior advisor for Toyota Connected North America (TCNA) and is a member of TCNA’s Board of Directors. He is also on the Board of Governors of the Japanese American National Museum and a council leader of the U.S.-Japan Council. Additionally, he serves as the executive sponsor of Toyota Asian American Society in Alliance (TAASiA).

Prior to joining Toyota in 2011, Yang worked at the law firm of Latham & Watkins LLP, where he advised clients on mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, and complex cross-border transactions. Fluent in Japanese, Yang was seconded to GE Money Japan during his time at Latham.

Yang earned his bachelor’s degree in political science with high distinction from the University of California, Berkeley and was elected Phi Beta Kappa in 2000, and received his law degree from Georgetown University Law Center in 2003.

A lifelong practitioner of the martial art of kendo, Yang holds a 7^th degree black belt and currently serves as the manager of the U.S. National Kendo Team. A former captain and longtime member of the U.S. Men’s National Kendo Team for over 18 years, Yang led the United States to two silver medal (2006 and 2009) and three bronze medal finishes (2003, 2012, 2015) at the World Kendo Championships, and is the former U.S. National Men’s Kendo Champion.

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