Legal Services

September 2001

The government plans to sign an international treaty on combating money laundering by terrorists by the end of this year. The treaty is intended to inhibit terrorist groups by making it a punishable offense to donate money to associated organizations. Ratification has been delayed by the need to change domestic laws. The government hopes to sign and ratify the treaty this year and pass related revisions to the criminal code and other domestic laws at next year's regular Diet sessions. Japan has signed and ratified 10 of 12 international treaties against terrorism. It has delayed signing the money-laundering pact and ratifying an already signed treaty on preventing terrorist bombings because of the need for legal changes. The government has decided to move ahead with the legal changes and ratify the outstanding treaties to keep pace with the heightened international determination to fight with terrorism since attacks on the U.S on Sept. 11th. (September 26, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun)

The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) will introduce export controls by placing all products under its jurisdiction. Steel plates, cement, power generators and general electronics components exporters will require authorization for export from the minister, if there is a possibility they could be used in the production of missiles or weapons of mass destruction such as nuclear arms. After gaining Cabinet approval, METI will put the expanded catch-all regime into effect next year, which has already been employed by major industrial nations. The United States had been calling on Japan to adopt the catch-all approach before the terrorist attacks. There is no need to revise the foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Control Law itself. An advisory panel will review a revision to an ordinance on export and trade control. METI is considering imposing penalties or suspending exports if violations are found. Only Japan and Canada have yet to place the catch-all controls on exporters among the G-8 industrialized nations. Canada plans to introduce them this year. (September 23, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun, September 24, the Japan Times)

The government will form a judicial reform body involving all ministers of Prime Minister Koizumi's Cabinet by the end of the year. Within three years, the entity will seek to implement reforms to the country's judicial system proposed by the Judicial Reform Council in its final report. It will also establish an advisory committee of academics, as well as a secretariat consisting of representatives from the Japan Federation of Bar Associations, the Supreme Court, the Justice Ministry and other ministries. The secretariat will be reorganized from the current 35-member office for the promotion of judicial reform, which served under the Cabinet Office, and its staff will be increased to over 50. It will help revise laws by setting up panels of lawyers and experts to discuss themes proposed by the Judicial Reform Council. Issues include the creation of a system under which citizens assist judges in criminal cases and implementation of a new bar exam upon the establishment of a law-school system. Minutes of discussions at the headquarters, the advisory committee and the panels will be posted on the Internet, with e-mail responses to be solicited from the public. (September 5, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun )