Kyoko Ishida

Ethics and Regulations of Legal Service Providers in Japan: De-regulation or Re-regulation? Remaining Problems After the Justice System Reform Kyoko Ishida

The Japanese Justice System Reform, began in 1999, is called the third fundamental reform of the judiciary in modern Japanese history. This Reform took place in the midst of administrative deregulation policies and was constituted as ?the final linchpin? in a series of reforms. Under this policy, those people who provide legal services both in and outside of court with a license were subject to various reforms. This book examines ethics and regulations of these legal service providers and points out their distinctive characteristics. While the Reform decided to deregulate the legal service market aiming that an increase in legal services will help individuals form social connections ?as self- determinative beings,? these reforms were conducted without changing the essential regulatory schemes of the market. Accordingly, an increase of legal services may take a different path than the government envisioned. This work should help shed some light on this ongoing regulatory reform of the legal service market in Japan, and should be especially helpful to professionals who are interested in legal profession in Japan.