730-327 Law & Society In Japan

Credit Points

HECS Band

Coordinator

Prerequisites

Torts and the Process of Law; History and Philosophy of Law I and II. No knowledge of Japan or Japanese language is assumed.

Semester

Contact

Subject Description

For the last few decades, Japan has been constructed as a unique society whose regulatory and industrial organisation presented a blueprint for other developing economies. The Asian financial crisis has forced analysts to re-think this model, including the role of law and legal institutions. This subject gives students an opportunity to consider a range of views on Japanese regulation in light of major economic and social change. We examine the origins of Japan's law and legal institutions and their periodic adaptation to new challenges, such as colonization; directed industrial development; complexity in commercial transactions; failures of corporate governance; and excessive use of government power; mass torts; environmental damage; demands for new civil rights; expectations of gender equity. We examine the core principles within each of the major areas of Japanese law; their application to a contemporary problem; and the directions of legal change. For each topic, students are asked to consider and compare a selection of accounts by western and Japanese legal scholars and to develop their own perspective. Both forms of assessment offer an opportunity to analyse an issue relevant to international legal practice, or to explore broader questions of comparative law and culture and Japan's place in Asian and international regulatory regimes.

Note: This is an approved legal theory subject. The essay in this subject is regarded as a substantial piece of legal writing for honours purposes.

Assessment

If the enrolment is less than 50 students: a research assignment of 5000 words (100%) or a final exam 3 hours (100%).

or

If the enrolment is more than 50 students: a final exam 3 hours (100%).

Prescribed Texts

Printed materials will be issued by the Faculty of Law.