Kyoto & Tokyo Seminar, Ritsumeikan University School of Law

Intensive Courses on Japanese Law in Kyoto & Tokyo

The Kyoto/Tokyo seminar is a two-week intensive course held in Kyoto and Tokyo, Japan. The seminars are run by Ritsumeikan University as part of the Japanese Ministry of Education special purpose grant for development of study programs in Japan.

News

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  • Kyoto/Tokyo Seminar 2023/2024 applications are now open. We are waiting for your application!
  • To all Kyoto/Tokyo Seminar participants, we are pleased that the Kyoto/Tokyo Seminars will be held in February 2023. For your review, please visit the introduction podcast series via YouTube on Japanese Law developed by the Australian Network for Japanese Law (ANJeL) in collaboration with the Japan Studies Association of Australia (JSAA) at ( japaneselaw.sydney.edu.au ) or click here prior to the seminars.
  • We are very excited to announce that Kyoto/Tokyo Seminar 2023 will be resumed after two years. Applications will be open shortly; however, the number of applications will be restricted to prevent infection of ongoing COVID-19.

Outline

  • Kyoto Seminar
    Intensive Classes
    on Japanese law
  • Tokyo Seminar
    Intensive Classes
    on Law and Economy
  • Classes
    All classes will be conducted in English
  • THE UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY
  • Ritsumeikan University School of Law

The Kyoto & Tokyo Seminars are regular classes held as a partnership program with the University of Sydney Law School, in cooperation with the Australian Network for Japanese Law (ANJeL). ANJeL is an initiative of the law faculties at the Australian National University and the University of Sydney. The core aim of ANJeL is to promote scholarly engagement with Japanese law, especially in Australia.
For more information, please refer to the following website. Also, browse via YouTube short interviews with many of the Kyoto & Tokyo Seminar lecturers, about many areas of Japanese Law!

  • Australian Network for Japanese Law (ANJeL)
  • YouTube

Director's Welcome

  • Hello, everyone! I am the director of the Kyoto and Tokyo Seminars. At the Kyoto Seminar, we will learn about the core fields of Japanese law on the campus of Ritsumeikan University in the ancient capital, Kyoto. And at the Tokyo Seminar, we will learn more about business and law on the campus of Ritsumeikan University in the present capital, Tokyo. Learning about the history and contemporary problems of Japanese law with Japanese students in two big cities should be a valuable opportunity for you. I look forward to the participation of many students!

    Professor Naoya Yamaguchi Program Director for the Kyoto and Tokyo Seminars
    Ritsumeikan University School of Law
  • I strongly encourage you to take up this unique educational experience. Consider the What, Who, How, When and Why for these Kyoto and Tokyo Seminars in Japanese Law.

    • WHAT? This an intensive course in English comparing key diverse topics in Japanese Law, ranging from Criminal Justice through to Pop Culture and Law.
    • WHO? The Seminars are taught to Japanese and Australian but also some other international students, mostly majoring in law. Lecturers combine Japan- and Australia-based professors and practitioners expert in Japanese law.
    • HOW? Each topic is co-taught by two lecturers, usually one based or from abroad plus one Japanese expert, to maximise viewpoint diversity among teachers as well as the mixed group of students. Discussions in small groups include at least one Japanese student, who often know very well the subject-matter but need to try to communicate and apply this knowledge of Japanese Law topics in a different language and sometimes quite different legal concepts. A field trip includes visits to the Osaka courts and Bar Association, learning what it is like to work in Japan as both local and foreign lawyers.
    • WHEN and WHY? The Seminars are taught in Japan early February (except for 2021 due to the pandemic). They were inaugurated from 2005, soon after Japanese universities added new postgraduate "Law School" programs for LLB or non-law graduates. Japan's new Law Schools were aimed at a new style of legal education and national legal examination, to increase and diversify the numbers of Japanese lawyers, judges and prosecutors as part of wide-ranging reforms to its civil and criminal justice systems. Australian law students are increasingly encouraged by their universities and government to study abroad, especially in Asia, where many graduates now end up spending at least part of their legal or other careers.
    Professor Luke Nottage Co-director of the Australian Network for Japanese Law (ANJeL)
    The University of Sydney Law School
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Past Lecturers(2018 -)

*Alphabetized by last name
Name Affiliation
Anderson, Kent Australian National University
Araki, Takashi Tokyo University
Burch, Micah University of Sydney
Colombo, Giorgio Nagoya University
Dabner, Justin James Cook University
Hirano, Tetsuro Ritsumeikan University
Ibusuki, Makoto Seijo University
Ishida, Kyoko Waseda University
Kadomatsu, Narufumi Kobe University
Kamiya, Masako Gakushuin University
Kimijima, Akihiko Ritsumeikan University
Kozuka, Soichiro Gakushuin University
Mestecky, Jiri M. Kitahama Partners
Morishita, Tetsuo Sophia University
Nottage, Luke University of Sydney
Obayashi, Yoshihiro Yodoyabashi & Yamagami Legal Professional Corporation
Saigusa, Kenji Waseda University
Takeuchi, Haruhisa Former Senior Officier at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Tamura, Yoko University of Tsukuba Law School
Wani, Akihiro Greenberg Trauring Registered Foreign Attorneys Office
Wolf, Michael Ritsumeikan University
Wolff, Leon Queensland University of Technology
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